Landlord wants tenant to fit a kitchen?

Pixie5740

Whilst the landlord might be advertising a long term let the reality is that you won’t havd much more than 6-12 months security with an AST. I think you’d be hard push to supply and fit a kitchen for the price of one month’s rent...even a second hand one. I also wonder what you would be expected to repair or replace next.

Red-Squirrel_2

This definitely sounds like a landlord who can't afford to be one.

gettingtheresometime

Red-Squirrel wrote: »

This definitely sounds like a landlord who can't afford to be one.

Or shouldn’t be one

Sarastro

What's the most important thing to you? If it is security, then I would struggle to say this sounds like a good way forward - better to get a different HA place or wait until something better comes along.

If you really want to do the move though, I'd go back with a counter-offer. The LL should appreciate that you will need to get your money's worth out of the kitchen so should offer a longer term (which is what they've said they want anyway) or more than one month's rent. You might be able to get a better deal than what is being offered. Sounds to me as if LL just wants to get it rented out asap.

If you do negotiate a deal be really careful about the standard of kitchen, how much it's going to cost, who is going to do the fitting, who will be responsible if there's a problem with the fitting and all that stuff. Is there a gas supply, if not who will pay if you want one, blah blah.

It is unusual in this country, but completely common in Germany where you will nearly always rent a flat without much of a kitchen at all, and you fit your own. You also probably take it with you when you move.

aaroncaz

Don't give up the HA........you will regret it. I know as I speak from experience, worse thing I ever did.

Marvel1

A landlord who can't even bother to sort out the basics - walk away.

G_M

The key questions to ask yourself are:

1) how much is 1 months rent (ie how much is the landlord 'paying' you for this)?

2) how much will it cost you to
a) supply the kitchen (or is the LL supplying and just wants tenant to fit?)?
b) fit the kitchen (can you DIY or need to pay a kitcen fitter?)?

3) how long is the tenancy being offered? No point investing your time & money for 6 months contract. I'd expect 3 years or more (which requires the contract to be Executed as a Deed).

Once you've answered those, and done the maths, then consider

4) how much better is this place than where you are?

5) is it worth losing the security, and reduced rent, of a HA?

Cakeguts

Good landlords do not get their tenants to fit their own kitchens. So this landlord is someone that it would not be a good idea to rent from.

Your HA flat is yours for as long as you want it for. This landlord could call 12 months a long term rental. Anyone who would expect a tenant to fit a kitchen could think anything.

The house is expensive and you have to fit your own kitchen? This is not a good rental for someone who needs a lot term let and low rent. Stay where you are.

[Deleted User]

Having live in both social housing and private rental, I would not voluntarily move to private rental again. Where I am (social housing) yes its difficult to get repairs done but its different to knowing repairs will not be done. I was in my private rental 4 years, central heating broke down several times a year, the place was freezing and lots of promises from LL to replace if x y or z happened. They did, it still didn't get replaced. The place was very badly done (by a bad DIY person), the LL did nothing about electrics that didn't work properly, a hole in the ceiling, holes in the roof etc.

Then for two years he told me he wanted to sell, I had to do viewings, lots of stress and finally he evicted me. I had no where to go. You really really don't want to face that.

In your situation, as others have suggested I would try to find a HA swap of some sort. Please consider very carefully giving up the security of tenure you have. Private LL's (if you have a bad one) can get away with too much, in spite of legislation. I can't portray how much stress mine caused, trying to push things with me. Again, as has been said, this LL hardly sounds like one of the best. And you have only been told about the kitchen, what about other things that might be wrong in the property you don't know about? Try putting in a false ceiling (as I had to) because the last one fell in and the LL refused to do anything about it (Environmental Health were useless). I had to because my young son (who has ASD) was terrified of insects coming in the black hole (it fell in because of damp). Not pleasant to deal with.

FBaby

Tenancy where the tenants take on some maintenance can work in some occasions. It doesn't in most. I agree that it sounds like the issue is not so much that they can't afford it (if they can lose one month's rent) but that they don't have the time/energy/bother to deal with it. This is likely to mean that the same would apply to everything else. Do you want to take on a property where every time something goes wrong, you'll be ask to sort out yourself, even if they agree to a reduce rental payment?

Also, what happens if you get someone to fit it and something goes wrong?