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Rented a filthy house with someone else's furniture in it...
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EmPhoenix
Posts: 8 Forumite
About 2 months ago my boyfriend and I excitedly signed the tenancy agreement for a lovely 2 bed semi-detached house with a garden. We’d already been living together for a year but in a small, very studenty flat that we were eager to leave.
When we viewed the house, it was noticeably a bit ‘grim’ cleanliness wise, but the agent conducting the viewing assured us it would “obviously be cleaned”. She informed us the previous tenants would be moving out about 2 weeks before we would be looking at moving in. So, no worries, I thought.
The landlord of our old flat is a bit weird, so he arranged for new tenants to move in the same day as we moved out. So we shoved all of our furniture and belongings into the back of a removal van and then went to sign the tenancy agreement and get the keys for our house.
When we arrived at the house, we were quite surprised to find it was full of someone’s furniture already. There were 2 large double beds, a large wardrobe, a massive TV, a fridge freezer, a washing machine, some bookshelves and chairs – loads of stuff. Although annoying, we figured the letting agency would just hire someone to come and remove it all immediately, so we weren’t too upset about it initially. As we looked around the house a bit more, I became pretty horrified by how filthy it was. We’re talking thick gooey black mould all over the bath and shower, remnants of poo and wee in the toilets, lime scale EVERYWHERE, pubes in the bath and on the beds, dog hair all over the carpets, grease and weird brown splash stains on the walls, cobwebs, old bits of food in the kitchen, damp, dust, grime, etc. I’ll be honest, I have OCD and anxiety so I’m very sensitive to dirt and potential health risks, but even my boyfriend who’s very laidback (i.e. a bit of a slob) was pretty disgusted by it.
So we immediately called to complain, were promised a call back as soon as they’d looked into it, were never called back. We called again and were told nothing could be done until they’d got hold of the landlord, who’s in the military and out of the country. We had to move all our stuff into the house around the dirty furniture which we weren’t too pleased about. We decided we weren’t going to stay in the house at all until the furniture had been removed and it’d had a good clean, so we had to stay with our parents. The furniture was finally removed nearly 2 weeks after we moved in, and the letting agents repeatedly ignored our requests for a cleaner to be hired so we eventually agreed to do it ourselves as long as we’d be fully reimbursed for our time and the cost of cleaning products. We cleaned the house and it took AGES. We’re still having to clean stuff like lime scale and general greasy grime nearly 2 months later. Bear in mind this house is a new build so I have no idea how they managed to get it so gross in just 3 years. The grass was so overgrown we had to mow it 5 times and had nowhere to store the grass.
We were told by the letting agency to provide a “proposal” for the landlord of the reimbursement and compensation we expected to receive. So I did it, outlining all the costs we incurred: unnecessary travelling costs, time we were paying rent but not living in the property, cleaning products, time spent cleaning, days I had to take off work so workmen could come round, etc. I also asked for a reasonable (I think) amount of compensation, £200 on top of all the costs. So this came to £595 in total, equal to one month’s rent. We spoke to someone in the branch after sending this and they advised it would be best for us to just not pay that month’s rent, rather than paying it and waiting for reimbursement. So we did.
Then we get an email requesting a payment of £200ish as the landlord is only agreeing to a reduction. Then we got letters from debt collectors asking for £595. So we escalated our complaint to the head office and they’re offering us “50% off the renewal fee” (???) but ordering we pay the outstanding £200ish. They’re trying to deny we were told not to pay the rent for that month and they’re making out it’s not their fault that the property wasn’t inspected prior to us moving in. They’re also denying they ever said it would be cleaned.
Citizen’s advice seems to tell me that letting agencies are required to tell tenants anything about a property that they either know or should reasonably be expected to know, such as if the property has furniture in it or if it’s damp and mouldy.
I shall quote:
“Letting agencies have to follow the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. This means you can complain if an agency isn’t completely clear about the property you’re renting.
Generally, an agency must tell you:
• Everything they know about a property, for example if it has damp
• Everything they could reasonably be expected to know, but don’t, for example how old the wiring is
• Anything they become aware of while marketing a property, for example noisy neighbours
• Anything else that could affect your decision to rent a property”
In my opinion it’s very clear that they breached the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, but apparently according to them, they haven’t. My boyfriend and I are young and don’t really know what we’re entitled to or how seriously our complaint should be taken. Does anyone have any advice please?! We lost a lot of time/money through this and it was very stressful as well, particularly as I was going through some serious health issues at the time.
