Rental house inspection - advice please

MRSB

Hi,
We used to have inspections every three months, but after a year these tapered off and the Letting Agent didn't seem concerned with inspecting this rental house regularly.
Skip forward about a year and I have had an email from the Letting Agent who has booked an inspection here next week.
This coincides randomly with an email that I am in the process of writing regarding some issues which have become apparent in the property, and I'm wondering whether to write a letter detailing these things now, seen as they are coming in person to inspect the place anyway?
These things include the carpet beginning to fray around some doorways and on going issues in our damp bathroom.
We do also have cats here (allowed by the Landlord), and regrettably they have caused some marking to a couple of the wooden gloss painted interior doors, and there is some scratching to the wall paper in the understairs cupboard. Thinking that the Letting Agent probably wasn't going to inspect the property before we gave our notice to leave, which we are planning to do next summer, we were going to touch up the doors where needed and re-paper the under stairs cupboard before leaving. We have also chipped some floor tiles in the kitchen and again are planning to replace these before leaving.
My question is, do we A) try and push the inspection back and complete these works before it? My other half is working away at present so this will be tricky but could be done if we could push it back until after Christmas may be? Or is it acceptable/good idea/okay for us to acknowledge these issues created by us during the inspection next week and state, (possibly in writing) that we will rectify things before we leave? I am very worried that if the damage caused by us is viewed during this inspection it will be used against us every step of the way later on, and when we leave, even when we have sorted the issues. Also, this damage is the only damage done by our cats (other than the pretty ruined lounge curtains that we will be holding our hands up for and paying for), but I am worried that because of this damage, the LA and LL will try to make out that all wear and tear is our fault because of the cats when this isn't true.
Any advice would be really appreciated. I am so stressed about this as the inspection email only came today, giving us a mere 8 days to solve the situation.
In our last rental home we were cheated out of £200 worth of our deposit (not cat related), and the whole argument with the old LL and LA went on for months before we conceded to losing that money for the sake of my mental health which is not great. I'm just so scared of giving the LA any ammunition to use against us later on.
Thanks in advance.

ceh209

In your situation I'd hold off from writing your email, but discuss the issues with the LA during the inspection, and afterwards write a letter saying 'To confirm what we discussed' etc...

Ask the LA for their comments during the inspection. If they don't mention the cat damage, you don't mention it either. As you say, you know your rights and responsibilities which are to leave the place as you found it, not to keep it perfect during the time you're there. If they do mention it and try to tell you otherwise, explain you intend to repair things before you leave, and then also add that into the letter you write afterwards.

sandsni

I would still go ahead with putting your concerns in writing. It's easy for LA's to forget (either accidentally or on purpose) what has actually been said during the inspection. Say you would like the LA to investigate and address these concerns during the inspection.

Regarding the "damp" bathroom, do you have any reason to believe it is damp rather than condensation? Is there any evidence of structural damage outside? e.g. damaged and leaking guttering, brickwork etc.? Or leaking pipework/sanitary wear inside? Do you heat and ventilate the property adequately and refrain from drying washing indoors? Do you ensure that steam from cooking/showering/bathing/tumble dryer (if you have one) is vented outside the property rather than back into the room? If the "damp" is found to be condensation due to your lifestyle rather than damp from a problem with the property, then you could be held liable for not acting in a "tenant-like manner" and charged for the costs of putting it right when you leave.

The issues of damage you mention won't be a concern until you check out. You will be expected to leave the property as you found it when you leave (minus fair wear and tear). So you have until the tenancy ends to put right any damage caused by your family (including the felines).

Damage is not fair wear and tear, and you have admitted your family and your cat have caused damage, but as long as you rectify it before moving out then the LA/LL can have no argument.

MRSB

Hi,
Thanks very much for your replies. I will write the letter about the issues at the moment and give it to the LA when he visits next week.
You are both right that as long as the house is in the same condition as we found it minus wear and tear, they should not be able to take any more of our deposit than for the curtains in the lounge as previously mentioned. I will gauge the the LA's views on the state of the place when he comes around and reassure him that we will rectify any damage we've caused prior to leaving. Do I need to say that to him even if he does not mention it? Again, I don't want to be seen as underhand or secretive about the damage incase they then use this against me later on.
As far as the 'damp' goes, that wasn't a very good explanation. It is condensation that is the main problem. However the Landlord lived in this house before renting it out and knows of the issues as apparently they are inherent in a style of house such as this from the period that it was build in. We use a dehumidifier all winter and the LL fitted an extractor fan in the bathroom, (after a lot of complaining from us as there was no mention of all of this issue until we moved in, although the LL was obviously already aware at the time of renting it out. But that's another issue all together!) We have already discussed our lifestyle at great length and the LA and LL have agreed that we are not at fault, the up shot being that the state of the decoration in the bathroom will not be considered when we leave. I have this in email from the LA. Do I need to request it in writing?
Thanks for your advice, I'm just so worried after our last end of tenancy/deposit experience that our LL and LA will use every single spec of ammunition against us to take our deposit. This is especially worrying as we have paid in extra deposit to have the cats here, which obviously means that the potentional pot 'up for grabs' if the LL decides to play unfairly is quite a few hundred pounds larger, and again I feel like this might give the LL and LA excuses to find us liable for a lot of issues when leaving the property which are not our fault.
Thanks again for the advice.

sandsni

Whatever deposit protection scheme your LL has used will have a mechanism to dispute any deductions and the LL will have to prove that the deductions are for actual financial loss due to damage. The pot isn't "up for grabs" so long as you leave the place the way you found it (minus fw&t).

