Letting agents failed - do we stand a chance ?

WeeMummy

Hi ! Not expecting any major details here but just wanted your thoughts on this.

My husband and I have been using a letting agency for approx 11 years to rent our properties for us. We were always happy with the service we received and felt our investment was in good hands. Rents were paid on time and any upkeep was carried out. However, we were considering selling our flat during the summer and noticed our long term tenants had moved out and our flat was now being re-marketed (of this we weren't informed, we just notice the smaller amount of rent). However, it was timely so we asked it to be taken off the market. When we visited the flat we could not believe the state of repair it was in. The tenants had been in for around 5 years and we expected some odd jobs and to re-decorate. However, this was only a small part of the state of neglect. I won't go in to detail but there had been no ventilation for 5 years (cultural apparently, not used to the cold weather in the North!) and mould was running riot. We had to replace all curtains, blinds, carpets, some other flooring. The bathroom was trashed. The floor had a huge hole which was conveniently covered by the lino. The damage so bad it had spread to the bathroom units. All furniture was damaged beyond repair (children's scribbles with pen and crayon). The dishwasher had to be replace. The list was endless. We spent around 4 - 5k to get the property back to an acceptable standard. The kitchen which was a new modern one only a couple of few years old when they moved in had been badly neglected. Wall tiles cracked. Door and cupboards kicked and damaged, silver freezer scratched at child height. Oven, fan and hob required industrial cleaning. Even the thick substantial security badge to gain access to garage was cut in half and taped together (they really liked duct tape!).

Anyway, the jist of it is that the letting agency washed their hand off us there and then. No checks were carried out at the end of tenancy, no inventory was available (no items were left anyway!). We folllowed their own complaints procedure and it took about 4 months of no contact and finally are dealing with the Customer Services Director who continually plays the 'I'm being really nice and dealing with those nasty tenants for you, I am so nice' card but will not take any responsibility for their part. The property manager left shortly after and he is getting the blame. She keeps reminding us that after this length of time we would have been decorating and replacing the carpet anyway. But that really is not the point. We always accepted some work was required. The tenants left a deposit of £800 which they have no claimed (no surprise there!) which might have been something but I then find out that they had cleaners in to the property costing over £300 which had to be taken off. (£17.50 an hour). The cleaning was sub standard and once again no checks were made by the agents. So at most we will get just over £400 as it stands.

We believe there was mulitple sub letting going on (I have proof) once again this has been batted back by agents. They dumped items in our communal garage and we believe had stopped reporting items as they knew anyone entering property would not be happy.

We have contacted the Property Ombudsman who are dealing with our case but it is slow and we are unsure if we stand much chance.

Anyone out there been through anything similar ? What are our chance of claiming anything back against our agents ? We would be happy for around £1500 - £2000 to cover the non routine work. We were paying 14% a month, at around a rental income of £650. So our agents were being paid well, also we carried out all jobs which we were advised off.

Many thanks,

Morag

ruggedtoast

I don't know what the world is coming to when you can't trust estate agents to their job properly.

No idea but here is a bump for you.

Prothet_of_Doom

And this is why, you should know more about letting than your agent.

AdrianC

WeeMummy wrote: »

The tenants had been in for around 5 years and we expected some odd jobs and to re-decorate.

OK, fine.

...there had been no ventilation for 5 years (cultural apparently, not used to the cold weather in the North!)

An absolutely irrelevant comment, and one that could easily be taken as some kind of slur on their ethnicity.

and mould was running riot.

So bad that you'd have to... redecorate?

We had to replace all curtains, blinds, carpets, some other flooring.

Which you then go on to agree that you'd expect.

The kitchen which was a new modern one only a couple of few years old

So now 7-8yo? IIRC, 10% wear and tear per year is the rule of thumb. Probably more where there are small children in the property. You did know about the children, I presume?

The tenants left a deposit of £800 which they have no claimed (no surprise there!)

Because the agents didn't disagree with it being repaid. The agent's problem.

but I then find out that they had cleaners in to the property costing over £300 which had to be taken off. (£17.50 an hour). The cleaning was sub standard and once again no checks were made by the agents.

Then the cost of that should come from the agents.

We believe there was mulitple sub letting going on (I have proof)

Does it really matter now?

They dumped items in our communal garage

Do you mean that they left their stuff in your garage, or that they disposed of your stuff from the garage?

We would be happy for around £1500 - £2000 to cover the non routine work.

Sounds like you've certainly got some work to do, but as you agree, you'd have that anyway after a five year let. There's inevitably a lot of new-for-old in the work required, so you have to write a percentage of the cost off against betterment. Is that £1500-2000 figure taking that into account?

TBH, I'd aim at just getting the deposit back in full and write the rest off to experience - then either sell the property, use a different agent in future, or manage it yourself.

We were paying 14% a month, at around a rental income of £650.

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WeeMummy

Sorry for any offense by my 'cultural' comment, that is merely what the property manager quoted to us, as reason for mould. Not just paint but replacement of all curtains, blinds and mould treatment required.

