First house inspection in 6.5yrs

qw3rt7

hi, i have rented the same property for 6.5yrs. I rent through an agency, and have never met the landlord.
The property is (and always has been since i moved in) pretty shoddy, being a late 50s/early 60s quick build, eg no brick or plaster. Internal and external walls are fiber board, with woodchip inside and wooden cladding outside. The roof is flat and felted. Its is pretty cheap and in a sort after area though.

Anyway, out of the blue, the agency has asked to visit for a property inspection, and i'm a bit worried.

1)The carpets are the cheap, thin office variety, and where pretty worn when i moved in, so are now after 6.5yrs pretty knackered. Having dug out the tenancy, it seems to suggest i'm responsible for paying for wear and tear. Is that allowed?

2) In November i cracked a window. I accept this is my fault. However when i contacted the agency to ask for a copy of the landlord building insurance (thinking it might have covered accidental damage to windows), after a month of delays and excuses, i was told 'informally' that he doesnt have any because the type of house doesnt have a long life expectancy (the steel structure tends to rot was what i was actually told by the owners of the agency!!). The tenancy specifically says he should have buildings insurance, so does this improve my position at all?

3) A close inspection of the property from inside and out (by me, im no surveyor) seems to support the low life expectancy thing.
Outside: wooden 'trim' under guttering and at bottom of walls appear to be pretty rotten. Cladding in poor condition.
Inside: large gaps (up to 2cm) between tops of walls and ceiling. You can see light from adjourning rooms through some! numerous cracks (up to 1.5mm) in most walls.
Doors upstairs hard to open/close, seems the frames have distorted?
All these symptoms were apparent when i moved in, they have just got worse.
However i haven't bothered to report these structural things, as they where already there in a lesser state when i moved in, do you think i will be 'in trouble' for this?

Sorry for the essay, all help appreciated.
Thanks

charliee_3

sounds like the house is on its last legs, when they come to inspect it i'd point out all the structural things wrong wth it and ask them to recify it. i wouldnt live in a house in that condition...

qw3rt7

Agreed, the only reason im still living here is the price. i'm saving for a deposit, and would have to move to a real scrum bucket area to find somewhere for the same price. I would rather have a cr8ppy house in a nice area than vice versa!

VKay

I agree with Charliee- think POSITIVE! This is your chance to ask for repairs, new carpet in living room, repaint of kitchen and all those things that have been bothering you! It sounds like no maintenance has been done in all the time you've been there paying rent? Now is your opportunity to get your money's worth.

Why not write a list and talk the agent through it as you walk around the house with them? Don't let them come when you're out- you need to be in control of the inspection and make it clear from your attitude that you are the one who will benefit form the meeting!

Good luck with it- just do some prep beforehand and you will have the upperhand.

princeofpounds

1) No, no matter what the tenancy agreement says you are not responsible for wear and tear. This is set out in statute as a LL responsibility and contract cannot override that. (assuming you are on a housing act tenancy, which I'm sure you are).

2) Not really, you'll probably have to pay for this.

3) Probably not, fabric of the building is not your concern, as long as these are not new problems.

PasturesNew

After 6.5 years it's about time they popped round to make sure it's still standing and see if they can be 4rsed to replace anything that's really shabby.

As #5 said:
1) No
2) You did it, you have to pay for the fix
3) No