Tenancy advice needed

plod121

Hi.

been renting out a property for the last 2 years and so far the tenant's been ok. last week he tell's me he's put his name down for a council house so he can rent to buy .. fair enough. Now the environmental health department came around last week to look at the house and I've been given a report of work that needs to be carried out.

Is it standard practice for the environmental health dept. to come out and check the property you're living in when you put your name down for a council house?

prudryden

Sorry, don't quite understand. Which house is the council house?

babe_ruth_3

do you think that your tenant has asked enviromental health to come and see your property (Im assuming it's not in a very good state of repair - forgive me if I'm wrong) so that he stands a better chance of getting into council housing?

plod121

my tenant's put his name down for a council house. he's privately renting from me at the moment. house is actually in pretty good condition. dbl. glazed and central heating all round.. extended kitchen. the report I got from environmental health is minor details .. e.g.

Food Safety

Please replace the missing base unit drawer front in the kitchen so to provide an easily cleansed surface.


Entry by intruders

Please repair/renew the defective external kitchen door.


I do think he has asked environmental health to come around but I just wondered if this was standard practice with regards to someone putting there name down for a council house. also worth mentioning he has a partially disabled son living with him.

prudryden

Maybe the enviromental dept. totally got their wires crossed.

Sounds bizarre that they would inspect your private property without some sort of complaint.

black-saturn

Your tenant probably gets more points if he can prove that work needs doing which might be a risk to his health or security. When he applied for the council accommodation there is a part of the form which asks if they are applying on health or social grounds. Your tenant will obviously want to get as many points as possible so they might have put down about the door. The EH came round to inspect and noticed the other thing while they were there.

prudryden

black-saturn wrote:

Your tenant probably gets more points if he can prove that work needs doing which might be a risk to his health or security. When he applied for the council accommodation there is a part of the form which asks if they are applying on health or social grounds. Your tenant will obviously want to get as many points as possible so they might have put down about the door. The EH came round to inspect and noticed the other thing while they were there.

Didn't know that. These forums can be very educational at times.

plod121

Thanks for that. I forgot to mention I did speak to the lady at the environmental health dept. regarding this and she told me they were asked to inspect the property by another dept. but couldn't tell me which.

randomgal

I work in the private sector housing section of env. health and sometimes we are asked to inspect homes of those who've applied to be on the housing register, usually its to assess space provisions in the dwelling. The works required of you are based on the new housing health & safety rating system. We have a duty to inspect a property for up to 29 hazards, even if we've been asked to look at one problem. I don't see what the big problem is though on which department requested the inspection.

btw, if those are the only hazards identified in the dwelling, it must be in a good state though the new system doesn't easily allow for minor deficiencies in dwellings to be addressed. More information on communities website or google HHSRS.

SteveCat

babe_ruth wrote:

do you think that your tenant has asked enviromental health to come and see your property (Im assuming it's not in a very good state of repair - forgive me if I'm wrong) so that he stands a better chance of getting into council housing?

Thats certainly the way I see it and we have had experience of it to. Another one is illness, one we had was damp bringing on a serious asma complaints with child. The thing was the property had rising damp above 2nd floor level :rotfl: And the bedroom the child was meant to be in wasn't the one that was reported. In the end it was found to be condensation with the Tenant not keeping the property well ventilated and smoking from the childs mother.

Believe me, council Tenants will try anything to get moved. Usually though Councils will have nothing of it basically because they are short of Housing stock.