rented house not fit for tenancy

Sutty

My family and I have recently moved into a rented house in scotland and are not happy with the condition/state of the house and are wondering what our rights are.
We initially viewed the house with the old tenants still occupying the house. We could only have a quick look around but we were happy with what we saw and more importantly the house was in a fantastic area for the kids. We paid a months rent in advance and a months rent bond and were told the house was available from the 9th August. The keys were posted to us as we were living over 500 miles from our new house.
On moving day (16th August) we arrived at the new house and were quite dissapointed with what we found. The estate agents had left an inventory for us to sign which contained things like "Green curtains, not sure where they are","Curtain rail falling down", "Door Jamming","Unable to get grill working","hob not working","extractor fan not working" to name but a few. The cleanliness was also of concern. The previous tenants had emptied the house but not cleaned it. we therefore had to undertake a full clean before we could unpack.
We have voiced our concerns with the estate agents but have been fobbed off to be honest. They claim everything will be sorted but we have been in the house approaching three weeks and are no closer to anything getting fixed.
I would now like to begin communications with them by writing as I am paying £450 per month for this house and it is not particularly fit to live in. The only thing I am bothered about is getting everything fixed so we can enjoy our new home. I would like to know where I stand with getting some of my rent refunded as the house is not what I would call tenatable.
Any pointers for what to include in my letter would be gratefully received along with any rights as a tenant I may have. Thank you in advance

Musigal86

Well similar boat. So I'd love to see what people on here think. We (4 students, but anally clean and tidy ones, we do exist) lived in a rented house last year, through an agency, and while it was ok, they are far from efficient and need poking constantly to fix things - of which there were numerous occasions, including the shower blowing sparks then exploding on us, the heating breaking, the locks not working.... but given that we are more organised than them we sort of worked everything out, and decided to stay for our final year too. The let is from 1 July to 30 June, and we pay half rent over July and August to hold it but can't live there (although they let us put some stuff in one room), and the landlord (and about 7 other people) have been living there over the summer. We were supposed to move in on 1st September, but we popped in and the house is in an appalling state. We left it absolutely spotless, every nook and cranny, much nicer than when we originally moved in, and it is now disgusting, bits and smells everywhere, sticky marks (including on our tv which we left them out of goodwill) and the kitchen is horrendous, as is the bathroom. Also found water damage on kitchen ceiling. We're going to pay them a visit tomorrow but I'm not sure what they're going to say, given how helpful they've been in the past. The contract doesn't technically say anything about them cleaning it before we move in, but isn't that standard practice, if not legally to let someone a property suitable to live in? Like Sutty, we would have to clean for ages before we could even unpack, and we are paying £1300 between 4 of us to live there, and at the moment it's uninhabitable! Can we claim back rent for the days it was like this? I have no choice but to move back in at the weekend. Also, we only have a mortice lock that locks from the inside, which sort of defeats the object, is this legal? I'm sure there are lots of things they could be in trouble for if push came to shove actually! Many thanks if anyone can advise!

clutton_2

"" Also, we only have a mortice lock that locks from the inside,""

so how do you leave your house in a secure state when you go out ?

i think you must go to the agent tomorrow and insist on someone coming back to the house with you there and then, just sit there, till someone does, and discuss it in the house. if they reduced the rent for the first week, would you be willing to clean it yourselves ?

They should have given you an inventory which lists the equipment in the house and the state of repair.

BUT most importantly, if they will not budge on this, take a video camera with you to the property and record your own "Inventory" just in case they get funny when you leave.

if they do not provide an inventory and they with-hold your deposit at the end, you will then have ample evidence to go to court with.

BUT - talk to them first

good luck

real1314

the inventory seems correct from what you've said - if they said that thing were working when they weren't, you could be held responsible for "breaking" them.
They've said the door jams, the grill/hob doesn't work etc to protect YOU.

Send a written request for all the defects to be fixed within 14 days, keep a copy.
If they are not done, send another letter giving 7 days to remedy, and pointing out that you will arrange the repairs if they are not done.

If they don't sort it, get 3 quotes per job, choose the cheapest and deduct the cost from your rent.

all IMO, and INAE.

Check with CAB and your council for qualified advice.