Garden in rented house

Babydoll87

Hi all

My partner moved into a rented house a year ago but the garden wasn't yet complete. The landlord said he'd get around to it in a few weeks. After much nagging, it still isn't completed (or even started). It is incredibly frustrating & we're just getting fobbed off, says he'll do it next month etc, but still nothing.

Can anybody please offer any advice on this?

I want to be able to park my car on our drive (again, something he will do as part of the garden), my partners son can't play outside & obviously no washing line up yet (which we will put up but not while I have mud for a garden).

Any help will be much appreciated x:(

Davesnave

Unless you have something in writing, which I suspect you don't, there is very little you can do to put pressure on your landlord. You accepted the house in its current condition, and that's what the inventory will show, if the garden features at all.

The rest was promises,promises, and landlords are good at those. The truth is, you could be no further forward this time next year.

Grass seed is cheap. Now is a good time to sow grass. Then at least you could use the space, although you'd need a mower too, but then your landlord was never going to give you one of those either.

Furts

I am with Davesnave.

I too do not have a garden, this because I am doing a self build and the garden is last priority. But it is absurd to say there can be no washing line. I have one and have laid a temporary path to it. This path is some sheets of old plywood. Equally, I have just got a carpet off Freecycle and laid that in one area. It is a nice pale blue even colour so I pretend it is Bluebells!

I keep the weeds down, and it saves me a lot of time by not cutting the lawn!

Come on Babydoll87. I am sure with a little effort, and a little bit of lateral thinking you could do something with the garden. Even sand, and hardcore, for paths comes up on Freecycle, and grass seed costs peanuts. A bag of cement costs £5, so putting in a washing line is not beyond the wit of man or woman.

Hope this helps.

pendragon_arther

Is a letting agent involved? If so go through them. If not put in writing your complaint and include a proviso that you will deduct a certain amount from the rent until the situation is resolved.

Davesnave

pendragon_arther wrote: »

Is a letting agent involved? If so go through them. If not put in writing your complaint and include a proviso that you will deduct a certain amount from the rent until the situation is resolved.

None of the experienced posters on the Buying and Renting Forum (where this probably belongs) would ever recommend witholding rent.

Having said that, it is a very good idea to put all complaints to your landlord in writing, and I don't mean email. Paper trails can sometimes be useful.

dominoman

You have no rights to a nice garden so you have to appeal to the good nature of your landlord. He'll do this work if he likes you and wants to keep you as happy tenants.

If he doesn't like you, or he thinks you are getting to be more trouble than it's worth, he'll serve notice and get someone else in.

I am a landlord of a flat and I have lovely tenants who cause me no trouble at all. If they do ask for something I get on it straight away because it is in my own interest to keep them happy.

So, yes, ask him about the garden. But ask nicely and if he doesn't do it then do as Furts said and do it yourself.

Or move.

greensalad

If you want a nice garden, I'd consider requesting to the landlord you do it yourself. You could perhaps ask him to go 50/50 on materials, but I wouldn't hold my breath.

We have a very uncared for garden. It was once nice but hasn't been looked after for many years. I requested to the LL that we could lay a path and they said yes. Total cost about £30 and worth it for me. We've put up our own rotary airer. I've spent the last few weekends clearing a weedy back bank and putting in sleepers, putting up trellises. I know that a lot of what I'm doing I can't take with me, but I'm accepting that (and we're hopeful that we will be in this house for a fair few years, as the LL has given some good signs that they're looking for long-termers). I've been filling the back bank with potted plants so that I can take them with me when we go, and I'm prepared to take cuttings from other plants I've put in the ground when we do have to go and hopefully get them to propgate so I can at least recoup some of them.

If your garden is all mud, try sprinkling down grass seed and sand and see what you get. You could embed stepping stones in so you can get down there to hang washing out. Those things can be dug out come the time for you to leave.

firely2327

Do not withhold rent or part of it whatever you do, that's bad advice. You'll be in breach of contract and could find yourself in court, or facing the prospect of moving at the least! Davesnave is right, unless it was in the contract/inventory then you haven't got a leg to stand on.


If the landlord gives you permission to seed it yourself then £10 will get you a nice box of seed from B&Q that'll seed a few decent sized lawns. I seeded a 9m2 patch a while back and have a lovely lawn now, all in about an hour using a rake to level the ground. A few patio slabs or such like would make a decent path for you to access a clothes line. You may even pick up a freebie on Gumtree etc.


Is the drive really a big issue? Many of us don't have the luxury of a space for a car and park on the street. It's not the end of the world.

phil24_7

For the drive you could try contacting your local council for road shavings as often they will just charge you for delivery. Skip companies often do the same for crushed stone/hardcore.