Tenant / Landlord problem...

theatretony

I recently moved out of a property I was renting, but I have a few questions.

Firstly, the house was not left as tidy as the landlord asked (forget about a couple of cupboards that needed emptying), so I agreed to pay the landlord and extra months rent for the inconvenience...

My tenancy ran out on the 30 June 2005, but I agreed to pay them up to the 31 July 2005. The landlord wanted the money in their account by the 1st of July (I have not done so yet, as I cannot afford and Mortgage AND another months rent as well, so hopefully borrowing the money to pay her this week (only a few days late).

Anyway, when I gave my original notice (to end on the 30th June) the landlord came up to the property 2 weeks before my tenancy ended and took the keys off me then, at the same time, showing the new tenant the property, also the day after she redocorated the living room. As far as I was aware this was still my property, was she allowed to do this? And, I think, the tenant has moved in already BEFORE my tenancy ended.

So, in light of all this, I have a few other questions (sorry)...

If she tries to claim interest on the money I have promised her can I fight back with the following:

1. The windows on the French Doors were cracked and broken and have never been repaired before during and after my tenancy.

2. It took nearly a year for us to have doors fitted in the bedroom, and to this day - 2 doors do not close.

3. The shower leaked into the kitchen via the lights, after several attempts to stop this using sealants - it still leaked - landlord had always been aware of this problem.

4. The lighting was of sub-standard quality - the ceiling roses were very old and badly in need of replacing (which I was not going to do, as i am not paying for something my landlord should deal with).

Sorry for the lenghty post, but at the moment we are short of cash because of buying a house, and we did not intend to pay another extra months rent.

Lemoncurd

Not sure if I missed something in your post but I don't understand how she could force you to pay an extra months rent if you had served your notice and paid up until the end of the notice period. Particularly if you handed the keys back two weeks early and the property wasn't empty.
Did you really leave it in such a state that it would cost that much to put right? What were the terms of your contract? did you pay a deposit when you moved in, if so does she have that?

theatretony

Because the landlord claimed that alot of work needs to be done before she can let it out again (even though the next tenant was already in the house looking round).

No deposit was paid, and I agreed to pay the extra rent to keep the peace, as I hate confrontations. So, in theory I still should have tenancy of the house until the end of this month, in which case, she should not be allowed to rent the property out again.

MattLG

Most landlords are scum from my experience. They'll always try to screw you when you leave. Don't pay anything. You've left the house, there's a new tenant, you owe him nothing. Especially if he didn't look after the house to your required standards while you were in it.

MattLG

sooz

MattLG wrote:

Most landlords are scum from my experience.


MattLG

but not all.....


if your landlord had already let the place out, before the end of your tenancy, i would not bother paying any more. if they did not take a deposit, then there is nothing that they can do about any alleged damages. at most, if they do threaten to take you to court, you could pay for the extra 2 weeks that you stayed, but in practice court costs and time taken mean that this is not really worth it.

next time, if a landlord does not want to do an inventory or take a deposit, leave well alone. this protects both you and them.

you can always get a professional independent inventory done for about 100pounds in and 75 out - london prices - usually landlord pays ingoing and tenant outgoing....also take photos/video evidence of anything that is broken/dodgy/stained, and get both parties to sign.

as for emptying stuff out of cupboards, check your agreement, but if it is a standard arla one, should be something about landlord having 14 days after end of tenancy to write to you asking you to move stuff, of they can charge you to remove it. needs to be in writing though...so don't mention this til after the 14th july, then tell them that they did not ask in the correct manner

but, in your case, if they re-let before your tenancy ended, and redecorated too, they don't really have a leg to stand on.