When do i return the deposit???

chappers

clutton wrote: »

chappers - OP will only be trying to do the right thing if he comes back and tells us which deposit scheme he is using ......

You may be correct in alluding to the fact that the deposit is not protected.
however providing the landlord does not try to withold deposit from the tenants then there shouldn't be a problem and hopefully he will do the right thing next time.

zebulon

mind you OP could be in scotland... and as far as I know the all deposit thingy is not in place here (or am i wrong!??)

ilikedrawing

When leaving my student rental property we had to supply the rental agency with copies or receipts proving we had paid ALL bills.

We got our deposit back about 2/3 months after we left because it was such a hassle getting the receipts. (especially from British Gas!)

diamond_dave

As a landlord I have placed my tenant's deposit with the Deposit Protection scheme.The tenant vacated the property suddenly and left me with 100's of pounds of damage + loss of rent. I applied to the DPS for the deposit, but as the tenant has not left a forwarding address, the only way I can get my part of the whole bill is to make a single claim which involves me swearing a Statuary declaration before either a solicitor,a magistrate or a commissioner of oaths!! All this is going to cost me a fortune plus the damage far exceeds the amount of the deposit and to cap it all the small print adds that the deposit will be subject to the subtraction of tax!!! Surely, this system penalises landlords who carry out the law to the letter, as a high percentage of tenants skip out without paying the rent or leaving damage?

silvercar

the deposit would be subject to tax but the expenses in righting the damage would be a legitmate expense and so allowable against tax.

mlz1413

diamond_dave wrote: »

As a landlord I have placed my tenant's deposit with the Deposit Protection scheme.The tenant vacated the property suddenly and left me with 100's of pounds of damage + loss of rent. I applied to the DPS for the deposit, but as the tenant has not left a forwarding address, the only way I can get my part of the whole bill is to make a single claim which involves me swearing a Statuary declaration before either a solicitor,a magistrate or a commissioner of oaths!! All this is going to cost me a fortune plus the damage far exceeds the amount of the deposit and to cap it all the small print adds that the deposit will be subject to the subtraction of tax!!! Surely, this system penalises landlords who carry out the law to the letter, as a high percentage of tenants skip out without paying the rent or leaving damage?

DD
I've just had to do all this as my tenants went back to Poland after 2 months, I went through the DPS automated system to get the forms but it only offered the joint form, so rang and finally spoke to someone (on an 0870 number!) and they said a single application form would be put in the post, 2 weeks later I still didn't have it, so rang again finally received form the next week.
I asked my solicitor who dealt with flat purchase to do satutory declaration and it was £7. I rang the DPS the next week who said they did have my form but still had to send a letter to tenants (even through they have left) and would process my claim if they didn't respond after 14 days.
I chased this through on the 3rd week as the internet site said still waiting tenant response and the man said he would progress the claim.
Finally got an email today to say my claim had been put through for repayment and I should get my money this week - I started claim on 21st January!
So the costs should not be too high and the tax they take is only from the interest on the deposit, you should not lose any of the deposit. You just have to remain solvent whilst the wheels turn very slowly!!

sooz

diamond_dave wrote: »

......involves me swearing a Statuary declaration before either a solicitor,a magistrate or a commissioner of oaths!! All this is going to cost me a fortune ..........

Call any local firm of solicitors. Swearing a Stat Dec only takes 5 mins, & should cost about £5.

IveSeenTheLight

DGJsaver wrote: »

Perhaps youre user name is not very appropriate ?

Perhaps this post is a waste of a post.

Not that it is any of your business, but the name is in reference to how I saw the light with regard to overpaying my mortgage in order to be mortgage free much earlier.
I saw the light, saved about 15 years of payment and tens of thousands of pounds (almost 100,000 pounds)

zebulon wrote:

mind you OP could be in scotland... and as far as I know the all deposit thingy is not in place here (or am i wrong!??)

Correct the Tenancy Deposit Scheme is not yet in effect in Scotland.
There are currently other methods such as the Landlord Registration requirement

barnaby-bear wrote:

No they won't; credit agreements and histories can only be linked to PEOPLE, the notion of blacklisted address is false and it hasn't been the case for many years... The deposit is only and entirely linked to the state of the property relative to its original condition.

As a person who previously had bad credit many years ago, I know that credit referance agencies have the rating on the person.
I also know as someone who just over a year ago bought a property off a guy who became bankrupt that I had to do quite a bit of work to diss-associate the property with the previous owner, in order to ensure that there was no link from their bad credit to the property.

Getting back on topic, as a landlord, I have found that I have asked the tenants to proove the bills amassed against the property have been paid and this can be done on the day the keys are handed back.
You can get the tenant to make a call to the utility companies and make the final payment over the phone. I offer to let the tenant use my hand phone.
I then am happy to return the deposit in full, on the day of departure, in cash if the tenant requests if the property is left in at least the same condition it was found in.
All of my tenants have been happy with this, we as landlords know there is nothing to come back and bite us in the a$$ and the tenants get the deposit back immediately with no delay.

If both parties are amicable, then there is usually no issue.

eco-friendly_2

qwertyqwerty wrote: »

Hi I am due to have tenants moving out at the end of the month, and i was just wondering what the procedure is for unpaid electricity, phone bills etc. Do i withhold the deposit till all is paid? Thanks

7 - 10 days mate, unless they've wrecked the joint! unpaid bills generally are nothing to worry about from previous tenants , although if you have repeated non payers, some companies can, and will charge a deposit.

zebulon

IveSeenTheLight wrote: »

You can get the tenant to make a call to the utility companies and make the final payment over the phone. I offer to let the tenant use my hand phone.

Eeekk

Is it actually something you agree with the tenants at the start of the lease?
I would refuse to do the phone call bit you're tallking about (I already did actually).

A piece of paper with final meter readings, checked and signed by LL and us, and a forwarding address. That's what I expect.

I've had all my deposits return on the day or no more than 2 days later.
we've always left the places in perfect conditions so it helps I guess (also never had very dodgy LL, just one trying it on)
But I would be fine with having it returned a week later, up to 2.

well, that my opinion anyway.
Of course if you have dodgy tenants, who do not give forwarding address etc...