Should I go for it?

PrincessPlaty

I looked at a bungalow yesterday to rent.

The house has been up for sale since June 2009 with no interest the house has been stood empty for the entire time.

When I viewed it yesterday in 3 of the rooms there were wet patches on the ceiling walls the letting agent said that it looks like the roof is leaking but he would make sure the landlord got it sorted prior to any tenant moving in.

Im slightly concerned about why it has been empty for so long and if there are reasons behind nobody buying it, i did ask the letting agent and his response was that the property was in a right mess prior to them deciding to rent it out and that he had told them it needed cleaning up but googling the property all the adverts show photos and the property doesn't look that bad.

I really don't want to end up in a property that does have problems even if it is only renting it.

Also if it was to sell (it is still on the market) how would i stand as a sitting tenant?

Any thoughts?

Edited to add the LL wanted £650pcm for the property and in one phone call the LA had got them down to £550 without any effort at all.

sonastin

There are loads of posts on this forum from people who've been unable to sell their house for over a year and have given up and decided to rent it out. That's just the way the market is right now. It doesn't necessarily mean that there is anything wrong with the house - could just be that the owner wants / needs more for it than he can sell it for at the moment.

The landlord wouldn't be able to ask you to leave until the fixed term was up - or for at least 6 months, even if he got you to agree to a shorter fixed term. You would also have the right to quiet enjoyment of the property so even if your tenancy agreement required you to give him access for potential buyers to view the property, it is an unenforceable clause and you don't have to agree. So he is being a little foolish keeping it on the market whilst letting it out - as buyer's probably won't buy without viewing and you don't have to allow viewings.

But similarly, you could be served notice to leave in 6 months time and whilst that doesn't necessarily mean you have to go till a court orders it, do you really want such a short term let? If you're OK with it then there's probably no problem - as long as the landlord does sort out the leaky roof (and any other problems) first.

Oh, and beware that it could very well be a novice landlord so they might not appreciate their legal obligations yet - so make sure you know your rights to get repairs done if the LL doesn't yet believe he is obliged to!

BitterAndTwisted

If the owners haven't been able to sort the leaking roof out in order to sell they certainly won't be putting any rent-money received towards it.

I wouldn't touch this property with a barge-pole unless I saw the bill and a warranty from the company who repaired it.

poppysarah

Yeah leaky roof = bad.

PrincessPlaty

Well apparently the LL had been on holiday and only arrived back in the UK yesterday when the LA rang them.

The house is up for 164k an identical property in the same street is up for 185k so im thinking it is more than the price that is putting buyers off...

Short term will do me fine for now. It is only a 2 bed and ideally I need a 3 but the baby is only 11 months old now so i could manage with a 2 bed for now. I am currently in a womens refuge so the fact that it is small compared to the one room i am in with my 3 children isnt going to affect me too much in the short term.

There is definatly something in the back of my head that is telling me that something isnt right with it though. The leaky roof, the fact that it is still for sale whilst there are tenants, the sudden drop in rent with no questions asked. Alarm bells are ringing.

BitterAndTwisted

It's possible that the landlord is fully aware of the leaking roof and so is any buyer who's had a survey done on it. Is there any evidence of damp other than the water-damage to the ceilings? The problem is, if the roof has been leaking since June 2009 the roof-joists and any other wood up there could be rotten and ready to come down.

Don't contemplate moving into this property unless you are absolutely positive that the roof has been repaired.

PrincessPlaty

The LA did say that it had been a problem previously which he had told the LL about and he did say that it looked to him like the LL had just painted over it.
There was some mould that had been painted over in the corner of the bathroom also.

From the outside I could see a few loose roof tiles, but not much else.

Trying not to let me heart rule my head on this one, as much as I want out of here I don't want to end up in a situation where a LL doesn't want to do repairs.

If the LA was right in what he said and the place was in a right mess prior to the LL deciding to rent the property out. It does make me wonder why the LL didn't sort the problems out and decorate the property whilst it was being marketed for sale unless there were underlying problems.

It is a nice property and it has been decorated albeit just a lick of paint but it looks 'ok' aside from the damp patches from the leaky roof.

In the back of my head im thinking what if its more than a leaky roof putting buyers off the property especially considering the 20k price difference between that and an identical property in the same street.

BitterAndTwisted

Look, the agreement to drop the rent and it being up for sale for so long are very bad warning signs. If the property is damp, even if the roof is fixed this scenario gives every indication that the landlord will not carry out any maintenance or repairs and if you sign up you'll be stuck there for six months with no get-out-of-jail card. The only solution I can think of is to not sign a six-month tenancy agreement but go into the tenancy on a month-to-month basis and only take on the property if the landlord agrees to that. If it's going to be miserable living there you might be able to get out of there as long as you can find somewhere else suitable quite quickly but that has to be balanced against all the hassle and costs of moving twice.

I wouldn't risk it with three kids in tow in the middle of winter

jennikitten

PrincessPlaty wrote: »

In the back of my head im thinking what if its more than a leaky roof putting buyers off the property especially considering the 20k price difference between that and an identical property in the same street.

You don't know the LL's personal situation though; he might be desperate for money or looking for a quick sale for endless other reasons.

But I would say that if you do say you're interested, make sure that you provide the condition that the issues with the house are fixed & make sure you check the repair work for yourself before moving in. Never believe a promise from an LL or agency.

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

Look, the agreement to drop the rent and it being up for sale for so long are very bad warning signs.

It's impossible to say that when you don't know anything about the area in question.

calypso_rhapsody

I'd look for somewhere else if i were you ... the fact that the LL was aware of the leaking roof and just painted over it does not bode well in my view. OK so he might get the leak repaired before you sign up and move in ... put suppose the boiler breaks down in a few weeks - would you trust him to make sure it's repaired promptly??

bristol_pilot

Whenever you rent a property, the golden rule is to assume that it will remain in whatever state it was in when you viewed it. Agents and landlords will say anything to get your money, promise to do repairs etc, but once you are in it is a lottery as to whether anything gets done. If repairs ARE made, the work will be done at a snails pace. I would look for somewhere else to rent.