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Boiler Not Repairable In Rented Property

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  • Tucosalamanca
    Tucosalamanca Posts: 847 Forumite
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    edited 9 October 2024 at 9:43AM
    It sounds like a can of worms.

    Sister loans money / pays for boiler and puts a charge on the house, or takes one of the other options (rent in advance, discounted rent etc). You would expect a very good tenancy agreement in place to protect her.

    Suppose the landlord dies in the next few years. Whoever inherits the property also inherits the responsibilities.
    There's a charge on the property and the aging tenant can't easily be removed. Not an easy sale but what are the alternatives? It could get very messy.

    What maintenance will the property need in the future, who will pay and who will be the responsible person?
    The landlord doesn't sound willing/capable and this is unlikely to improve in the future.

    It also sounds as if there are other 'issues' in the background?

    Perhaps it's time for sister to find somewhere more secure for her later years?
    It might be better to make the move now, rather than wait for the situation to deteriorate in the future.
  • Hoenir said:
    Practically speaking if finance is an issue to rectify the matter. Making a move to other accommodation might be the best way forward. As the LL s going to have other property costs to bear in the future. Selling up may well their only option. 
    I'd be inclined to second this, as much as obviously there is a lot of upheaval involved in that plan. If the LL is already failing to budget for necessary and expected maintenance on the property, and that is with the OP's rent coming in, it's hard to imagine that it wouldn't cause him substantially more issues to have that rent stopping as it is going to pay off a boiler install being funded by the tenant (OP's sister). If the sister is going to be reluctant to get any loan arrangement formally recognised, it's not too difficult to foresee a situation where in a few months LL decides that he needs to sell the property, and the sister is left with a new LL who then expects her rent to be arriving as would be usual. While that may well be "sortable" I would imagine it would be stress that the sister could do without. 
    Why should someone have to leave their home because someone else is incompetent?
  • EssexHebridean
    EssexHebridean Posts: 23,852 Forumite
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    Hoenir said:
    Practically speaking if finance is an issue to rectify the matter. Making a move to other accommodation might be the best way forward. As the LL s going to have other property costs to bear in the future. Selling up may well their only option. 
    I'd be inclined to second this, as much as obviously there is a lot of upheaval involved in that plan. If the LL is already failing to budget for necessary and expected maintenance on the property, and that is with the OP's rent coming in, it's hard to imagine that it wouldn't cause him substantially more issues to have that rent stopping as it is going to pay off a boiler install being funded by the tenant (OP's sister). If the sister is going to be reluctant to get any loan arrangement formally recognised, it's not too difficult to foresee a situation where in a few months LL decides that he needs to sell the property, and the sister is left with a new LL who then expects her rent to be arriving as would be usual. While that may well be "sortable" I would imagine it would be stress that the sister could do without. 
    Why should someone have to leave their home because someone else is incompetent?
    They shouldn't, and I haven't suggested they should "have to" either, but an intransigent approach of "well it's not my fault so I'm not leaving" might not be particularly helpful. It's to be assumed that currently the sister - who I get the impression is also not a young woman - is currently living in a property which is now going to be substantially more expensive to heat, we have no idea what strain that would put on her finances. It appears that there may also be ongoing issues with maintenance as if a new boiler can't be afforded, what happens the next time something needs fixing? It's not likely that the situation will get better. 
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  • Kim_13
    Kim_13 Posts: 3,000 Forumite
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    edited 9 October 2024 at 9:41AM
    Hoenir said:
    Practically speaking if finance is an issue to rectify the matter. Making a move to other accommodation might be the best way forward. As the LL s going to have other property costs to bear in the future. Selling up may well their only option. 
    I'd be inclined to second this, as much as obviously there is a lot of upheaval involved in that plan. If the LL is already failing to budget for necessary and expected maintenance on the property, and that is with the OP's rent coming in, it's hard to imagine that it wouldn't cause him substantially more issues to have that rent stopping as it is going to pay off a boiler install being funded by the tenant (OP's sister). If the sister is going to be reluctant to get any loan arrangement formally recognised, it's not too difficult to foresee a situation where in a few months LL decides that he needs to sell the property, and the sister is left with a new LL who then expects her rent to be arriving as would be usual. While that may well be "sortable" I would imagine it would be stress that the sister could do without. 
    Why should someone have to leave their home because someone else is incompetent?
    In the interests of not being left out of pocket (paying for the boiler and then being legally evicted in short order) and having somewhere that’s definitely safe to live in. The situation as is is not sustainable so she needs to choose the least worse option.

