Dealing with my housing association

potentialhousebuyer

I wondered if anyone had any suggestions. 

I live in a block with several flats, rented through a housing association. 

I have a few concerns and issues that I am trying to get resolved, the main one is a neighbour works in a very messy job and walks through the hall ways in his work boots and leaves marks, stains, and mess all over the place. 

This has now got to the point where the place is just covered in mess. 

Me and some of the other neighbours have tried to raise this with the person involved, however he doesn’t seem interested. 

My housing officer has agreed to come out to see me on Monday to talk through my concerns, and I have found a section in the tenancy agreement that states all tenants need to keep communal areas, clean, tidy and free of obstructions. 

Is it just a case now of seeing what she says and if need be following their formal complaints process? 

Generally all of the concerns relate to the upkeep, management, and maintenance of the property as a whole which we pay service charges for. 

So I was thinking a formal complaint about them failing to keep to this was the best way forward? 

gwynlas

At least your fellow tenant is working and in a messy job at that. At most developments there would only be a weekly clean provided. Would it be beyong you and your fellow tenants to clean in between times?

swingaloo

Seems an odd thing to be getting cross about. It would  be a different thing if he was leaving bags of rubbish, empty beer cans or maybe a bike in the entrance in everyone's way. Is it worth getting at odds with a neighbour for the sake of a quick mop.

housebuyer143

I'm not sure it's really something you can control. He works in a messy job... Do you want him to strip outside before coming into the hall? Take his clothes off in the hall? 
I imagine you want him to go into the apartment, change, then immediately leave his apartment and mop and clean after a full day at a manual job? What is he gets home in the evening, middle of the night? 

If he's working full time then you can't expect him to clean it every single day. 
If you want to push it, I would sway towards a weekly clean, but if you have a cleaner for the communal areas, how often do they come around? 

potentialhousebuyer

I don’t expect him to clean because I expect him to not make the mess In the first place. 

All realistically he needs to do is remove his boots at the entrance and that would be resolved. 

We do have a cleaner on a Monday, that means all week it gets messy and we have to walk through this mess until the following day. 

A few stains I can cope with, this is clumps of mud been left throughout on top of stains, hence looking a right mess. 

If I make a mess off a delivery, or from my footwear, I clean it out of respect. 

housebuyer143

potentialhousebuyer said:

I don’t expect him to clean because I expect him to not make the mess In the first place. 

All realistically he needs to do is remove his boots at the entrance and that would be resolved. 

We do have a cleaner on a Monday, that means all week it gets messy and we have to walk through this mess until the following day. 

A few stains I can cope with, this is clumps of mud been left throughout on top of stains, hence looking a right mess. 

If I make a mess off a delivery, or from my footwear, I clean it out of respect. 

Fair enough. I would probably expect someone with mud on the shoes to take them off if they were coming into my house. 
Whether HA can enforce this I'm not too sure, but doesn't hurt to ask.

sevenhills

What sort of messy job is it, surely any clumps of mud would drop off on the bus/train/car?

Communal areas will have a lower standard of cleanliness compared to inside your home. Perhaps it could be someone with his/her dog, adding to this mess?

potentialhousebuyer

I don’t know the nature of their job fully, but he wears overalls and boots. I can 100% tell you it is this person and no one else because the overall building is split into small blocks of flats, 4 per block, I am in one of them, 1 is empty, another neighbour doesn’t do a messy job and then the neighbour that’s left is the one I know is doing it. 

I know it’s him and he has admitted it’s him, he just doesn’t care, he says he can do as he wants and just laughs if you mention it. 

Maybe I am just picky and my standards are high because I admit they are, so I just thought there might be suggestions of what I could do. 

I have a feeling the HA won’t do anything either from experience. 

I’ve attached a picture - 

tacpot12

Unfortunately he isn't likely to change, and it is such a low level issue that you won't get support from the Housing Association. 

You might feel better if you hoovered the communal area once a week, a few days apart from when the cleaner comes. Machiavelli would have got him sacked from his job!

lovemula21

I think you are doing the right thing talking to the housing association about it. Some people are very inconsiderate of others. Judging by the picture you have shared he is making a mess that could stain and damage the carpet if it’s not dealt with. This will increase the wear of the carpets and will cost money if they need to be replaced earlier than expected. It may seem like a small issue to some and I can see a few people have tried to minimise the issue but you have to live with it so you should do what you think is best. 

BobT36

Not hard to take boots and coat off at the door.. No excuse for not doing that. 

Everyone else shouldn't have to walk through clumps of mud, especially on stairs.