Boiler Grant in rented house

cmhbyandco

My Son, partner & new baby rent a house. They are entitled to receive the 'boiler grant' the government is implementing. The heating in the house is not working & as the outside of the boiler is painted, it should be condemned. As they were helping the LL using their entitlement to get the new boiler, the salesman has said they should have a couple of months free rent as the LL asked them to enquire about the grant.
Where do they stand? They have a house with no heating with a new baby, they are paying top rent for this house & are terrified to rock the boat as they want to stay there long term. They are good tenants & pay their rent on time.
They are concerned, if they use the grant in this house & she asks them to move out, they can't ask for the grant again.
Any suggestions please??

princeofpounds

Is this question really about how to get the boiler fixed, or how to get some benefit out of the arrangement?

If they have no hope of owning for many years then it may make sense to use the grant in a rental property if they think they will be able to stay long term. Normally I wouldn't advise sponsoring any investment in a LL's property but if this costs nothing for the tenant then it's a slightly different matter.

Given that this will save the LL a chunk of money (and the LL is OBLIGED to fix the heating in a reasonable amount of time) then it would only be fair to split the benefits. Of course the LL isn't going to want to give anything away and so it becomes a negotiation where frankly you have to show some spine so you'd be dreaming not to rock the boat at all.

Asking for some free rent is one option, but personally I would think about asking for a longer fixed term rental contract if they like the place and do not want to move too quickly. Otherwise the investment is sunk into the house and you may not benefit from it for too long. It also will feel to the LL like it is costing them nothing except the opportunity to increase rent for a few years.

G_M

cmhbyandco wrote: »

My Son, partner & new baby rent a house. They are entitled to receive the 'boiler grant' the government is implementing. The heating in the house is not working & as the outside of the boiler is painted, it should be condemned. As they were helping the LL using their entitlement to get the new boiler, the salesman has said they should have a couple of months free rent as the LL asked them to enquire about the grant.

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

Where do they stand? They have a house with no heating with a new baby, they are paying top rent for this house & are terrified to rock the boat as they want to stay there long term. They are good tenants & pay their rent on time.
They are concerned, if they use the grant in this house & she asks them to move out, they can't ask for the grant again.
Any suggestions please??

Is this a wind up? They are getting a new boiler, so will be nice and cosy for the winter.

Be glad!

cmhbyandco

Many Thanks for the quick reply & they are going to ask her for a longer term rent contract.

Werdnal

Lets go back to basics:

What sort of boiler is it? Gas, electric?

If Gas, has the tenant been given a copy of the current Gas safety cert?

Who said it should be condemned - the rep trying to tie them into the new boiler deal who can see the £££ he can get by frightening them into getting it changed?

When did they discover the heating was not working?

Have they reported this in writing to the LL with a requested to address the non-functioning heating asap, under their LL obligations?

How long have they been in the property?

Have tenants spoken to the LL about the installation of the new boiler package at all? Has LL agreed/given permission for them to pursue this?


In answer to the original questions, tenant can obviously suggest a rent reduction, but LL has no obligation to accept.

LL can evict for no reason at the end of the fixed term, then re-let at a higher rent with a shiny new boiler installed, so unless the tenants can get the LL to agree a longer-term tenancy, they may get little or no benefit from this deal!

cmhbyandco

The boiler is a gas boiler & it was the LL who asked them to look into getting a new boiler. The heating wouldn't work on Wednesday when they turned it on.

The LL said wait until the rep had been out before they addressed the heating not working.
The boiler cover had been painted & the outside of the boiler is red hot to the touch & they have asked her about this from day one of the tenancy. They have the gas certificate.

They have been in the house for 12 months.

They are going to ask her for a guarantee tenancy for at least 2 years & see what she says.

G_M

cmhbyandco wrote: »

The boiler is a gas boiler & it was the LL who asked them to look into getting a new boiler. The heating wouldn't work on Wednesday when they turned it on.

The LL said wait until the rep had been out before they addressed the heating not working.
The boiler cover had been painted & the outside of the boiler is red hot to the touch & they have asked her about this from day one of the tenancy. They have the gas certificate.

They have been in the house for 12 months.

They are going to ask her for a guarantee tenancy for at least 2 years & see what she says.

So the heating has been a problem for...... 2 days?

And the LL is arranging a new boiler?

And the tenant wants to claim 2 months free rent?

This IS a wind up!

cmhbyandco

It is NOT A WIND UP & please do not be so rude!

Read the 1st post!

I have asked for advice not criticism from people. Please be respectful!

G_M

My respectful advice is that the tenants should write a friendly letter to the LL thanking him agreeing so rapidly to a new boiler installation.

cmhbyandco

G_M wrote: »

My respectful advice is that the tenants should write a friendly letter to the LL thanking him agreeing so rapidly to a new boiler installation.

Oh Dear!! You have missed the point completely!! You are obviously not bright enough to understand, so we shall leave it there.

G_M

cmhbyandco wrote: »

Oh Dear!! You have missed the point completely!! You are obviously not bright enough to understand, so we shall leave it there.

Sorry - not sure I understand. Surely leaving the old boiler there will mean the tenants will have no heating/hot water?

I'd strongly recommend taking up the LL's offer of a new boiler and removing the old one.