Rental property - minor repairs by tenant

Peggy0628

Hi,
I would like your opinion on this...
Not too long ago I moved into a new rental property. It's an old Victorian house, there's nothing special about it.
The house is in a rough area, more than half of the houses on the street are rentals, the whole area has a very neglected feel to it.

It's been a rental for a long time and the tenants' turn over is quite high (and they didn't look after the house too well). As a result there's a few problems with it. Most of it is just minor/cosmetic - I could fix a lot of it myself).
The question is, should I?

Examples of the problems:
- small cracks in walls (mostly near door/window frames), one of them running from floor to ceiling
- cracks in a couple of bathroom tiles (on the wall)
- kitchen walls stained by previous tenants cooking ie greasy stains near cooker (there is no backsplash nor tiles) and in random places above worktops
- second bedroom walls have stains from dried out damp (no damp present at the moment but it looks ugly)
- holes in wall from hanging hooks/nails etc.

Previous tenants didn't mind living in a house like this (and LL didn't do any repairs/redecorating in between tenancies) but I personally want my house look nice (there's nothing I can do about the street or the outside but at least the inside can look like a home, instead of looking like a crappy motel).

My tenancy agreement is pretty standard, it just says I need to report problems when noticed and return the house in the same condition at the end. If I fix the problems, it will be in better condition - who could have a problem with that?

Can I repair the problems myself (it will just need a bit of polyfiller and a bucket of paint)? The more serious problems (cracks) are on the inventory so the LA/LL are aware of them but did nothing about them prior to me moving in so I think it's pointless asking them do fix them. Could they complain if I did the work myself? I'm not saying I'm an DIY expert but I have put a shelf up before and it's still holding 20 years later so I think I'm perfectly capable of filling some holes/cracks and repainting a wall or two...

What do you think?
I'm hoping to get some replies from private landlords on this forum... What would you do it this was your house and the tenant did the work mentioned above?
Thanks for your time.

Mela322

We are tenants and seek written permission for every single little thing, even if it's improving the property.

G_M

Make sure your inventory records all the issues (photos?) just to protect yourself for being blamed for them when you leave.


As for your question, the best advice is to report issues and request agreement for repairs. But an element of common sense can prevail. If it's clearly an improvement, and impossible that you might be /bodging/making things worse, then just go ahead.


A more extreme example might be re-painting a room. However gross the current colour, and however decrepid the paintwork, the landlord could, in theory, insist you repaint it the original colour when you leave unless you've had (ideally written) consent.

sevenhills

I am now a home owner, but whilst I was renting I had your attitude. But after living in the same house year after year, I decided it would be a good idea to make the house the best I could, if the cost was minor.
I lived in private rented property for 10 years, more than I thought at the beginning.

Peggy0628

Thanks for replies, to clarify a few things.
All of the problems are on the inventory (with photos) so proving they were there is not an issue. The LA/LL know about these issues.
I did ask them to fix the cracks after paying the holding deposit/referencing fees (but before signing the tenancy agreement and paying the rest of the money) and nothing was done. I asked them again after moving in and handing back the signed & amended inventory (they missed a few bits). They did fairly promptly arrange the replacement of a broken floorboard (it was rotten) so they will sort out big/dangerous problems as needed but ignore the minor stuff...

The whole house is painted in magnolia (like every other rental property I lived in). The spare bedroom was at some point painted pink. A neighbour pointed out that a few years ago a family with a young daughter lived there so I assume it was her bedroom but somebody did a bad job of re-decorating as the pink still comes through in places (mostly near the top where the walls meets the ceiling but in other places too). I could redecorate the whole room in a day or two (depending on how many coats are needed).

I have arranged for all of the carpets to be cleaned next month (previous tenants were smokers and they didn't smoke just cigarettes) as the carpets are stained (this is recorded on the inventory) and smelly. If I'm going to do any decorating, now is the time while the carpets are still dirty.

As far as I'm concerned, filling in cracks/holes and re-decorating stained walls is an improvement. It definitely improves my quality of life but also the quality of the house after I move out. Some prospective tenants could be put off by cracks etc so I'd be doing the LL a favour by making the house mo attractive. Did I mention that the house was unoccupied for 4 months before I moved in as the LA couldn't find a tenant even though they had plenty of viewings (they own words, not mine). The rent is comparable to similar properties nearby...

I've been renting my whole adult life and I always try to make a house a home. So far I always had my deposit returned in full. Just because I can't afford to buy my own place doesn't mean I have to live in a house that I'd be ashamed of inviting friends to come to.

[Deleted User]

If it in your interests (even comfort) to fill cracks and repaint, then do so. You could discuss with the LL if he/she will contribute to the paint and decide where to go from there.

If you are matching paint colours (I tended to find if I used magnolia it was difficult to figure out where I'd painted, even if the colour wasn't quite the same immediately. I bought two huge pots of magnolia for £40 and did the whole house, in fact i had spare left over lolol.

But if it was left that way, totally your choice.

Use Flash or cillit bang to try and remove grease. I've found both very effective. Bicarbonate of soda is good on very persistant cooking stains containing grease. Apply with damp cloth, leave for a few hours and you will be amazed. It works even on glass oven doors.

tlc678910

Hi,
I rent out my house (and rent myself elsewhere in the country). When the tenant changed recently the agent mentioned there were scuff marks on the walls from furniture. I replied that I was happy to contribute to paint costs if the tenant would like to paint but did not want to pay for a professional repaint.

My reasoning was the house is too far away to pop over and paint myself (Cornwall to Midlands) but if I pay for a professional paint our new tenant might only stay six months and could leave the place trashed and in need of another repaint. If I had a crystal ball and knew they would be good long term tenants I probably would have but how can I know.

I figure if the tenant sees the house as a longer term home they might choose to paint for their own benefit. If it is a stop gap, while they house hunt for example, they probably won't. Because of this I feel comfortable that any painting they do is for their benefit not mine.

What you shouldn't do is spend masses of time, energy and money on it when there is always a possibility that your tenancy will end at some point for reasons beyond your control like the landlord wants to sell. But a couple of days and a few quid is probably worth it for your own comfort.

I asked the agent to specify in the contract neutral/pastel colours only or the walls returned to neutral/pastel colours at the end of the tenancy. I promise I wouldn't be unreasonable here but even though some might love it I definately do not want a post box red living room or a black bedroom. I think it would be off putting to future tenants and take lots of coats of paint to cover. So if you are thinking of radically changing the colour scheme then do get permission else you might be asked to out it back to magnolia or charged to do so. If you want to change woodwork or built in furniture from white or natural to a trendy grey etc then again get permission because what you hate the landlord might not want changing.

One final thought. I would not want to make deductions at the end of the tenancy for anything unless the "thing" was completely unreasonable but from reading here regularly some landlords seem determined to try to take the deposit for anything and everything they can think of. If your landlord is one of those it doesn't matter what you do or don't do they will try it on. Keep before and after photos and correspondence which can support you in a dispute with the deposit protection scheme.

I think if you want to do a cheap and cheerful makeover in a similar style go for it. If you want to make changes get written permission for exactly what you plan to do.

Tlc