New landlord (me) - some queries

ButterCheese

theartfullodger said:

does the tenancy agreement state anything about rent increases???

You'll appreciate tenant doesn;t have to agree to your suggested rent increase .

Done any training in how to be a landlord and/or landlord/tenant law?

No.  I did a 1 year agreement from the .Gov website.  The rent was stated anually, but this time I will state that it will increase x% per year.  I must give at least 28 days notice of the rent increase (according to the contract).

If the tenant doesn't agree to the increase, surely they've got a choice to stay and pay the rent or to move out?

No I wasn't aware any training existed, I've just read through the .Gov guidance on responsibilities of the landlord

HobgoblinBT

With regards to moveable white goods and furniture, we gifted the ones in our rental house ie washer dryer, freezer, fridge and microwave as well as some surplus furniture to our tenants to start them off in their new home, as well as take away our obligation to replace them if/when necessary.  Goodwill from good tenants and removal from landlord obligations to replace.  An arrangement where everybody wins!

ButterCheese

HobgoblinBT said:

With regards to moveable white goods and furniture, we gifted the ones in our rental house ie washer dryer, freezer, fridge and microwave as well as some surplus furniture to our tenants to start them off in their new home, as well as take away our obligation to replace them if/when necessary.  Goodwill from good tenants and removal from landlord obligations to replace.  An arrangement where everybody wins!

I did that with 1 bed and wardrobe (and specified it was a gift i.e. I'm not liable to replace if they break).  But I had had a new kitchen installed with all new white goods....and by the time they got delivered (there was a delay of about 4 months) my circumstances had changed.  I couldn't take any white goods with me as they were all built in, so now whatever is there I have to replace

saajan_12

HobgoblinBT said:

With regards to moveable white goods and furniture, we gifted the ones in our rental house ie washer dryer, freezer, fridge and microwave as well as some surplus furniture to our tenants to start them off in their new home, as well as take away our obligation to replace them if/when necessary.  Goodwill from good tenants and removal from landlord obligations to replace.  An arrangement where everybody wins!

The problem is you then effectively end up replacing for every new tenant (assuming most tenants don't have their own in your market). What if the tenants only stay for a year? 

Albermarle

ButterCheese said:

theartfullodger said:

does the tenancy agreement state anything about rent increases???

You'll appreciate tenant doesn;t have to agree to your suggested rent increase .

Done any training in how to be a landlord and/or landlord/tenant law?

No.  I did a 1 year agreement from the .Gov website.  The rent was stated anually, but this time I will state that it will increase x% per year.  I must give at least 28 days notice of the rent increase (according to the contract).

If the tenant doesn't agree to the increase, surely they've got a choice to stay and pay the rent or to move out?

No I wasn't aware any training existed, I've just read through the .Gov guidance on responsibilities of the landlord

If they do not agree to the increase, they can just stay put until you go through all the necessary processes to evict them. Depending on how stubborn they are this could take 6? months and with some cost. They might even stop paying rent altogether. 

Hopefully if they are aware of the market rents they will not argue too much.

RHemmings

ButterCheese said:

RHemmings said:

In my experience, it is normal for rents to be increased and the tenant shouldn't be surprised. An RPI increase of 5% sounds reasonable to me, based on the assumption that the current rent was reasonable a year ago. 

Asking the tenant to pay part of the cost for improvements is a bit less normal. Paying for a like-for-like new garage door sounds reasonable to me. Asking for the extra £700 for a better door is something more unusual, and I'm not sure I would like that when I was a tenant. But, you could offer. 

I wouldn't say it's unfair to ask for the additional £700, and your tenant may agree. But, I think this is the kind of thing that could cause concerns for the tenant - e.g. will you ask for other sums of money in the future. 

One thing you could do is suggest two possible rent increases to the tenant. Maybe 5% if they want the house as it is. Or 10% if the tenant would like you to be improving the property. I would expect the tenant to choose the lower one. But, even this is unusual and could cause your landlord-tenant relationship to become more difficult. E.g. they may expect improvements over and above what can be paid for out of the increased rent.

If I was in your situation, I would say to the tenant that you will be replacing the garage door with a good quality like-for-like door. But, if the tenant would like the property to be upgraded beyond the normal maintenance expected of a rented property, then perhaps they (the tenant) could suggest how you and they could could to some agreement. Mention that you will be limiting a forthcoming rent increase to RPI which is a fair rent for the property as it currently is. That would put the ball into the tenant's court. 

