Tenants requesting bed removal

becominganobsessivesaver

to be honest I imagine the tenant in a future letting may prefer to have a new mattress anyway rather than one which has been used by goodness knows who (unless you're renting to students). I'd just get rid somehow and if you do need to relet in future see if the new tenants want/need a bed or if they want to get their own. I know the key thing in our first couple rental was getting our own bed, which is why we only looked for part furnished.

Herbalus

Haha unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately) the OP in the link is not my tenant. It's almost identical scenario, but the bed definitely isn't 10 years old and there's no garage on the property to store other furniture. Appliances are all built in as well.

I suspect I will accommodate and remove the bed somehow. I'm not sure how, as I'm loathe to dispose of the bed as it's only six years old and cost a few hundred pounds. I suspect the tenant might think I'm barking if I suggest they buy it off me and dispose of it (I probably would as a tenant), especially as they're expecting a child and have all those costs. But then again I can't work out if costs of van hire plus a Saturday is something most LLs would do.

They have been there 3 years with no problems, but I would imagine it'd be a bit cramped with a baby, so I don't want to mess around with the beds if they decide they want a bigger place with a garden in a years time!

HouseBuyer77

Could always ask them to pay for the van? If you spend your Saturday moving the bed it seems reasonable they can pay for the van.

Alternatively suggest they transport it to you?

xylophone

The flat has been let furnished. I don't see that the tenant has the right to demand removal of the bed.
If the landlord is willing to remove it, then fair enough.

Do the tenants never have guests to stay overnight- perhap grandma and grandpa in the near future? If so, where are they to sleep?

And unless the room is really tiny, surely there is room for the cot and the bed.

sniggings

Herbalus wrote: »

But then again I can't work out if costs of van hire plus a Saturday is something most LLs would do.

Why, do what you think is right.

Renting is not all about collecting money, a Saturday is part of what you signed up for and why you get paid rent every month.

franklee

Really you need to answer G_M's questions:
How old is the bed?
How much life has it left?
What quality/how expensive?

The value of the bed is pro-rata over it's expected lifespan.

You wrote "it's only six years old and cost a few hundred pounds". So say it was 500 quid and expected to last 12 years then it's now had half it's life so is now worth 250 quid as far as a claim against the tenant goes.

What's the rent per day? How many days void is 250 quid. If paying 850pcm that would be 9 days void, not to mention agent's fees, checkin-checkout, referencing etc should the tenants leave.

OTOH If the tenants stay say another three years then the bed will be 9 years old and worth 3/12ths of it's original value, only 125 quid.

Obviously re-do with your own accurate figures. Is that amount worth the hassle and possible disruption?

Why not tell em to free cycle the bed or if it has it's fire tags etc. tell em ring a local charity to collect. If all else fails tell em to chop it up into car size chucks and take it to the local tip. Then spend your Saturday doing something better than a 70 mile trip each way in a van (how much in petrol alone would be).

Annabee

Sounds like your tenants have been good ones, and as you have had no problem with them for the last three years, couldn't you help them out a bit? Their request is not unreasonable, and to be honest you don't want to appear a bit mean and petty by making them continue to store the bed in their baby's room. Hardly what new parents would want.

I don't think you should worry about the loss of value if the bed is disposed of. Six years is not that new for a bed really, so I question if it is as valuable as you think. Apparently mattresses should be replaced every eight years. If they do move out and new tenants want a bed in that room then you could, I suppose, tell the new tenants they'll have to supply the bed themselves.

Or you could get a new one quite cheaply. For example, I bought a perfectly good double bed (new) from eBay recently for less than £250. This was a solid pine frame with a pocket sprung mattress. So you can see it wouldn't have to cost you a fortune.

It would be a nice gesture to take it away for your tenants, but if you really don't want to get involved with the removal, why not just give permission for them to Freecycle it, or call a charity like British Heart Foundation who will collect good second hand furniture to sell, I believe.

pinkshoes

Second hand beds do not have much value, so ask the tenants to sell it, or sell it yourself and charge them delivery.or they can buy it off you for £X then do what they want with it.

Speak to them, tell them your issue, and see what they come up with.

If they move out, buy another second hand one.

DRP

As pinkshoes above - tell them your issues. Let them get rid of it themselves.


[STRIKE]Don't give them permission in writing, then screw them over with deposit deductions when they eventually leave.[/STRIKE]

lush_walrus

The cost of hiring a van for the day, your time, then if they do leave sending the bed back there, is not worth keeping the bed, a cheap bed (should they go and the new tenant actually wants it) would equate to less than that. I always let unfurnished, but find on inspections rarely a second bedroom used as such.

Alternatively, you could be contractural, but if I was told to live around an old bed stacked against a wall once I had a baby I would be giving my notice and moving on to somewhere without that issue. Personally, I would let them dispose of it.