Damage to a rental property, should the tenant be given the opportunity to right it?

johnsons_baby

Hi,

I am posting this on behalf of the in-laws who have a buy to let.

The tenants have been living there since March 09 on a 6 month AST, they are now on a rolling month to month contract.

They went to the property today to do a visual check (in Oct all was OK) but they have been distraught to find that the tenants have really made a mess of the place.

Kids have been drawing on the walls- every single wall has a drawing on
They've attempted to right this but getting some sort fo scraper to the wall, gauging the paint work
Heat damage to windowsill in 3 rooms
Gauging of wood on the banistair
Mould caused by condensation in all rooms with radiators
Lampshades broken
Gauges out of the laminate floor
Staining, chewing gum on several carpets
Broken cupboard doors in the kitchen
Garden in state, patio slabs broken, taken up and basically not maintained (it was in their tenancy they had to maintain the garden)

Basically, my in laws wish to give them notice now, they are going to give them 3 months notice to be fair (!!!!) but they also want to let the property again, however, it is going to need at the very minimum repainting, replacing the laminate and professional carpet cleaning.

The tenants have turned the house into a filth pit unfortunately.

My in-laws have the tenants bond in the DPS but they are wary of letting the tenants repair the house but they are not sure if they have to offer them the opportunity to do so, they would prefer to get quotes and agree to deduct the money from the tenants bond.

Can anyone advise where the stand legally in this regard?

clutton_2

firstly - if your inlaws are new to this.. then i suggest they join National Landlords Association immediately and get proper legal advice from the NLA legal helpline about how to end this tenancy... giving a tenant (who they obviosly want out) 3 months notice is madness....

did they issue an Inventgory when the tenants moved in ?>

if they did not - then they have no record of the state of the property on move-in, so they will not be able to charge the tenants anything....

how i end my tenancies is to arrange a pre-final-checkout visit about a week before tenants leave and go round the house specifying what needs doing in terms of cleaning.....

Damage - which is what your tenants have done is fully refundable from the deposit - ONLY if you have an inventory signed by tenant and landlord and if the AST specifies what the Deposit is for....

however, this mess sounds as if there will be a serious disagreement with tenants if they do this pre-inventory inspection

some folks just have different standards to you....

i never let tenants repair houses.. they are not professoinals and will only make a mess

debtfreein2009

I undertsand that all contacts are pretty much the same and that the property should be left in the same state it was found it, allowing for reasonable wear and tear. At the moment, our tentant has given notice and we've got the same issue with artwork on the walls. Our tentant have been made aware that the walls will have to be re-painted to a decent standard. We had an independent inventory done before the tentant moved in and will pay to get one done when they move it. Any differences will have to be restored at the cost by the tentant, after allowing wear and tear. Sorry I can't give any more advice, but I think the tentant should be allowed to try and resolve the issues first. If it's not upto a decent standard you could try and comprise with an agreed amount for work to be done out of the deposit. Without a inventory though, it may be hard to prove neglect/ damage has occured during their tenancy. Might need to put it down to experience and move forward from it.

Seem to have crossed posts with clutton on advice about the inventory.....takes me ages to type and then publish a comment! It is a good point made by clutton about the tentant trying to repair damage and you may well end up paying even more to put it right.

Fire_Fox

If your in-laws are distraught I would suggest they may not be cut out for being landlords. Did your in-laws give written notice before inspecting the property? Are they experienced in the correct way to serve a section 21 notice to quit? If not you may wish to direct them to the Landlordzone website.

Tenants have the responsibility to return the property in the same condition they found it, they have no responsibility to maintain the property during the tenancy other than to behave in a tenant-like manner. This means the tenants can attempt to repair the damage by the time they vacate, but not afterwards. Cleanliness during the tenancy is outside the remit of a landlord unless it is causing problems with pest control or other Environmental Health issues.

Was there a detailed dual signed inventory, preferably recording the condition of the decor and including photographs, and taken at the start of the tenancy? It may be worth including a copy of this with the S21 notice to quit and politely reminding the tenants that this is the expected condition at checkout. I would not get into a debate by listing perceived damage at this stage.

Edit: cross posted with both the above!!!

johnsons_baby

They did have an professional, photographed and detailed inventory done, signed by the tenants and them, I did just have to text them and check as I wasn't sure, but yes there is an agreed inventory.

They are allowing for normal wear and tear but I went with Mum In Law today and I was shocked (not easily shocked I hasen to add!) by the condition.

I don't think they are cut out for landlord-ing it really but there you go, their choice!

They gave them 2 weeks written notice and telephoned them twice to let them know, once last week and once on Monday.

lizzielondon

clutton you would probably know this?

if there wasn't an inventory could they possibly get the tenants to confirm they did the damage? maybe over email? if the tenants don't understand there should have been an inventory maybe they would admit in discussion of putting it right?

OP, did your inlaws talk to them about it there and then? did they 'admit' they'd done it?

i spent ages the other week getting a tiny mark off one of our (our lls) dining chairs, even though we hope to stay here until we can buy somewhere i'm so conscious it's not our stuff- i can not believe people do this!

G_M

I'd be wary about tentants (sorry, tenants) re-painting walls. They are likely to splash it around. However, if they do, and do a good job, that's fine. If they drip paint on the carpets or the joins are messy between walls/ceilings whatever, then it'll need professional re-painting again.

I guess the answer to your Q is, let them know what needs doing and that the deposit is to cover this, and see if they rectify or not.

The risk is, of course, that having warned them you'll be deducting (perhaps 100%?) from their deposit, they don't pay the last month (or 2) of rent. You then have to decide if its worth chasing them through the courts for the damage....

lizzielondon

sorry cross posted!

johnsons_baby

Yes, we did advise them of the damage we found, I left a note detailing it as well, we didn't mention about deducting it from the bond or actually anything about rectifying the damage because we weren't sure how we would go about it, whether it would be from the bond or whether we'd have to give tenants the opportunity to rectify it.

Ideally, my in-laws would like someone they know who can clean the carpets and to get a professional painter in.

The tenants said they understood about the damage, not sure whether you'd class that as an admission.

I'm drafting a letter to them tomorrow about this so do you think I can safely suggest that we get someone in to quote for the damage to be repaired and suggest we deduct it from the bond?

Fire_Fox

You really should not be addressing the damage until it is officially recorded at checkout, and you should not be writing letters to the tenants if you are not party to the AST! Once it has been noted the damage deposit should be put under dispute and at that stage your in-laws get quotes for making good: no tradesmen should go in at this stage, the tenants have the right to quite enjoyment.

Please get your in-laws to join a landlord's association as Clutton suggested as a matter of urgency.

johnsons_baby

I will do Fire Fox, I wasn't sending the letter, just writing the letter for my Mum in Law, who would sign it and send it to them tenants but I will advise MIL to join LA ASAP