Thanks for the advice.  I would have just replaced like for like, but the tenant said they would prefer a roller door (more clearance to park in front), and would pay extra towards it.  But good points have been made about ownership - maybe I should draft an agreement between the two of us to say that if they move out, then I have to pay them back the extra they put in for the door.  They can't take it with them, as it's made to measure

Sorry, I missed that bit in your original post. I must limit quick posts while working. Ignore my post. 

If they have said that they would pay extra towards it, then just give them the number of £700 and see what they say. Yes, the points upthread about ownership are very valid. 

When I was in a rented house I planted some trees. When I asked for permission I pointed out that I understood that this is a rented house and that I don't know how long we would stay there (about another 6-7 years it turned out) and would leave the trees when we left. Permission was granted. I wonder if the trees are still there. But, those were two apple trees from Aldi - not £700. When I asked permission I was as clear as I could be that the trees would then belong to the landlord effectively and I would not try to be silly in any way. 

Grumpy_chap

ButterCheese said:

RHemmings said:

I wouldn't say it's unfair to ask for the additional £700, and your tenant may agree. But, I think this is the kind of thing that could cause concerns for the tenant - e.g. will you ask for other sums of money in the future. 

Yes good point.  It was them who suggested paying extra for a roller door, but reading other comments it does pose a potential problem, and I also don't want to set a precedent i.e. I have no intention of improving the property out of my own pocket when I'm not living there.  I will speak to them about it and suggest that we sign an agreement that I have to buy their share of the door from them if they move out

Well, that seems a bit of an odd idea - I mean the T will move out, so you will have to buy their "share" of the door.  The only unknown is the timing of when you have to buy that share of the door.
What price will you buy that share of the door at? 
The current £700?
The £700 less a proportionate depreciation based on expected life of a door?

What if the relationship is soured by the time the T leaves?
It may all be very well and good now having an agreement that says the T will pay £700 for the door and the LL will buy that door back at "X" tenths of the original value depending on how many years have passed, so "X" starts at "10" and reduces to "0" after ten years.
If the T is an awkward so-and-so when leaving and says they want the full £700 back, or gets silly and literally cuts 40% off the door to take with them, you'll be left with 60% of a door and very little you can do about it...

theartfullodger

ButterCheese said:

theartfullodger said:

does the tenancy agreement state anything about rent increases???

You'll appreciate tenant doesn;t have to agree to your suggested rent increase .

Done any training in how to be a landlord and/or landlord/tenant law?

No.  I................................... The rent was stated anually, but this time I will state that it will increase x% per year.  I must give at least 28 days notice of the rent increase (according to the contract).

If the tenant doesn't agree to the increase, surely they've got a choice to stay and pay the rent or to move out?

No I wasn't aware any training existed, I've just read through the .Gov guidance on responsibilities of the landlord

So the tenancy agreement does state something about the rent increase....

Tenant has choice of simply ignoring your suggestion (entirely legal) of any rent increase as well as many other choices ...

Weren't aware of any training?? Oh dear, NRLA (I'm not a fan) do courses #
https://www.nrla.org.uk/training-academy/core-courses/landlords-fundamentals

as do others e.g. Shelter (don't think that's not worth looking at.. ) e.g. juts one of their courses
https://england.shelter.org.uk/professional_resources/shelter_training/renting/landlord_tenant_law_introduction_course
- and you'll meet man others in the buisness 

- or get a job in a local lettings agent and see how some do it (sometimes how not to do it..)

Or read some books (eg on property tax - there are more than 10 taxes a landlord may pay) - or watch this and other forums - but avoid (IMHO) the snake-oil salesmen selling their get-rich-quick " training " schemes/scams

Sigh! 

_Penny_Dreadful

Keep things simple. 

Do not enter into an agreement with the tenant about garage door. Either install a like for like replacement or pay for the roller door yourself. 

Do increase the rent to be in line with the market rate. If/when the Renters Rights Bill becomes law (I’ve assumed the property is in England) it will be easier for tenants to challenge rent increases so don’t enter the new era with below market rent. 

