Tenant rights with terrible landlord?

doodling

Hi,

RHemmings said:

BobT36 said:

elsien said:

janepn said:

We are looking to leave but it’s more to do with our rights in the meantime - can he insist on taking and using internal photos on the details? It would be mortifying to have the internal photos of the house in the condition it’s in for all our village to see on Rightmove against our belongings. Do we have different rights if we were in a notice period?

I think you are probably overthinking this a little. If the condition of the house is so bad, it’s going to be obvious down to the landlord anyway, rather than a reflection on yourselves.
 

Some advice here. The notice period is irrelevant, because you have the right to quiet enjoyment whether formal notice has been given or not.
https://www.estateagenttoday.co.uk/features/2021/8/can-landlords-and-agents-take-photographs-during-property-inspections#:~:text=It's%20important%20to%20remember%20that,take%20should%20not%20be%20excessive.

Hmm I wouldn't trust that article much. Why would they need to take random pictures anyway? Surely ONLY of damaged or items needing repair? Or issues such as fire doors being blocked. 

Also it mentions evidence for being "clean and tidy", ahem, wtfs that to do with the landlord? As long as it's causing no damage to the property, it's none of their bloody business how tidy the property is, as long as it's given back as it was less fair wear & tear. (I'm an absolutely spotless / tidy person, but still, I hate this overreach.)

Having read the article, I get the impression that the author is just making up what is appropriate and not appropriate with no reference to any external standards. It seems a bit paternalistic to me.

It is basically a load of wishful thinking - an estate agent has no practically enforceable right to enter a property which is occupied by a tenant, if the tenant is denying that access,, let alone to take pictures if the tenant tells them not to.

Having said that, the guidance about what might be reasonable once a tenant has chosen to allow access and chosen to permit photography is fairly sensible.

Of course, a tenant would be foolish if they prevented a landlord or their agent taking pictures of the property in order to record defects and get repairs carried out.

As in all things, reasonableness on both sides makes life happier for all.

horsewithnoname

Zoe02 said:

Find somewhere better. 

That’s easier said than done. 

Silvertabby

I'm sure I've seen properties listed for sale with external pics only, due to it being tenanted.  

saajan_12

janepn said:

Our landlord wants to sell the house we have been renting from him for some years, but wants to keep us in the house as long as he can, so hasn’t given us notice but is putting it on the market and on Rightmove. We have put up with a lot with this landlord and the house is in a shocking state of disrepair with lots of water damage where we’ve had terrible leaks as he procrastinated on fixing the roof for several years. We’re embarrassed about the condition of the house and don’t want interior photos with all our belongings taken against this backdrop. He doesn’t seem to care about the condition. He just wants to sell it. What are our rights - does the fact no notice has been given make any difference? 

RIGHTS:
There's no inherent right to not have pictures of your belongings taken. They can't publish info containing personal info due to GDPR (eg your name, bank statements etc) but if someone recognizes your sofa, there's not a lot you can do. 

Re providing access, check your agreement - you likely contractually agreed to some access, but this might be limited to certain times for different purposes eg repairs / inspections / viewings. There's no trigger from the notice period written in law, but your contract MIGHT provide for only in the last X months, or only after notice given for example. 

You could breach this and refuse to allow access, but that might cause more trouble than it's with if the LL (legitimately) comes after you for damages from not being able to market, or go to court to force access if they have enough time . 

NEGOTIATION: 
Aside from the photos issue, the LLs approach of waiting till the last minute to maximise rent is a risky one, as they can't quickly force you to leave once they do find a buyer and the court process takes a long time if you decide to stay put. 

So it could be a negotiation point, whereby you agree to move out per their timeline (put parameters around this) in return for them agreeing to do the marketing in a way that you're comfortable.

bottom line, if your contract says they can't access for viewings yet then that's plan A. If not, the negotiation is likely your best chance at getting what you want.

Silvertabby

Plan B.  Buy some cheap dust sheets and cover everything, room by room, before the pics are taken.

Robbo66

I don't really see what the issue is here, Your landlord wants to sell so at some point he will do so and you may need to move on so will require a reference, be difficult and the landlord may not give one. Agent wants to take some internal photos, so what. Either put away anything personal or private or ask the agent to blur them. What is so precious about your furniture that you don't want them taking photos