When we viewed the house, it was noticeably a bit ‘grim’ cleanliness wise, but the agent conducting the viewing assured us it would “obviously be cleaned”. She informed us the previous tenants would be moving out about 2 weeks before we would be looking at moving in. So, no worries, I thought.
The landlord of our old flat is a bit weird, so he arranged for new tenants to move in the same day as we moved out. So we shoved all of our furniture and belongings into the back of a removal van and then went to sign the tenancy agreement and get the keys for our house.
When we arrived at the house, we were quite surprised to find it was full of someone’s furniture already. There were 2 large double beds, a large wardrobe, a massive TV, a fridge freezer, a washing machine, some bookshelves and chairs – loads of stuff. Although annoying, we figured the letting agency would just hire someone to come and remove it all immediately, so we weren’t too upset about it initially. As we looked around the house a bit more, I became pretty horrified by how filthy it was. We’re talking thick gooey black mould all over the bath and shower, remnants of poo and wee in the toilets, lime scale EVERYWHERE, pubes in the bath and on the beds, dog hair all over the carpets, grease and weird brown splash stains on the walls, cobwebs, old bits of food in the kitchen, damp, dust, grime, etc. I’ll be honest, I have OCD and anxiety so I’m very sensitive to dirt and potential health risks, but even my boyfriend who’s very laidback (i.e. a bit of a slob) was pretty disgusted by it.
So we immediately called to complain, were promised a call back as soon as they’d looked into it, were never called back. We called again and were told nothing could be done until they’d got hold of the landlord, who’s in the military and out of the country. We had to move all our stuff into the house around the dirty furniture which we weren’t too pleased about. We decided we weren’t going to stay in the house at all until the furniture had been removed and it’d had a good clean, so we had to stay with our parents. The furniture was finally removed nearly 2 weeks after we moved in, and the letting agents repeatedly ignored our requests for a cleaner to be hired so we eventually agreed to do it ourselves as long as we’d be fully reimbursed for our time and the cost of cleaning products. We cleaned the house and it took AGES. We’re still having to clean stuff like lime scale and general greasy grime nearly 2 months later. Bear in mind this house is a new build so I have no idea how they managed to get it so gross in just 3 years. The grass was so overgrown we had to mow it 5 times and had nowhere to store the grass.
We were told by the letting agency to provide a “proposal” for the landlord of the reimbursement and compensation we expected to receive. So I did it, outlining all the costs we incurred: unnecessary travelling costs, time we were paying rent but not living in the property, cleaning products, time spent cleaning, days I had to take off work so workmen could come round, etc. I also asked for a reasonable (I think) amount of compensation, £200 on top of all the costs. So this came to £595 in total, equal to one month’s rent. We spoke to someone in the branch after sending this and they advised it would be best for us to just not pay that month’s rent, rather than paying it and waiting for reimbursement. So we did.
Then we get an email requesting a payment of £200ish as the landlord is only agreeing to a reduction. Then we got letters from debt collectors asking for £595. So we escalated our complaint to the head office and they’re offering us “50% off the renewal fee” (???) but ordering we pay the outstanding £200ish. They’re trying to deny we were told not to pay the rent for that month and they’re making out it’s not their fault that the property wasn’t inspected prior to us moving in. They’re also denying they ever said it would be cleaned.
Citizen’s advice seems to tell me that letting agencies are required to tell tenants anything about a property that they either know or should reasonably be expected to know, such as if the property has furniture in it or if it’s damp and mouldy.
I shall quote:
“Letting agencies have to follow the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. This means you can complain if an agency isn’t completely clear about the property you’re renting.
Generally, an agency must tell you:
• Everything they know about a property, for example if it has damp
• Everything they could reasonably be expected to know, but don’t, for example how old the wiring is
• Anything they become aware of while marketing a property, for example noisy neighbours
• Anything else that could affect your decision to rent a property”
In my opinion it’s very clear that they breached the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, but apparently according to them, they haven’t. My boyfriend and I are young and don’t really know what we’re entitled to or how seriously our complaint should be taken. Does anyone have any advice please?! We lost a lot of time/money through this and it was very stressful as well, particularly as I was going through some serious health issues at the time.
