Tenant

Old_Git

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cymruchris

As long as they're not damaging the fabric of the house, or any of your fixtures and fittings - then they should be allowed to live however they like. Everyone has different standards and expectations - and we shouldn't impose ours on others. Yes - they could be a bit tidier I'm sure, but you're their landlord and not their mum

marcia_

Old_Git said:

I have had a tenant for 8 years . 

A single parent with two children in primary school . She work part time 3 to 5 pm . 

Youngest child has a classroom assistant until 1pm. 

Here’s my problem . The house is untidy and I don’t mean a few things out of place . 

Last week tenant knew I was calling , went into youngest child’s room and we couldn’t get moving , clothes toys shoes all on the floor . I had to lift them and put them on. The bed to get into the room . Yesterday I was back in the house and it was exactly the same . I think the youngest is sleeping in the tenants bed . I seen that last week it didn’t have a bed sheet just a duvet . It was the same yesterday . Yesterday eldest child’s bed had matress of bed . Tenant left to pick up child at 1pm them got the bus to work at 2pm. Everything in the house is clean just untidy. Clothes in the stairs , cushions on living room floor , laundry basket full . It’s just everything is a mess .  

It’s never really been tidy but it’s  getting worse . 

How should I broach the subject . 

Should I ignore it . 

Should I offer to help . 

 Unless the mess is actually causing damage to the property the mess is non of your business 

Flugelhorn

If it is just mess then nothing you can do about - the key bit is what would the fabric of the house be like if all that stuff was moved out of the house and it was empty? 

400ixl

The advice so far is totally appropriate. Unless there is damage being caused or causing issues like mould then it is not really any of your business.

About the only reason to say anything I can think of is if any repairs are being carried out that access to wherever that repair is required is clear of any clutter to protect both the repairer and their possessions.

RAS

You might suggest that with that much clutter it is difficult for you to assess accurately whether any repairs are needed (can you for instance see the radiators to check for leaks) and remind the tenant that she must contact you if there are problems. And she will need to make space for any repairs.

bouicca21

What is the relationship with the tenant like?  Is it friendly enough to start a (non judgmental) conversation on the lines of ´things seem to be getting on top of you, is there anything I can do to help?´

elsien

bouicca21 said:

What is the relationship with the tenant like?  Is it friendly enough to start a (non judgmental) conversation on the lines of ´things seem to be getting on top of you, is there anything I can do to help?´

Is that not overstepping the bounds of the landlord tenant relationship?

My house can be quite messy at times, but I wouldn’t appreciate my landlord commenting on it unless it was valid reason to do so for example being able to access necessary areas for repairs. In fact, it would  probably worry me more In case they were thinking of reporting me as not coping, for example. 

MankyVegSoup

I would ignore it. We've had untidy tenants and ones whose idea of cleanliness didn't match ours! In the long run they turned out to be decent tenants. They are not damaging the property or doing anything illegal so it's not really your business.

powerspowers

I agree with previous posters, it feels like overstepped boundaries and I don’t know how you would raise things with out sounding judgmental. 

From a child protection point of view, you say things are clean just untidy? I think I’d be more concerned if you said things were very dirty, rubbish in the property, risk of rodents, strong odour, furnishings in disrepair. Bed situation doesn’t sound great but wouldn’t warrant childrens services involvement. Do the children have somewhere to play? If the clutter is so bad that they don’t that would be a concern but again unlikely to warrant extra support unless the rest of the home conditions are bad. 

tacpot12

elsien said:

bouicca21 said:

What is the relationship with the tenant like?  Is it friendly enough to start a (non judgmental) conversation on the lines of ´things seem to be getting on top of you, is there anything I can do to help?´

Is that not overstepping the bounds of the landlord tenant relationship?

My house can be quite messy at times, but I wouldn’t appreciate my landlord commenting on it unless it was valid reason to do so for example being able to access necessary areas for repairs. In fact, it would  probably worry me more In case they were thinking of reporting me as not coping, for example. 

It is overstepping the bounds of the landlord-tenant relationship, but it is possible for landlords and tenants to have other forms of relationships, e.g. as human to human, providing the tenant is open to this.  As long as the landlord appreciates that saying something is potentially worrying to the tenant, it should be possible for them to ask the question, but due to the nature of the orignal relationship it is entirely for the tenant to decide if they want to engage with their landlord on another level.