Would not bother being a landlord again...

phoebe1989seb

Blackpool_Saver wrote: »

Not all kids draw on walls, I never did, and neither did my children.

This ^

Neither did I or DS - some parents obviously don't teach their kids to respect property these days......I think if DS had drawn on any of our walls DH would have banished him to live in the shed, lol

quidsy

if my ds drew on any walls or furniture he'd only do it the once due to the bollocking he'd get He actually never has & I can't say I know anyone else who's kids have either but the tenants might be planning to repaint on moving out so reserve judgement on how they will leave the property.

As for being upset over the fancy wallpaper etc, well, it is a rental property, there is a reason most LL leave things magnolia, with hard wearing carpets & zero style.

GwylimT

phoebe1989seb wrote: »

This ^

Neither did I or DS - some parents obviously don't teach their kids to respect property these days......I think if DS had drawn on any of our walls DH would have banished him to live in the shed, lol

My wife being the bright spark that she is decided it was a really good idea to paint one of our daughters bedroom walls with pink chalkboard paint, do it at four yes, at 14 months, no! Although drawn on wallpaper is much nicer than returning from your daughters bedroom at 11 months to discover the contents of her nappy smeared all over the only carpet in the house.

fishpond

"I called round yesterday to advise we were not going to renew when the AST ends on 31st March, and I feel really guilty"

To be sure they depart, send them an S21 with a possession date after the expiry date of the AST, add 3 days for postage, get proof of postage (minimum). Add a saving clause to be sure on dates.
You may still not get it back for some months if they decide to stay and you have to evict.
The only ways to legally terminate an AST is an S8 (doesn't sound like you need to go there) or a S21 (needs to be sent tomorrow, even though you have lost 1 or 2 days.
I am hoping the deposit was registered with a government scheme?

martin1959

Pixie5740 wrote: »

It's probably for the best that you don't want to be a landlord again. Popping round uninvited. Thinking the AST will just end on 31st March because you want it to. Feeling guilty for serving notice (did you actually serve notice or was this all verbal?). So much to learn grasshopper.

Please do not make derogatory assumptions.


There is no law that says I cannot 'pop around uninvited', it is up to the tenant whether they chose to let me in.


I visited to tell them personally, to offer them the opportunity to leave early, should they wish to do so, breaking the AST early, as they will wish to stay in the same school catchment area and properties do not come up regularly in this area.


I could have just had the agent send them a letter, and insist they paid up to the 31st March, but I am trying to assist them.


We have the property fully managed and 6 monthly inspections have been carried out. We did not expect the property to be immaculate and expect 'fair wear and tear'.


We have had children of this age, and would never have kept our property in the state this was in. However, we have to accept that some have different values to others.


Provided they are served with a section 21 notice by the agent before the 31st Jan there should be no problem.

car0line123

GwylimT wrote: »

As someone with a two year old and five year old !!!! hole and crayon on the wall seems about right! Our carpet has a lovely bright yellow stain from nappy rash cream.

No it's not right, it is completely unacceptable. If you own the property, well it's up to you I guess, but as a tenant it is shocking.

I do own my home, and my kids are most certainly not allowed to draw on walls or furniture. It does mean I have to keep an eye on the kids, but that's part of being a parent. Not cleaning immediately after their mess is very strange.

So OP, I think you should make a call about the deposit once you have been round the property after they leave.

Pixie5740

martin1959 wrote: »

Please do not make derogatory assumptions.


There is no law that says I cannot 'pop around uninvited', it is up to the tenant whether they chose to let me in.


I visited to tell them personally, to offer them the opportunity to leave early, should they wish to do so, breaking the AST early, as they will wish to stay in the same school catchment area and properties do not come up regularly in this area.


I could have just had the agent send them a letter, and insist they paid up to the 31st March, but I am trying to assist them.


We have the property fully managed and 6 monthly inspections have been carried out. We did not expect the property to be immaculate and expect 'fair wear and tear'.


We have had children of this age, and would never have kept our property in the state this was in. However, we have to accept that some have different values to others.


Provided they are served with a section 21 notice by the agent before the 31st Jan there should be no problem.

Yes there are laws that say you can't pop round whenever you like and serving a Section 21 doesn't end the tenancy, only the tenant or a court can do that.

You have to accept that right now this property is the tenants' home and they can live however they damn well choose. As long as the property is returned to you in the same condition minus any fair wear and tear is doesn't matter what's gone on in between. You will have course taken a detailed and accurate inventory at the start of the tenancy, protected the deposit and issued the PI correctly each time a new tenancy started.

Your comments just further confirm that you have much to learn grasshopper.

Edit: To save you from any further confusion about how to end an AST please read this handy guide by G_M.

jjlandlord

martin1959 wrote: »

There is no law that says I cannot 'pop around uninvited', it is up to the tenant whether they chose to let me in.

This is true.

kinger101

Pixie5740 wrote: »

Yes there are laws that say you can't pop round whenever you like and serving a Section 21 doesn't end the tenancy, only the tenant or a court can do that.

For clarity, the LL has no right of entry (unless it's an emergency) without the 24 hour notice. If the tenant chooses to let them in, it's not a problem.

The issue here is that the tenant could view the unannounced visit as the beginning of a campaign of harassment, which would be illegal. I don't think we're there yet, but in my view, OP should avoid such visits in the future for this very reason. That, and the fact it's just damn rude and unprofessional.

jjlandlord

Everything and anything is 'harassment' to someone looking to create trouble...

It is polite to call in advance and it especially saves time, but there is nothing wrong at all with 'popping round unannounced' when the circumstances call for it.

This is another non-issue.