Any advice please

DaisyDuke

Sorry for the long thread..

I rented a house which I left for various reasons namely there was cluster flies in the roof space which they fell into the wall cavaties behind my bed and kept me awake at night.
They were being dealt with when a resident rat made its home in the roof also.

I learned from pest control that the rats were frequent visitors aside for a few other troubles the letting agent agreed to find me somewhere else.

Eventually they found me a property and I was able to decorate etc to my own taste because the owner had never seen the house it was his pension and I could be there for as long as I wanted.

I had a shower fitted and tiled the bathroom, carpeted the main living area because the carpets were disgusting.

I only had a six month contract to sign which I queried but was told because I was new still to renting and given what had happened in my last home this was standard practise.

2 months in the property was put on the market......

The owner has sold the house with my shower / carpet etc.

I have somewhere else to go and would like to leave a month early but the landlord won't agree and won't compensate me for the expense i incurred.

Lets not discuss the stress I am under trying to find somewhere, the fees for credit checks, tenancy agreements and inventories again. Plus the removal costs.

I want to know he has sold that house with the family bathroom listing a shower. and I guess the carpets will be included in the sale too

I could remove the shower and fill the holes - i can't take the tiles off the wall that would be ridiculous, I could take up the carpet and put the old carpet down as I still have it but that would cost me for a fitter.

I am a bankrupt, i borrowed the money to make the home habitable and now i won't benefit from those improvements.


His reponse so far has been - if yo utake the shoewr you have to replace it. I have told him there wasn't one when I moved in but he won't give me a straight answer.

The new buyer knows that I am in conversation about what is mine in the sale.

Does anyone have any advice please.

N79

You can take the shower with you if you wish, so long as you make good any damage caused in the removal. You can also replace the old carpets and take yours if you wish. Otherwise, your LL is acting within his rights.

Next time I would recommend that you don't spend money improving a rented property as you do not have much security of tenure (well none really) beyond your fixed period. Pick a property that already has the facilities you need.

Although you need to be realistic that with bankruptcy and a history of arguing (rightly or wrongly) with you previous 2 LLs you are going to be restricted to the lower end of the rental market.

DaisyDuke

but the LL has sold the property with my belongings in - I have told him that I am taking them and the new buyer thinks they are included in the sale.

I don't think your reply fits my query unless I am mistaken.

jenny74

Agree with what N79 says.

N79

DaisyDuke wrote: »

but the LL has sold the property with my belongings in - I have told him that I am taking them and the new buyer thinks they are included in the sale.

I don't think your reply fits my query unless I am mistaken.

My answer exactly matches your query. The items are yours and you can take them with you. Your LL can not sell them unless he first buys them from you. Any dispute between your LL and his purchaser over the LL's misrepresentations is nothing to do with you.

Of course, if you can not be bothered to remove them and make good then you are, in effect, gifting the items to your LL and then he will be able to sell them.

FTBFun

DaisyDuke wrote: »

but the LL has sold the property with my belongings in - I have told him that I am taking them and the new buyer thinks they are included in the sale.

Are you saying they are included in the list of Fixtures and Fittings with the sale of the property?

If so that seems wrong to me, as the vendor doesn't own them so can't sell them, surely?

DaisyDuke

First of all I am a discharged bankrupt (sorry my error)

I haven't argued with any landlords, my first house was put on the market as I chose not to continue living there given the pest problem and moved out after my initial six month contract.

this house - I was mis-informed that it would be a long tenancy both LA and Caretaker of the property are embarrassed that this happened to me

and I am not renting in the lower end of the market ........

the fixtures and fittings are indeed MY ITEMS and are itemised in the fixtures and fittings of the sale....... I know this because the new buyer has told me.

the new buyer is a cash buyer and wants to move in.

I believe the current owner is trying to have his cake and eat it buy pro-longing the deal in order to get more rent from me.

But don't worry I shall continue sorting this out myself - I didn't write on her to be pre-judged or told off for making my home nice to live in whether I own it or not!

N79

DaisyDuke wrote: »

First of all I am a discharged bankrupt (sorry my error)

I haven't argued with any landlords, my first house was put on the market as I chose not to continue living there given the pest problem and moved out after my initial six month contract.

One of the problems of the written word is that the tone of text can be missed. The purpose of the bracket in my post was to indicate that I was not making a judgement about your circumstances - I was only pointing out that future prospective LLs will only be able to see "dispute" on your past 2 tenancies if they ask for LL references and this will combine with your bankruptcy status to put off a number of LLs from accepting you as a T.

this house - I was mis-informed that it would be a long tenancy both LA and Caretaker of the property are embarrassed that this happened to me

You have quite clearly been shafted by a !!!! of a LL. You have my sympathy.

and I am not renting in the lower end of the market ........

I did not say that you were. My point was that with your history you are going to struggle to get many decent LLs to accept you as a T. This means that you may end up being left at the grottier end of the market, although bad luck can happen to anyone. This means you will need to take extra care in your vetting of potential LLs. There is a sticky on this forum with a huge number of good tips for next time.

the fixtures and fittings are indeed MY ITEMS and are itemised in the fixtures and fittings of the sale....... I know this because the new buyer has told me.

the new buyer is a cash buyer and wants to move in.

This is your LL's problem. If they are so stupid as to try to sell something which is not theirs then this merely confirms our opinion of him as a pratt.

I believe the current owner is trying to have his cake and eat it buy pro-longing the deal in order to get more rent from me.

Almost certainly, but then his status as a !!!! has already been clearly established.

But don't worry I shall continue sorting this out myself - I didn't write on her to be pre-judged or told off for making my home nice to live in whether I own it or not!

No one has prejudged you (although I have prejudged your LL). I hope that you can see the points that I was trying to make.

If it was me I would make sure that I either removed the shower and carpets or made sure the LL paid me for them just to prove a point to the LL - but then I am stubborn.

Doozergirl

Daisy, I think you've got defensive for no reason. No one is having a go at you nor have they judged you at all.

N79 has offered nothing but help.

You can't break your tenancy early I'm afraid. If your contract is signed for six months then you are liable for payment of the rent until the end of that time. I'm afraid that the LL has shafted you but as said, you shouldn't spend money on fixtures for a rental property because you don't have the security of tenure.

You have been taken for a ride by your landlord.

MobileSaver

DaisyDuke wrote: »

the fixtures and fittings are indeed MY ITEMS and are itemised in the fixtures and fittings of the sale....... I know this because the new buyer has told me.

Unfortunately N79's advice is spot on.

If I were in your shoes I'd decide on a reasonable price for the (now secondhand) carpet/shower then write to the LL politely explaining your position and giving him a choice of purchasing the items or you will take them with you and put the flat back to its original condition. Set a deadline of say a week.

Also let the buyer know that the LL has not yet agreed to purchase the items and so he may be buying a place with a grotty carpet and no shower - if the buyer has his wits about him he will put pressure on the LL to come to an agreement with you.

muskoka

MobileSaver wrote: »

Unfortunately N79's advice is spot on.

If I were in your shoes I'd decide on a reasonable price for the (now secondhand) carpet/shower then write to the LL politely explaining your position and giving him a choice of purchasing the items or you will take them with you and put the flat back to its original condition. Set a deadline of say a week.

Also let the buyer know that the LL has not yet agreed to purchase the items and so he may be buying a place with a grotty carpet and no shower - if the buyer has his wits about him he will put pressure on the LL to come to an agreement with you.

This sounds like an excellent plan. Good luck!