Tenants redecorated

19lottie82

it doesn't sound like they have improved the property from the OP......

I would just make it clear that they are free to do what they like to the property while they live there, but it must be returned to the original state, when they leave.

If they do not, any costs incurred will be deducted from their deposit, and if this doesn't cover it, then it will be the small claims court.

Turnbull2000

Serve them notice, stating you require the property to be returned to original decor or entire deposit will be withheld. This is your property not theirs, and they have no right to treat it as such.

If they want to decorate, they should buy their own property.

19lottie82

Turnbull2000 wrote: »

This is your property not theirs, and they have no right to treat it as such.

If they want to decorate, they should buy their own property.

Wrong, wrong and wrong.

They can do WHATEVER they like to the house, AS LONG as they return it to the original state it was in, when they leave.

kwmlondon

I fully understand the reaction of the OP on this, you would expect any tenant to consult with the LL before doing any work on the house.

However, they may have every intention of returning the property to the state it was in and we don't have any information on how the place was redecorated. If white walls were repainted magnolia or repainted white, and neutral grey carpets replaced with neutral brown, and the quality was fair then it may be a different matter.

I'd like to know more really: can you tell us what the place used to look like and what it's like now?

thesaint

couponqueen123 wrote: »

what evidence do u have ,

Use proper words, and I will address you.

neas

thesaint wrote: »

Use proper words, and I will address you.

haven't you addressed the quoted post?

mrginge

'Improvement' is a subjective term.
The important part is that unauthorised alterations have been made.
If they do not remove those alterations they must compensate you.

sonastin

I have some sympathy with the OP here. Channelling out cable routes, painting garden walls - not things that are easily undone. And rectification can easily be bodged and bring down the overall standard of the property while the tenant claims to have "put right" what they've done.

OP - a lot of what you can claim depends a) on the evidence you have of the general state of the property when they moved in and b) how well they carry out the repairs when they move out. You can't charge anything until they leave and only then if the damage is still there when they've left. New carpets and new light fittings is going to be a grey area - if they leave them behind, it could be argued as an improvement but garish or ugly changes that you think "lower the tone" are a matter of subjective taste so you'll have to tread carefully. Fence panels can easily be replaced but fence posts and outside walls are a different matter if they've been painted too.

If the sum total does exceed the deposit and they aren't willing to pay the difference, your only recourse is through the courts and in that case you'll have to have clear, objective evidence that the property has been damaged by their actions and their attempts at repair have not succeeded.

kwmlondon

19lottie82 wrote: »

Wrong, wrong and wrong.

They can do WHATEVER they like to the house, AS LONG as they return it to the original state it was in, when they leave.

This is true, although it must be rather terrifying to the OP if they've painted the whole house some lurid pink and radically changed the garden. Even if they can and will return the place to how it was when they moved in it's quite bad form not to reassure your landlord that you'll do this.

ACG

Mrs_Imp wrote: »

I'm not sure what the problem is tbh. By decorating, your tenants have indicated that they intend to stay for a while and will probably look after the property.

When i was a landlord i had a tenant who decorated... or attempted to. She had painted the walls light brown with dark brown circles... the circles were not round they were all slightly off. The paint had bits where she had clearly missed or hadnt put enough on... this mean i had to then put it right (as she did a runner).

She also had a cannabis farm in the basement and had drilled a 6 inch hole to allow ventilation through the front wall.

Redecorating means nothing and does not necessarily mean it will be up to a decent standard or even nice.

My dad had a tenant in an old flat of his and she painted tiles bright green in a kitchen that was very neautral.... he then had to re-tile the kitchen!