Rented house turning to dust!

Wellyboots6

I am renting a cottage over 100 years old.

How much can I ask the letting agent to get done on the property?

The garden gates are rotting and so the latch has finally given up working as the gate is too warped and soft. I need a secure garden due to having a dog.

Also the slabs in the back yard are crumbling which is dangerous as there are steep steps up to the patio and the crumbling slabs are at the top of the steps, and I have already had a few accidents on them.

The curtain rail in the spare room keeps falling off the wall as the plaster just drops off the wall.

I have asked the letting agent to sort these three problems, and am waiting for them to get back to me.

Other than that, the whole place is crumbling!

The back door swells when wet, and obviously has been like this for a while as the stonework around the frame is crumbling, so each time you open and close the door you get showered with rubble. Would this be classed as me causing damage, can I ask them to do anything about it?

The plasterwork in the whole house is ancient and so any slight knocks causes huge chunks to fall off!

There are various plant pots in the garden (included on the inventory) but they are ancient and plant roots are poking through them. The slightest brush past the pot and it disintegrates.

I don't want to bug the letting agents too much about it, as I guess it is to be expected in such an old property, but I also don't want to be held responsible for damage that is pretty much unavoidable.

I expect to sneeze one day and the whole place to just turn to dust! I'm sure the only thing holding it all together is the very pretty ivy and wisteria covering the property.

Thanks

G_M

To some extent, if you choose to live in a 100 year old house, you must expect it will not be like a brand new build!

How long have you been there? Was it like this when you (recently) viewed? If so, again to some extent you chose to live like that.

Having said that, you should always report defects, and always correctly: addressed to the landlord, at the address provided "for the serving of notices" (usually on the tenancy agreement). There are several reasons:

1) if you don't report, he does not know!
2) if an unreported problem causes further damage, gets more severe, YOU are responsible (through your negligence) for the additional costs
3) if you want to enforce repairs, you must first report properly
4) if you have not reported, you have less excuse if you later dispute a deduction to your deposit

so get a letter written. NOT email/phone/text.

As for the LL's obligations to repair, see the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985 (below). A lot of this is down to interpretation.....

8 Implied terms as to fitness for human habitation.
(1)In a contract to which this section applies for the letting of a house for human habitation there is implied, notwithstanding any stipulation to the contrary—
(a)a condition that the house is fit for human habitation at the commencement of the tenancy, and
(b)an undertaking that the house will be kept by the landlord fit for human habitation during the tenancy.

10 Fitness for human habitation.E+W
In determining for the purposes of this Act whether a house is unfit for human habitation, regard shall be had to its condition in respect of the following matters—

• repair,
• stability,
• freedom from damp,
• internal arrangement,
• natural lighting,
• ventilation,
• water supply,
• drainage and sanitary conveniences,
• facilities for preparation and cooking of food and for the disposal of waste water;

and the house shall be regarded as unfit for human habitation if, and only if, it is so far defective in one or more of those matters that it is not reasonably suitable for occupation in that condition.

11 Repairing obligations in short leases.
(1)In a lease to which this section applies (as to which, see sections 13 and 14) there is implied a covenant by the lessor—

(a)to keep in repair the structure and exterior of the dwelling-house (including drains, gutters and external pipes),

(b)to keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwelling-house for the supply of water, gas and electricity and for sanitation (including basins, sinks, baths and sanitary conveniences, but not other fixtures, fittings and appliances for making use of the supply of water, gas or electricity), and

(c)to keep in repair and proper working order the installations in the dwelling-house for space heating and heating water.

dimbo61

How long is your tenancy ? 6 or 12 months ? Did you not notice the state of the property when you went to view ?
You need to write a LETTER ( post it with proof of posting NOT RECORDED or he/she may not sign) not email or phone call to the landlord stating all the problems.
Speak to the council is anything dangerous ??? Do you have gas heating and a gas safety certificate ? Are the electrics safe ?

19lottie82

Don't contact the letting agents, you are likely to be wasting your time.

WRITE (don't call, text or email) to the Landlord. His / her name and conact details should be on your lease agreement. If it's not, the LA MUST provide it, by law (if you need to do this, again, do it in writing). If they don't, you can legally withold your rent, until they do.

You can request all you want, but the LL is under no legal obligation to fix anything unless your health is suffering (or could suffer) because if it. (If this is the case, contact the enviromental health dept of your local council)

TBH it sounds like the overall problems could be very expensive to fix, and unless your LL has a stong interest in maintaining the property to it's original state and a lot of spare cash, experience tells me, he may not be willing to pay for the repairs.

My advice would be, write to the LL listing your problems and request that they are dealt with and if the response isn't adequate, either put up with it, or move (as long as you're not in a fixed term agreement that is. if you are, you will need to wait until this is up.)

Dukesy

You need to take pictures of everything. You also need to list every single problem and send this list NOW to the LL, keeping a copy for yourself.

No matter how old a property is (I've never lived in a house less than 200 years old), the issues you are mentioning should not be occurring. Plaster falling off walls means there is probably damp somewhere, bits of wall should not be falling off around the door, the property should not be dangerous (ie the paving slabs) if it is being rented.

I'm afraid that you need to bug the LL on this one, and don't be selective about what you tell them about, tell them everything and don't suggest that any of this may have been caused by you.

DRP

some good advice here , but I would add that everything you send to the LL, you ought to cc the agent to keep them in the loop.

G_M

19lottie82 wrote: »

....
You can request all you want, but the LL is under no legal obligation to fix anything unless your health is suffering (or could suffer) because if it. (If this is the case, contact the enviromental health dept of your local council)

Sorry lottie. This is not the case. See my post above for the law.

There are also implied contractual obligations that the LL will provide/maintain the property in the condition it was in when the tenant viewed and agreed to the contract.

Wellyboots6

Thanks for the replies.

The crumbly bits will have been like that when I viewed, as I said, it is an old property! It's things you wouldn't necessarily see when viewing to rent though i.e. I wouldn't have tapped on a wall to see how much plaster fell off!

I will write to the landlord as advised.

I am not expecting them to fix all the crumbly bits really, as someone above said it would be a huge job. I just wondered if they could hold me responsible if something disintegrated when I sneezed on it!

Electrics appear dodgy, but then they did when I viewed as half the lights didn't work! I do have a gas safety certificate, but the landlord is supposed to be getting the boiler looked at again anyway as it isn't very securely attached to the wall!!

G_M

katy721 wrote: »

I just wondered if they could hold me responsible if something disintegrated when I sneezed on it!
Perhaps. if you ignore it. But if you report it as a problem, then no.

Electrics appear dodgy, but then they did when I viewed as half the lights didn't work! !

There is a legal obligation on the LL to keep the property safe - that includes electrics. If you suspect they are dangerous, report this too (politely of course!) and request an electrical inspection.

http://www.landlordzone.co.uk/electrical_safety.htm