You mention this time you’ll state the rent is to increase x% a year. This suggests you are going to issue a new fixed term contract. You needn’t bother as the tenancy will simply become periodic at the end of the current fixed term. I also do not recommend baking the rent increase into the agreement which is another thing that will become a thing of the past with the Renters Rights Bill. 

ThisIsWeird

Hi ButterCheese.
Kudos to you for trying to do the right thing. It can be a mixed blessing, tho', and the emotive can begin to cloud your judgement.
Based on two folk I know who are LLs, in two very different parts of the country, it is possible to be somewhat charitable, and take the longer view; Ie, keep the rent below 'market' (tho', cough, not as much as you...), and have solid, appreciative, tenants who don't take the mick.
First things first; your tenants know how lucky they are. They ain't daft, and are fully aware of what they'd be paying elsewhere. What's more, they are - have been - anticipating a rent rise for some time.
Based on the two LLs I know, I am pretty sure that both would wish to address the garage door issue in the most helpful manner to their tenants. This is because it ain't a 'luxury' - if a tenant wants to add luxuries, they can dig into their own pockets - but a very practical and useful improvement to their situation, and ultimately to your house. Squeezing your nose up tight to a garage door in the hope it won't get scuffed is a pita. If, for example, they wanted to add electric opening, then that would be 100% you deciding to give permission if you wish, but fully funded by them, including servicing and repair. Ie, a luxury
I cannot see any reason why an agreement cannot be arrived at. Worst case, if they move out too soon (which they won't, unless they buy elsewhere, or split up, or something unavoidable) is that you refund them the £700 excess just to avoid legal unpleasantries. I'd suggest that this is extremely unlikely to happen. 
Your tenant knows that a 'roller' costs more - do they know the actual amount? 
Ok, this is what I'd do... 
You do need to increase your rent, but it would be unfair to bring it anywhere close to 'market' in one swoop, or anything like. Since you are a moral fellow, you probably do wish to keep it below 'm' in any case, for the good feeling it gives you, and also to have an appreciative tenant. This can happen - the two examples I know of are proof.
So, I would entertain their offer of contributing to the roller door. If you haven't already, provide quotes for both so they are fully aware of the cost difference (I'm sure they know). You may wish to suggest adding a 'refund' system, say £500 if they leave within a year, and £100 less for each successive year - something like that. No idea how legally watertight such a thing would be, but I repeat - the worst case is that they would make such a nuisance if they left under some unfortunate circumstances, that you just refund it all to get rid. That's the worst case, and I'd hazard would be very unlikely.
You also give notice of a rent increase - you need to do this. Two reasons - you need to cover your inflation-increasing costs and any potentially unknown future expenditure. And, regardless of how appreciative they may be of their fortunate circumstances, a level of 'expectation' may start to creep in - just human nature. No idea how much to raise it by - that's your call. But I suggest at least £50pm, and repeat this each year until you are somewhere between your overly generous current, and the true market.
Yes, I know the sensible folk above are right with their warnings, but you are not a typical LL, and I presume this house is already paid for (or mortgage easily covered by the current rent), so you appreciate you are fortunate, and are happy to spread that good fortune to the right person? 
That is, of course, silly, but admirable. 
I repeat - your tenants know how lucky they are. Not just in rent amount, but the fact you gave them a chance when they were in dire straights.
It's a shame that the white goods were included, but these should hopefully last reasonably well now!
Ok, provided they are 'good' tenants; they look after your house well (treat it as their own), and don't call you up every time a door handle comes loose, then time for a letter and notice of rent increase (no ideas of the legalities of the latter).
Make it clear you enjoy having them as tenants. Point out that you haven't increased the rent for years, as you wanted to give them a good start. Add that you now 'have' to because of increasing costs, but that you still wish/aim to keep it below 'market' (add some equivalent examples if really needed). Ie, make it clear that you know the market rate as well as they do. So, from the Xth, it needs to increase by £50 pm. Then mention the garage door, adding that the significant extra cost of a roller would be hard for you to justify, but you'd consider their contribution idea, adding the basis of partial refund should they leave early. Perhaps - your call - even offer for their contribution to be done at £50 pm for a year, rather than £700 in one go? 
I'd suggest you look to getting your rental amount up to at least £950, even £1k, over a couple of years or so, in £50 increments - still way below market. 
If they take umbrage from any of this, then they ain't as nice and deserving as you think they are. You need to balance the charitable bit
But, kudos to you, and it can work.