estate agent's use of the word "garden"

OneYorkshireLass

I'm looking at renting a property that has outdoor space that is not enclosed at all, there's no soil, or grass - just bricks and flagstones that are in a dangerous state. The area amounts to about 3ft wide to 8ft length.

The estate agents are calling this a 'garden' in the paper, and a 'yard garden' on the internet.

I'm trying to get them to ask the owner whether he intends to clear up the outside space as it's currently dangerous and there's other peoples' dog's youknowwhat everywhere. So far I haven't had a reply from them - have called 5 times and each time they say they can't get hold of the owner.

Anyway, my question is can they describe this area as a 'garden'?

pixiepie99

EAs call any kind of outside space a "garden" in my experience. Even terraced properties with about a foot of space and a wall at the front get called "garden fronted". It sounds pretty rank anyway; are you sure you want to rent it?

Fire_Fox

If it's dangerous Environmental Health should be able to get it sorted once a tenant is in situ. Do you really want to rent somewhere that the agent cannot get in contact with the landlord?

OneYorkshireLass

pixiepie99 wrote: »

EAs call any kind of outside space a "garden" in my experience. Even terraced properties with about a foot of space and a wall at the front get called "garden fronted". It sounds pretty rank anyway; are you sure you want to rent it?

Yes, it's lovely inside (best I've seen) which is why I can't understand why the owner would leave the outside area in such a state.

Fire_Fox wrote: »

If it's dangerous Environmental Health should be able to get it sorted once a tenant is in situ. Do you really want to rent somewhere that the agent cannot get in contact with the landlord?

Not really, but I do wonder whether it's the estate agents that are rubbish. They keep taking my number, promise to ask the question, then don't bother to ring back when they say they will each time. So then I ring up again, ask the same question and then they say the same again ... I'm in a neverending circle!!

Thanks for the heads up about Environmental Health.

krlyr

It will be the estate agents you deal with the majority of the time so perhaps take it as a red flag and decide if you could put up with that kind of behaviour when you had a leak in the flat, the boiler broke down, the window needing fixing, etc...

OneYorkshireLass

krlyr wrote: »

It will be the estate agents you deal with the majority of the time so perhaps take it as a red flag and decide if you could put up with that kind of behaviour when you had a leak in the flat, the boiler broke down, the window needing fixing, etc...

Yeah, that is true. It's just that I've been looking on-and-off for a year and this is the best I've seen (interior-wise) for my price range and it's in a decent area.

I'll probably give them until Monday and then if they haven't got any further I'll give up on the house and tell the EA's what I think of them

mqandy

Ours came with a "private enclosed garden". Reality? Amenity area shared with all other flats for the bins.

Wasn't too happy about that, they played all innocent of course.

OneYorkshireLass

I finally got an answer to this:

The owner says they will do something with the rear yard when they have a tenant ready to move in.

Bizarre.
It's the best house in the town yet no one has taken it yet (been on the market over 2 months) and obviously it's the yard that's putting people off.
I might be cynical here but I doubt they'd ever get round to doing it.