We'd like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum... Read More »
PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING: Hello Forumites! In order to help keep the Forum a useful, safe and friendly place for our users, discussions around non-MoneySaving matters are not permitted per the Forum rules. While we understand that mentioning house prices may sometimes be relevant to a user's specific MoneySaving situation, we ask that you please avoid veering into broad, general debates about the market, the economy and politics, as these can unfortunately lead to abusive or hateful behaviour. Threads that are found to have derailed into wider discussions may be removed. Users who repeatedly disregard this may have their Forum account banned. Please also avoid posting personally identifiable information, including links to your own online property listing which may reveal your address. Thank you for your understanding.
We're aware that some users are experiencing technical issues which the team are working to resolve. See the Community Noticeboard for more info. Thank you for your patience.
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!
Cracks, cracks, everywhere...
Options

gazfocus
Posts: 2,466 Forumite


I've been living in my current rented home for about 9 months now and prior to moving in, the house was fully refurbished (although to a not very high standard in my opinion)...almost as if the builders have tried to get away with a poor job on the basis of the house being old.
Anyway, what concerns me the most is that there are cracks appearing everywhere. Some are just where the wall meets the ceiling so presumably just settlement/drying out cracks, but others are coming down the walls and one or two are not 'straight line' cracks so I don't feel like they're all just the joints in the plasterboard etc.
I reported the initial cracks a couple of weeks after moving in and nothing was ever done about them and as I suspect they're not anything serious I've left them alone, but there seems to be new cracks appearing on a fortnightly basis.
It's got to the point where we are just thinking of moving to a new rental now (if we can get one in the current market), as the cracks are not nice to look at and I think it would be best for the landlord to get builders in to sort the house while it's empty rather than us living amongst what could be quite intrusive remedial work.
I just wondered what others would do? We like the house (although we are probably paying way over the odds for it), but when our 4 year old has started taking pictures of the cracks on his iPad and coming to us saying he doesn't like living here because of the cracks in the walls, it kinda gets you thinking.
We've also reported other issues in the past 9 months (one of which could be a safety issue) and they've still not been fixed, so I don't hold out much hope in the landlord being proactive in repairing his house.
Anyway, what concerns me the most is that there are cracks appearing everywhere. Some are just where the wall meets the ceiling so presumably just settlement/drying out cracks, but others are coming down the walls and one or two are not 'straight line' cracks so I don't feel like they're all just the joints in the plasterboard etc.
I reported the initial cracks a couple of weeks after moving in and nothing was ever done about them and as I suspect they're not anything serious I've left them alone, but there seems to be new cracks appearing on a fortnightly basis.
It's got to the point where we are just thinking of moving to a new rental now (if we can get one in the current market), as the cracks are not nice to look at and I think it would be best for the landlord to get builders in to sort the house while it's empty rather than us living amongst what could be quite intrusive remedial work.
I just wondered what others would do? We like the house (although we are probably paying way over the odds for it), but when our 4 year old has started taking pictures of the cracks on his iPad and coming to us saying he doesn't like living here because of the cracks in the walls, it kinda gets you thinking.
We've also reported other issues in the past 9 months (one of which could be a safety issue) and they've still not been fixed, so I don't hold out much hope in the landlord being proactive in repairing his house.
0
Comments
-
I think I would definitely look for somewhere else, and move if I could afford the rent and thought I was moving to somewhere where the landlord would not be looking to evict me and my family in the short term.The comments I post are my personal opinion. While I try to check everything is correct before posting, I can and do make mistakes, so always try to check official information sources before relying on my posts.1
-
So, move at the end of your fixed term. That’s assuming the cracks are all just cosmetic and not dangerous at all.No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?1
-
GDB2222 said:So, move at the end of your fixed term. That’s assuming the cracks are all just cosmetic and not dangerous at all.0
-
Our now-three-year-old new-build has several drying-out cracks along the tops of walls (where they meet ceiling) and some down corners (where two walls meet). Advice is to wait at least a year after build before painting over these, or they just reappear. We've still not got round to it and don't really notice them anymore, but we'll redecorate at some point.
Is it the unsightliness that bothers you, or are you worried about the structural safety of the property?
If the latter, it's obviously not worth paying a structural engineer for peace of mind in a rental, so then I'd consider moving (though it's extremely unlikely anything will happen).
If it's the former, you could nag the landlord, but then I'd be tempted just to fill and touch up the paint, if I knew what paint had been used. Only do this if you're a decent DIYer who's happy filling and painting. I know you shouldn't have to do it, but realistically if the landlord is lazy then this is a much cheaper solution than moving.0 -
gazfocus said:GDB2222 said:So, move at the end of your fixed term. That’s assuming the cracks are all just cosmetic and not dangerous at all.If it’s just shrinkage cracks, it’s just a job for a decorator, but even so it’s quite messy and disruptive.No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?0
-
If it is making you feel uncomfortable a new rental will give you peace of mind then go for it. It will also help the landlord as he/she can get the decorators in without disturbing any future tenantsGather ye rosebuds while ye may0
-
pinkteapot said:Our now-three-year-old new-build has several drying-out cracks along the tops of walls (where they meet ceiling) and some down corners (where two walls meet). Advice is to wait at least a year after build before painting over these, or they just reappear. We've still not got round to it and don't really notice them anymore, but we'll redecorate at some point.
Is it the unsightliness that bothers you, or are you worried about the structural safety of the property?
If the latter, it's obviously not worth paying a structural engineer for peace of mind in a rental, so then I'd consider moving (though it's extremely unlikely anything will happen).
If it's the former, you could nag the landlord, but then I'd be tempted just to fill and touch up the paint, if I knew what paint had been used. Only do this if you're a decent DIYer who's happy filling and painting. I know you shouldn't have to do it, but realistically if the landlord is lazy then this is a much cheaper solution than moving.
Slightly off-topic, but these types of cracks were the bane of my life at my old property, particularly where the wall meets the ceiling. If I painted over them they definitely came back. I used decorators caulk in the end but then the paint "crazes". Eventually I discovered to use a very thin layer of oil based paint over the caulk, which stops the subsequent emulsion from crazing, but usually requires several layers of emulsion to hide the shadow!
0 -
Sadly this is pretty common. Bodge it to look okay for viewing, in the knowledge that people are usually reluctant to move once they are in.
That could give you some leverage to get the issues fixed. They will have to bodge them again anyway to get the next victim in, so they might as well fix things for you.0 -
Whatever you do, ensure you document it all in an email to the letting agent/ landlord as much in case someone has a rash of stupidity / nastiness and decides to try and charge you for damage.Do it all with photos by email so you've let them know and have evidence.May you find your sister soon Helli.
Sleep well.0
Confirm your email address to Create Threads and Reply

Categories
- All Categories
- 350.8K Banking & Borrowing
- 253K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 453.5K Spending & Discounts
- 243.8K Work, Benefits & Business
- 598.6K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 176.8K Life & Family
- 257.1K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 16.1K Discuss & Feedback
- 37.6K Read-Only Boards