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Comments
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Stop it, the letting agent is just an agent.
Your contract is with the landlord. Pay rent or be evicted.0 -
You knew the property was not clean before agreeing the tenancy. You say they agreed to clean it, they say they didn't. Do you have anything in writing?
You say they said "Don't pay rent for a month, then", they say they didn't. It would up to the landlord as to whether to accept that, not the agent. Do you have anything in writing?
There seems to be no argument about the £395 costs of removing the furniture and the cleaning, only the £200 "compensation" - the agent made a suggestion that would be acceptable, but then told you the landlord had not agreed. Again, it is the landlord's decision. The agency is offering you a goodwill reduction from future fees as an apology for that confusion.
Frankly, the stress and anxiety from your "OCD", and any other health issues, are not strictly relevant.0 -
True, I didn't know the property had furniture in it though.
Never said having OCD was relevant, I was actually sharing that to be honest with you guys that I can be oversensitive to things like that. Wow.0 -
True, I didn't know the property had furniture in it though.
Never said having OCD was relevant, I was actually sharing that to be honest with you guys that I can be oversensitive to things like that. Wow.
The question is this: Do you want to be evicted?
Is yes, carry on, sue for your expenses, you may win, but you'll have a reference that says you pay rent late
Or no, pay your rent, apologise and invite the LL to tea and cake when they return from duty.0 -
True, I didn't know the property had furniture in it though.
Quite probably, the agent didn't know, either. They should have, sure, but... If they'd done their job properly, the landlord would have incurred the costs of clearing and cleaning the property - which could be reclaimed from the previous tenant. There would have been no impact on you.
They failed in that, so the difference - any compensation - is the agency's problem, not the landlord's. If you don't pay your rent, you make it the landlord's problem.I was actually sharing that to be honest with you guys that I can be oversensitive to things like that.
Great, so we're in agreement. My point is that your oversensitivity does not warrant compensation - brutally, it's your problem, not the agency's, not the landlord's. We haven't seen the actual condition. It may be that you're over-reacting, it may not be. You agree that the former is possible.
The agency are not arguing the actual costs - and quite right, too. The agency are, however, offering you a goodwill reduction in future fees, because the landlord is not agreeing to pay you any compensation.0 -
I haven't even had any contact with the landlord; I have no problem with him whatsoever I feel he's handled it all well. I have a problem with the letting agents (which is who I'm trying to complain to). It was the letting agents who advised us not to pay the rent so we didn't? We've only been renting privately for a year and our first property was really straight forward so you can't really blame us for being naive and not knowing the nuances of renting.0
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I haven't even had any contact with the landlord; I have no problem with him whatsoever I feel he's handled it all well. I have a problem with the letting agents (which is who I'm trying to complain to). It was the letting agents who advised us not to pay the rent so we didn't? We've only been renting privately for a year and our first property was really straight forward so you can't really blame us for being naive and not knowing the nuances of renting.
Your contract is between you and Landlord.
The agent is really nothing to do with this situation, they haven't sold you anything.0 -
Was the property advertised as unfurnished? Is there a check-in inventory? Did you take lots of your own photos showing the disgusting state of the property?0
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I haven't even had any contact with the landlord;
Yes, you have - through his agents.
So we're agreed there's no grounds to withhold rent...? (Not that there ever is, but...)I have no problem with him whatsoever I feel he's handled it all well.
And they've offered you a reduction in future fees as compensation. Are you accepting that?I have a problem with the letting agents (which is who I'm trying to complain to).
You have no contract with the agent directly. You have a contract with the landlord. His agents have a contract with him. That contract means that you speak to him via them.
So you say. They say they didn't.It was the letting agents who advised us not to pay the rent so we didn't?
I suspect the truth is somewhere in the middle - a member of their staff suggested it, without having the authority to do so. But, since you don't have it in writing, it's not terribly relevant.
Indeed. That's what's being explained now.so you can't really blame us for being naive and not knowing the nuances of renting.0 -
Yes it was advertised as unfurnished. We received the inventory about a week after we signed the tenancy agreement and it reflects that it's dirty and furnished. We took about 100 photos and some of them we forwarded to the letting agency, who agreed it was pretty bad and were quite empathetic/apologised a lot.0
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