Property devaluation following murder

Debs301

Hi

Hoping someone can help.

My partner has a property which he rents out through a letting agent in Scotland. Main facts:

* house was let out to a single mother and her daughter
* the mother had a party in the house which went on through the night. She left the party and all the people in the house and went to stay at her boyfriends.
* at 11am the following day the party was still going, without the tennant present.
* one of the men fatally stabbed one of the women and held all the partygoers hostage for a short period of time in the house. The woman later died in hospital.

Issues:
* tennant is refusing to pay her rent as the house was a crime scene and held by police for 4 weeks
* my partner was going to sell the property but has been told by local estate agents they will have to disclose the incident and it will significantly reduce the value of the property.

Questions:
* can he claim on his insurance for devaluation in Property?
* could he sue the tennant as she was not in charge of the property at the time and allowed a party to carry on in her absence?

This is such a stressful time for both of us and a young woman in her 20's has tragically lost her life. The house previously belonged to his great aunt and the whole family is devastated this happened.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks

Debbie

davidmcn

Debs301 wrote: »

* can he claim on his insurance for devaluation in Property?

Unless he's got a very unusual insurance policy, no.

* could he sue the tenant as she was not in charge of the property at the time and allowed a party to carry on in her absence?

He can sue for what the tenant's liable for under the lease i.e. unpaid rent and any damage to the property.

Norman_Castle

I expect the rent is still due. The tenant can try to reclaim it from the police. (Good luck).

Not sure this would put me off the property or affect the price. Its a one off event rather than a house of horrors.

NaughtiusMaximus

Debs301 wrote: »

* my partner was going to sell the property but has been told by local estate agents they will have to disclose the incident and it will significantly reduce the value of the property.

We definitely weren't asked that question by either the EA or the the solicitors when we sold our house over the summer.

EDIT - just noticed the OP is referring to a property in Scotland so rules might be different, ours was in England.

armchaireconomist

Harder to sell? Possibly.


Worth less than the equivalent across the road? No.

getmore4less

NaughtiusMaximus wrote: »

We definitely weren't asked that question by either the EA or the the solicitors when we sold our house over the summer.

EDIT - just noticed the OP is referring to a property in Scotland so rules might be different, ours was in England.

EA got a mate in the renting business looking for a deal.

davidmcn

NaughtiusMaximus wrote: »

We definitely weren't asked that question by either the EA or the the solicitors when we sold our house over the summer.

EDIT - just noticed the OP is referring to a property in Scotland so rules might be different, ours was in England.

There are no Scottish-specific rules on this, possibly they're thinking it's a sufficiently significant point that they have a statutory obligation to highlight it? I've seen something similar (Dennis Nilsen's former flat, though that's obviously a bit more notorious than a one-off party involving some chibbing).

Guest101

I'd say it's a load of rubbish and the EA is looking for a bargain for himself / friend/ family

Debs301

Hi

Seemingly a new law was passed a few years ago which means anything that would put a buyer off buying a property has to be declared. If not the buyer can sue after the purchase. Everyone in the town was aware of the incident and was also aware the house was covered in blood.

It was meant to be getting put on the market in a few weeks when the tennant came to the end of her lease. Two desperate estate agents are saying is would be extremely hard to sell and we would likely be offered way below the valuation price.

steampowered

Debs301 wrote: »

* tennant is refusing to pay her rent as the house was a crime scene and held by police for 4 weeks

This will be determined by the lease.

So the first thing you need to do is read the lease. Often leases will say that if the property is not habitable rent is not payable, but you'll have to check the exact wording.

Guest101

Debs301 wrote: »

Hi

Seemingly a new law was passed a few years ago which means anything that would put a buyer off buying a property has to be declared. If not the buyer can sue after the purchase. Everyone in the town was aware of the incident and was also aware the house was covered in blood.

It was meant to be getting put on the market in a few weeks when the tennant came to the end of her lease. Two desperate estate agents are saying is would be extremely hard to sell and we would likely be offered way below the valuation price.

can you point us to the law? Because I can tell you it definitely doesn't say: "anything that would put a buyer off buying a property has to be declared."