BT Line: Who pays - LL or Tenant?

BTman

I've never heard of a landlord paying for a phone line to be installed, just the same as they wouldn't pay for Sky TV or Cable to be installed.
I'm a tenant btw..

BritBrat

Reconection is free

Barcode

Part of the problem is that the estate agent made out the LL would likely be agreeable to covering half the cost. I think it's something that should have been established before she reassured us it would probably be fine.

I've had one LL withold a deposit, only returning it when we threatened to go to court. Another one who never repaired *anything* in a run down house but was mysteriously quick to demand payments from us for things she should be doing, and surprise, surprise, my housemate is having a nightmare getting back some of her deposit from the last property.

Current LL is great, friendly, and sorts things out quickly. I dread having another one who regards the deposit as a bonus, or who doesn't fix things in a timely fashion.

We are *thinking* about possibly buying once we have lived there for a year to see what the area is like etc. The estate agent asked if we would be interested in buying the flat. Obviously, if that were the case, we would happily pay for our own benefit.

I'm just being careful the LL is not out to take my girlfriend for a ride. She is moving from Switz and we don't want someone thinking that since she doesn't know the U.K system, that he can get away with this that and the other. Well, one of us is familiar with renting pitfalls.

It's not a big thing, and we'll pay it as we want the flat. I am however, slightly more cautious.

CB1979_2

see if they will pay it up front (as you can't afford it at the moment, deposit, first month's rent, etc etc) and offer £20 per month extra for 6 months.

do you have any bargaining power with this guy?
how long has it been empty, is it likely someone else will move in within 2 weeks?

papito

If you want BT, and it's not been installed before, then the tenant will have to pay, but if you don't want BT and instead nothing or Virgin for example it's up to you, I think Virgin offers installation free. If you need a BT line for a specific BB service then I think you are lucky if LL pays half the cost. Good luck

pickles110564

As LL i would not pay to have BT line connected why should I,likewise when I buy new main residence that has no gas connected i would not say to the seller pay for the gas or i wont buy it.
If you want the services pay for them yourself or find somewhere that has everything that you require.

momisa

padders wrote: »

I would personally not touch with a barge pole a landlord that dosen't get phone service of one type of anther installed. Threaten to pull out.

I agree with Padders. I've experienced a few LLs who did install the phone line with no extra cost to tenants, whilst off topic another LL went out of his way to install mains gas supply into kitchen and buy a stand alone cooker even though the kitchen was more than adequate (with electric fitted oven etc).

I'd say it all boils down to whether you choose a LL/property mgmt company who's prepared to provide a service or someone who's purely out for the money. I'd try to go with someone who's prepared to go the extra mile.

Can you go view the property again to double check that there is no phone socket? If no phone socket are there any flats in the building for lease with a view to seeing if they have installed a line? Given the age of the property it's possible that it's listed. I say this as you may not be allowed to install a satellite dish (and I know you're only concerned with a phone line right now :rolleyes:).

IMO - I tend to listen to my gut insticts, they never let me down unless I ignore them :rotfl:

:beer:

wifeforlife

I think your totally reasonable to ask the LL to pay it all or at least half of it.

As most people have said, it's marketed as a luxury place, IMHO a bt line is a basic commodity and as a permanent fixing in his property I sense he is being a little unreasonable.

Is the agent or LL aware of your thinking to maybe buy in a year or so? If he knows this he's probably thinking why should he do it for you if your only going to be there a year or so. My LL is very good at updating my house and if it needs something done I get the choice but it's because I'm here long term.

Hope you get something sorted soon

Cate

dippy

silvercar wrote: »

This talk of internet is a red herring.Some mobile packages for internet can work out cheaper than landline internet charges. T-mobile's Web'n'walk is only £14.99 a month. Nothing to stop you getting cable broadband without a BT line.

This talk of mobile internet and cable broadband are even bigger herrings as I've ever heard. Mobile internet is a non-starter except for 3G and you need the extra hassle of configuring non-standard equipment, problem sharing internet in your house for you and the gf, etc etc. Cable is just as big a herring as you need to get a package with other services, when you may only want the internet.

In the end, if the landlord is backwards with regards to basic essential amenities, that gives you an indication of what he will be like, i.e. a big moron. More importantly, in the event of a fire, needing an ambulance, or other emergency, what if your mobile's batteries are dead? Will you remember the landlord's "let them use mobiles"? Seriously!!!!

ScarletBea

I see some people here having extremely "all or nothing" attitudes.
I've googled the issue and also read the 15 pages of the BT connection charge on the Phones Forum here, where this issue is also addressed, and it doesn't seem to be such an abnormal attiude for the LL not to pay the installation.

Those of you who say they've never paid, well, possibly because you were moving into an older building, where some years ago the first tenant paid, right?

I know it should be nice if he paid half, but he really doesn't have to, and I don't think it shows him as being a money-grabbing LL. The idea came from the agent in the first place anyway, without her ever having spoken to the LL about it. We talked with her last evening and she's really sorry for not being able to get that for us, she tried hard.
I also don't want to go tell him we're thinking of buying eventually, because I honestly don't know that, and I don't want to lead him on.

The number of flats in the area (big area: every town in a circle within half hour drive of Huddersfield) with normal-sized rooms is very very small. We've spend days viewing places, seeing towns, long hours searching the net. Always a disappointment. This is a good flat. It's a good area. It has good facilites. In the end, this installation fee is a small part of the whole.
Do we really want to pull out now, and start the search all over again? Only to be disappointed over and over again, and end up either in another place where we have to pay the fee, or in a place where the price of the fee that the landlord would pay (minus the re-installation/reactivation fee that we'd always have to pay) would be more than spent in the petrol to get to work.

It's easy to give your opinion...
Thanks for your inputs anyway (some of you )


Oh, one comment: he never told us to use mobiles, that was a misunderstanding. What he actually said was that he'd never installed a line because he was happy to use a mobile.