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Agent refusing to refund depost - help!
MrsRidgeback
Posts: 6 Forumite
I am the landlord of a property which was let through a Letting Agency. I subsequently managed the property myself and the agents had no further involvement.
The tenants paid the agent a deposit of £560 before they moved into the property. Their contract was for six months. At the end of the six months, the agent contacted the tenants and asked for £75 to renew the contract.
They refused to pay this to the agent so I made a contract between myself and the tenants at no extra charge.
The tenants have now left the property and I am unable to contact them as their visas were not renewed and they have left the country.
I have requested the agent that the deposit be paid to me so that I can replace damaged items in the house and have the garden and outside area cleaned.
The agent originally wanted to retain £50 from the deposit for checking the house after the tenants left (he did not check it before they moved in), and £75 for renewing their contract (they refused to renew it through him because of the charge)
Because I have questioned these charges, the agent is now refusing to refund any of the deposit to me.
He says he did not need to lodge the deposit with one of the government agencies as he has indemnity insurance.
What can I do?
The tenants paid the agent a deposit of £560 before they moved into the property. Their contract was for six months. At the end of the six months, the agent contacted the tenants and asked for £75 to renew the contract.
They refused to pay this to the agent so I made a contract between myself and the tenants at no extra charge.
The tenants have now left the property and I am unable to contact them as their visas were not renewed and they have left the country.
I have requested the agent that the deposit be paid to me so that I can replace damaged items in the house and have the garden and outside area cleaned.
The agent originally wanted to retain £50 from the deposit for checking the house after the tenants left (he did not check it before they moved in), and £75 for renewing their contract (they refused to renew it through him because of the charge)
Because I have questioned these charges, the agent is now refusing to refund any of the deposit to me.
He says he did not need to lodge the deposit with one of the government agencies as he has indemnity insurance.
What can I do?
0
Comments
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Sue him, small claims process..you'll need time, patience & money.
IMHO it is essential all crooks are pursued for crimes & money owed.. otherwise they just get cocky, more confident & assume they can keep getting away with it..0 -
the agent is a dodgy back street one, right? sure sounds like it. send a letter from your solicitor mentioning small claims court, you will get your money.Target Savings by end 2009: 20,000
current savings: 20,500 (target hit yippee!)
Debts: 8000 (student loan so doesnt count)
new target savings by Feb 2010: 30,0000 -
""so I made a contract between myself and the tenants at no extra charge.""
did you sign an agreement with the agent at the beginning and if so what does it say about ending the contract ?0 -
The deposit belongs to the tenants.FREEDOM IS NOT FREE0
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No extra charge to whom?? Lemme guess, the rent was the same so you were receiving extra charge of more rent each month... I could of course be wrong...0
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The deposit belongs to the tenants.
I agreee, but I believe I am allowed to deduct money to cover the cost of the damage they have done to the property?
The tenants told me that they had to leave the country because their visas were not renewed and I have no way of contacting them. I have no objection at all to the remainder of the deposit being refunded to them, but I do object to the agent keeping it all!0 -
theartfullodger wrote: »No extra charge to whom?? Lemme guess, the rent was the same so you were receiving extra charge of more rent each month... I could of course be wrong...
No, I did not receive any extra rent. This was the first time I had used this agent to find tenants for me, I have always arranged the contracts myself in the past. I never charge my tenants for renewing the contract. Sorry if I didn't make this clear in my first post.0 -
When did the original tenancy agreement commence?0
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You have a problem. As the landlord, the agent should have given you the tennants deposit at the commencement of the rental. This should have been kept by you by way of security for damages, breakages, unpaid utility bills etc on YOUR property. What is the point in an agent keeping the deposit, it is your property, not the agents. If the agent kept the deposit then there is very little you can do other than threaten him with legal action, but it sounds like there was not a proper contract so the chances of you winning are probably less than zero.0
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