We were aware of one child who was an infant. However, subletting appears to have been to various families, so relevant as wear and tear greater, also not allowed under their tenancy, additionally we do not hold an HMO licence so illegal and dangerous,

Items were dumped in our garage and we had to pay to have them removed, along with all the rest of the unusable furniture.

My beef is that checks were not being carried out on upkeep of property and agents are using the 5 year rule as a get out clause.

Sorry don't understand HFM ? I'm a bit new to this.

Don't expect any solutions and I did specifically ask if anyone had had similar experiences ?

RAS

WeeMummy wrote: »

My beef is that checks were not being carried out on upkeep of property and agents are using the 5 year rule as a get out clause.

What does your agreement with the EA say?

Does it specify that they are responsible for doing checks?

Does it specify how frequently those checks should be?

Do you have any proof that they took place (or not)?

Was this a fixed term contract re-newed each year or periodic?

Did you ever ASK the EA about checks before renewal?

ruggedtoast

WeeMummy wrote: »

Sorry for any offense by my 'cultural' comment, that is merely what the property manager quoted to us, as reason for mould. Not just paint but replacement of all curtains, blinds and mould treatment required.

We were aware of one child who was an infant. However, subletting appears to have been to various families, so relevant as wear and tear greater, also not allowed under their tenancy, additionally we do not hold an HMO licence so illegal and dangerous,

Items were dumped in our garage and we had to pay to have them removed, along with all the rest of the unusable furniture.

My beef is that checks were not being carried out on upkeep of property and agents are using the 5 year rule as a get out clause.

Sorry don't understand HFM ? I'm a bit new to this.

Don't expect any solutions and I did specifically ask if anyone had had similar experiences ?

In the five years that you used them did you ever ask for a report on any of the checks they did?

WeeMummy

I don't have the agreement in front of me but yes regular checks were part of this. At least every 6 months and if any problems more frequently.

I have asked several times for proof of the checks but these are not forthcoming (hence referring to Ombudsman).

We used this company for around 11 years so we had no reason to suspect any problems, however they were bought over 3 years ago and we believe that is when the problems started.

We had some major disruption (not willing to go in to) in our lives in the last 4 years and assumed as we were being kept up to date on repairs (which we were) and that rent was being paid that our agents were doing the job they were paid to do. That is at the end of the day why we used them so we didn't have to do all these things.

AdrianC

WeeMummy wrote: »

Not just paint but replacement of all curtains, blinds

It's a £650/mo rental flat. We're not exactly talking made-to-measure hand-stitched from silk, now are we? We're talking off-the-peg roller blinds and machine washable curtains for sub fifty quid a window. Aren't we...?

...mould treatment required.

The walls would have needed a proper clean-down before repainting anyway. If it really was lack of ventilation, then the mould treatment required is just an extra wash down or two with a different product before sugar-soaping and painting.

However, subletting appears to have been to various families, so relevant as wear and tear greater, also not allowed under their tenancy, additionally we do not hold an HMO licence so illegal and dangerous,

You're right. You need to enforce that part of the lease and evict them. Oh, wait a moment. They've already left.

That's what I mean by "is it relevant?". It isn't, because it's finished. The end result is all that matters now, no matter how it was caused.

My beef is that checks were not being carried out on upkeep of property and agents are using the 5 year rule as a get out clause.

Same applies. It's over now, and you won't be doing business through those agents again. That's the end of it.

Yes, this is Your Flat. Your Money. But you also need to remember that this is, first and foremost, business. Ignore emotion. Ignore sentiment. Ignore any feeling that you've been wronged. You need to figure out what the various options and financial outcomes are, balanced against the probability of achieving each and the value of your time and stress in chasing them. Then go for the most pragmatic option.

You've got a good argument for getting the full deposit back. Go for that, and be thankful there's no serious rent arrears.

Sorry don't understand HFM ?

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You said properties, plural, and that you've been renting through them for over a decade. Yet they're still taking one pound out of every seven your properties are earning, and doing next-to-nowt for it? Wow... Some relationship you'd built with 'em.

the_insider

WeeMummy wrote: »

We were aware of one child who was an infant. However, subletting appears to have been to various families, so relevant as wear and tear greater, also not allowed under their tenancy, additionally we do not hold an HMO licence so illegal and dangerous.

An infant 5 years ago would now be a 5 year old. And in 5 years a child can do quite a lot of damage. What were you expecting?

Have you now had updates on the current status of the other properties you are letting through this agent? I'd be worrying about my other investments.

ognum

OP, I am not sure how many properties you have but it does seem to me like you 'took your eye off the ball'

Rental agents are fine but you do need to remain aware of what is going on with each of your properties.

I have several properties but if I have not seen an inspection report at the scheduled time I will contact the agents and ask where it is. If the tenant has been there for a while I am happy for these to be every six months but no longer.

Inspections allow the tenant to have their say about what is needed as well as to check what condition the property is maintained in.

If you have not had an inspection report within the final 6 months then why? I would also be explicit that I need t know who is in my property, when they are leaving and I would want to see the referencing, I am surprised you did not know someone had moved out.

Sorry if this is not what you want to hear but letting property is a buisness and you need to take the resposibility for it and for the part you delegate to others paid or not.