The extra deposit was paid presumably because of the extra risk of damage due to your cats living there. Your experience has shown why as your cats have indeed done damage, but you have accepted that and are prepared to put right the damage.

Many people, myself included, live in old houses and don't have problems with condensation. What exactly is the problem in the bathroom? A few of the posters on this forum might be able to give you a few tips on minimising the problem for your own comfort as well as the decor.

It's good that you have email confirmation from the LA that you will not be considered at fault, but I would be tempted to ask for something in writing from the LL himself, in case he tries to deny all knowledge later.

wannahouse

just disguise/cover up anything you don't want them to notice, and sort it out later,,,
if they do notice it, all they can do is ask you to repair damages anyway!

DRP

wannahouse wrote: »

just disguise/cover up anything you don't want them to notice, and sort it out later,,,
if they do notice it, all they can do is ask you to repair damages anyway!

Exactly this.

If you're planning to sort it out, it matters not.

orangeslimes

How thoroughly have they inspected in the past?

When I have had inspections of my flat the agent just puts his head round each room to see if it looks intact, looks at the ceiling in bathroom to check for damp and also at any problems I point out...so they might not notice...imagine when I leave this flat they will inspect more thoroughly and might notice the scuffs on the wall if I don't work out how to get rid of them.

You are within your legal rights to say the time isn't convenient and rearrange, but I would just try and make the flat look really clean and tidy...and I think it makes sense to write to them with the problems in advance so you can discuss them when the agent comes round.

MRSB

Thanks very much for the replies everyone. Some of the things like marks on the gloss doors I won't be able to fix before the agent comes around but I will see what I can do. I don't know if I see all these niggly issues more than other people anyway, so I will wait and see what the LA says when he comes over.
I'm not sure how thorough his inspection will be as my Husband has always been here and gone around with him in the past while I've looked after our Son, and my Husband is now uncontactable working away so I'm not sure how its going to be.
I will ask for confirmation in writing that the state of the decor is not be our responsibility in the bathroom too, thank you. Up until now most correspondence has been done by email, but obviously now that we are looking to move at some point, I think I will start getting things in writing.
I know that our deposit isn't 'up for grabs' as we can dispute claims made by the LL if necessary, it's just that the stress and hassle if it comes to that is very worrying for me, sorry for the over reaction - my health isn't so good at the moment and little things easily turn into big things.
As for our bathroom, I believe that the issue so we are told is that we are on the end of a row of terraced houses, and two of the bathroom walls are external - we do not have this issue with the walls which are internal. The house was built between 1910 amd 1925. We also only have very minimal issues with this during the summer months, but as soon as the weather gets colder with out the dehumidifier it is not easy to get rid of the condensation caused by showers and baths. I have the windows open wide during/after showers and baths, and cracked most of the time unless we are out or during the night. The extractor fan in the bathroom automatically stays on for 15mins after the light is turned off, and continuously while it is on, and we heat the bathroom well as we do the rest of the house with a young child here. I try to aim for under 60% humidity with the dehumidifier and we do have some other issues in other areas where the two exterior walls meet at the front of the house, and under the stairs slightly where there is no radiator. Largely I just wipe mildew/ mould from the walls and skirtings when necessary, I was advised to do this by the LL, and he said that that's what he did. It seems though that possibly the paint in the bathroom is not anti fungal, or kitchen and bathroom paint, and I suspect the LL repainted the bathroom after winters as it was the only freshly painted room in the house when we moved in. This is our third winter here now, and even after cleaning it seems like the mildew is now in or under the paint, as I cannot get rid of the shadow from it even with bleaching agents. It is the same with the skirting boards in the worst area of the bathroom in the corner where the external walls meet.
We also have a cupboard in our bedroom where external walls meet which is bad for condensation. Again I wipe off mildew/mould and the dehumidifier helps in the winter. Again in the summer it is useable, but in the winter it gets awful quite quickly.
I will just be glad to get this inspection over and done with now. As you have said and so have I, we are definitely going to repair any damage the cats have caused, or compensate for things we cannot repair. We are not trying to be devious or unfair, I just don't want our cats to be blamed for all wear and tear when we leave, which is not damage and literally just wear and tear. I wouldn't put anything past a LL and LA after our last experience. (Sorry to any decent LLs and LAs out there!)
Thanks everyone. I'll let you know how I get on with the inspection.

sandsni

It sounds as though the LL has lived there previously and knows the issues with the house, and you're doing all the right things.


Hope it all goes well.