can landlord deduct their own labour from a deposit

freezspirit

I remember a friend telling me it was written in her letting contract that if the property needed to be cleaned/redecorated after she vacated she would lose a precentage/or all of her deposit to cover charges.

And as her deposit was quite alot because of her age and no having references she was worried she wouldn't get it back. So a week before she had to hand the keys over to the landlord she redecorated the flat as luckily her boyfriend was in the trade so they used leftover paints etc.

Not only did she get her full deposit back but the landlord was so pleased with the look of the flat he gave or extra cos it saved him having to get people in to do it and could rerent faster.

Although another friend had basically a job charge list on his contract for example general tidy/clean up and vaccum £25, repainting £35 per wall or £100 per room and if any belonging were left a daily storage fee would be made.

Jowo_2

I don't know if a landlord can legitimately charge for their time but others will.

Don't know many landlords who would want to pull on the marigolds and scrub away months of dirt for many hours when they can send in a cleaning agency with a single phone call and let the tenant pick up the full professional cost.

Jowo_2

hostie wrote: »

Hi,
I rent out a flat in Scotland and have had to spend a few days cleaning it after the tenants moved out. Is it legal to deduct money from their deposit to cover my own labour? If so, what would be a reasonable amount for this?
Thanks.

Zero if you didn't have a comprehensive signed inventory/schedule of condition in place at the outset of the tenancy.

This is because,in the event that your tenant disputes it and takes you to the sheriff court, you have no proof that they were responsible for any changes and will lose the case.

hostie

Thanks, these responses are really helpful. I have just downloaded the photographs I took of the flat onto my computer and am horrified at how dirty the tenants had left the place. I guess I had forgotten after all the cleaning! I will remember to pay tax on the amount I deducted.
In future I will take timed photographs as you suggest jmt.
Thanks again. I have another flat to look at on Monday. Fingers crossed this one is a bit cleaner than the last one...

Nenen

We have just been accepted as tenants (via an agency). Our tenancy agreement states that we have to pay a cleaning charge of £160 (to include cleaning of carpets) when we vacate the property. I was rather taken aback by this, particularly as there is also an £85 check-out charge and an "End of Tenancy Deduction Administration Charge: An administration fee of 15% of the cost of agreed deductions (not including fees) will be charged plus VAT". However, I have come to the conclusion that this means at least we know from the outset we will be paying this fee and will not spend hours cleaning (my least favourite occupation) only to be told that I have missed something and have to argue about it or make an unexpected payment.

When deciding whether or not to rent this property I divided these costs by 6 (minimum number of months we will be there for) and came to the conclusion that, even adding this to the monthly rent, it was still one of the cheapest properties that met our needs we had seen and certainly the nicest so I was prepared to put up with the charge to get the property (plus agree to pay for professional fumigation in order to be allowed to have our cat there)!

bristol_pilot

Nenen wrote: »

We have just been accepted as tenants (via an agency). Our tenancy agreement states that we have to pay a cleaning charge of £160 (to include cleaning of carpets) when we vacate the property. I was rather taken aback by this, particularly as there is also an £85 check-out charge and an "End of Tenancy Deduction Administration Charge: An administration fee of 15% of the cost of agreed deductions (not including fees) will be charged plus VAT". However, I have come to the conclusion that this means at least we know from the outset we will be paying this fee and will not spend hours cleaning (my least favourite occupation) only to be told that I have missed something and have to argue about it or make an unexpected payment.

This is probably an 'unfair contract term' i.e illegal. Your only obligation is to leave the flat in the same state that is was when you moved in. This could be achieved by cleaning it yourself, or by employing a professional cleaner. The 'checkout' charge is just taking the !!!!!!. Why on earth do people agree to this rubbish? It's a tenant's market at the moment. Good, professional, tenants hold most of the cards. Rent privately from a landlord and you won't have to pay this sort of charges.

Mips

Well I am debating moving out this week until the landlord cleans this filthy place up. I have had enough and have taken photographs for everything.

I am furious I signed an agreement based on what the agent told me.

Nenen

bristol_pilot wrote: »

This is probably an 'unfair contract term' i.e illegal. Your only obligation is to leave the flat in the same state that is was when you moved in. This could be achieved by cleaning it yourself, or by employing a professional cleaner. The 'checkout' charge is just taking the !!!!!!. Why on earth do people agree to this rubbish? It's a tenant's market at the moment. Good, professional, tenants hold most of the cards. Rent privately from a landlord and you won't have to pay this sort of charges.

Our experience in this area is that decent properties for a reasonable price are still quite hard to find and are snapped up quickly with only the grotty student lets hanging around for very long, although I have to say I think rental prices have fallen a little since we last had to find somewhere just over 2 years ago.

The reason why we have agreed to 'this rubbish' (which I agree wholeheartedly is unfair and unnecessary and possibly even illegal) is because we have been looking for somewhere to rent for several weeks and, having been given notice on our current rented home, have only four weeks left to get things sorted so unfortunately it is a case of 'beggars can't be choosers'.

We had hoped to find something with a private landlord (as this house is) but to be honest this hasn't been the easiest of experiences in many ways (long story). I have scoured websites, local papers and newsagent's windows, plus have access to the university accomodation list, all to no avail. This property we have just agreed to rent is just what we are looking for, in a location we really like and is significantly cheaper than anything else we have seen that meets our needs even with these scurrilous charges added on. Hence our decision to go with the flow!

I really wish letting agencies were better regulated, particularly regarding all the additional charges they can (and do) make.