How common is it to encounter a bad LL.

shadow47

Honest question.

Obviously the majority of LL are OK guys just trying to make some cash.

How often does one encounter a bad LL?

By bad I mean, just stealing money from you, not complying with laws, treating tenants like scum etc.

Not really bothered about repairs because it's only 6 month tenancy and I might move elsewhere when it ends depending on how I like the area etc, also depends whether I like the LL or not.

I know a few people (family of my ex-gf) who have terrible LLs, they never deal with repairs, they're excuse laden and not willing to spend money on their properties (which seems counter productive to me, I suppose they feel that if the tenant doesn't like it, they can move out, and they'll just find another mug to take their place).

Suppose I'm just wondering how common this is. Because I'll be renting for the next 3/4 years as I'm a student. (Think I waffled on a bit haha).

jc808

73.85% of landlords are evil

betterlatethannever

Only one of the last 10 LLs i've had was awful- more chance of having an appalling letting agent, i think.

SternMusik

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betterlatethannever wrote: »

Only one of the last 10 LLs i've had was awful- more chance of having an appalling letting agent, i think.

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I agree. I have rented from mostly excellent landlords in the past five years, but almost all letting agents I dealt with were awful. I have always been an excellent tenant - always paying rent on time, squeaky clean credit and rental history, handing over the place much cleaner than it was when I moved in, etc. However letting agents treat tenants like second class citizens in my experience. Broken promises, bad or no communication, not bothered with requests for repairs, messing up accounts with the utility companies, the list goes on. Most of them don't seem to have had any legal training whatsoever - and some don't even read their own contracts! I was lost for words on numerous occasions.

I don't think many landlords know how their tenants are treated by the agents. I always preferred dealing with the landlords directly, and have normally found them to be courteous and helpful, unlike the agents.

girl_withno_name

I've, so far, found our current agency ok (although inspections are quarterly and fall during exam periods, and the carpets must be professionally cleaned before leaving... Both things I wish we'd been aware of sooner than minutes before collecting keys!) Our previous agents were also good and responded well when there was a leak from bathroom down to kitchen
My uni landlord however was terrible... Responding slowly to issues, even the boiler failing and leaving us without heating or hot water, and despite turning up at the house on a regular basis, letting himself in unannounced and even entering bedrooms without any prior notification or permission
So I guess it really just depends and is luck of the draw!

Caleb11

my last LL was down right evil. i still have daydreams about seeking revenge lol

rentergirl

I have had one good landlord who went bankrupt, another who amazing, but I was moving away to study. Other than that, the others have ranged from lazy, spiteful, inept, awol and psychotic. One refused to repair a dangerous boiler, another put in an electric shower that could have killed us (by which I mean we ere lucky to be alive, and the lovely man from the council screamed blue murder.) I think many lanlords forget the property is not now, or is no longer their home, and resent tenants, and resent the fact that they are not coining it in.

shadow47

So it's the middlemen that are the problem.

Just like with work agencies... hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

shadow47

Caleb11 wrote: »

my last LL was down right evil. i still have daydreams about seeking revenge lol

You see this is the type of thing I'm worried about.

Don't want to start fighting with the motherf*.

Kynthia

Landlords are people just as tenants are people. Most people are good, many are a bit lazy, some don't know the law and a few are truly horrid.

I'm currently a landlord with a nightmare tenant. We're talking no rent, damage to the property, overcrowding, lies, flooding the flat below, possible ID or post theft, etc. Also about a 5th of people I know seem to have had a bad experience with a tenant at some point in their life when I didn't even know most of them had ever let a property. Yet I had one previous tenant who was fantastic and one that was okay.

Perhaps if tenants and landlords actually dealt with each other face to face instead of purely through an agent, both would spot the bad ones and would build better relationships with each other.

shadow47

Kynthia wrote: »

Perhaps if tenants and landlords actually dealt with each other face to face instead of purely through an agent, both would spot the bad ones and would build better relationships with each other.

Solid stuff.

So true.