    Unless LL finds a pot of gold or wins the lottery, his ability to pay for anything that crops up isn’t going to improve so what’s the solution? He could try to sell with a sitting tenant and may or may not succeed, but the buyer could then issue proceedings because they want to live in the property they’ve bought / increase the rent etc.
  • MrsWenger
    MrsWenger Posts: 408 Forumite
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    Good morning everyone, thank you all for sharing your views on this topic.  

    I will ask my sister to look at this thread and consider options accordingly. To answer some key points -

    I don’t know if the property is mortgaged but I expect that is unlikely given the landlords age (he is 90)

    The rent paid seems market value for the area £800 per month

  • FlorayG
    FlorayG Posts: 1,528 Forumite
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    It could still be mortgaged - you can get a BTL mortgage until you are 99
  • Section62
    Section62 Posts: 8,644 Forumite
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    Hoenir said:

    Yes, it does seem strange that the LL hasn't accrued enough to cover these sorts of costs. Does he charge her below the going rate for rent? Or is he over-enjoying his elderly lifestyle while he can?

     

    If there's a mortgage to service on the property. Then the interest rate increase may have torpoded any free cash flow. 
    OP said the landlord is elderly himself.   I think it’s very unlikely the property would be mortgaged.

    However that £7000 quote sounds like absolute nonsense and should go straight in the rubbish bin.   

    Maybe also consider a call to trading standards to report the probably criminal tradesman!  

    For comparison you can get a Vokera Easi-Heat Plus 29C boiler for £1750 - and yes that includes fitting.   They’re advertised all over eBay.

    Most fitters like to both supply and fit. But if it’s just like for like replacement of a combi boiler it can be done by one person in a day.  

    Get a range of quotes but no way will it be £7k that’s just a crook trying a scam! 

    Even British Gas wouldn’t charge that much and they’re known for being expensive. 
    There's nothing illegal about a tradesperson giving an inflated quote for work.  Calling trading standards would be a waste of everyone's time.

    None of us know exactly what work is required for the boiler replacement (e.g. it may include conversion to a fully-pumped system, or the oil tank and supply pipework could need replacing), so it is impossible for any of us to work out whether £7000 is a reasonable cost or not.

    It is improbable a 20 year old oil boiler is a combi, more so as the OP mentions the option of hot water being heated by an immersion heater.

    Given you've quoted for a replacement gas boiler, rather than an oil-fired one, I'd gently suggest the OP doesn't attach too much weight to your suggestions.
  • FlorayG said:
    It could still be mortgaged - you can get a BTL mortgage until you are 99

    It’s more likely the LL bought it for thruppence ha’penny, pre-decimalisation!

    Some people are just terminally cheap and refuse to spend money maintaining their assets however many decades of income they’ve provided. 
  • Section62
    Section62 Posts: 8,644 Forumite
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    FlorayG said:
    It could still be mortgaged - you can get a BTL mortgage until you are 99

    It’s more likely the LL bought it for thruppence ha’penny, pre-decimalisation!

    Some people are just terminally cheap and refuse to spend money maintaining their assets however many decades of income they’ve provided. 
    None of us know anything about the landlord's personal circumstances and how they wound up in this difficult position.  It might help if we all tried to be a bit 'nicer', rather than ascribing things to a stranger we know nothing about.
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