I hate renting.

[Rooners]

This is just a rant really. There's nothing we can do - we already have a lot of freedom living here.

Just got back from the school run this morning when I can hear an almighty noise out the back - thinking it is next door, I ignore it then I realise there are people in our garden.

I go out - it is some builders we've had before, who have been sent by the LL to sort out the garden.
It would have been nice if they had knocked.
We have been left to do all the gardening for the last 5 years and I've done so much - planted loads of trees, flowers, built stuff, etc etc.

For some guys t o come alongwith a strimmer when everything is WET and start randomly attacking parts of it. I know it is a bit messy at the moment. It's fucking loads better than when we moved in though and I have been pregnant and carrying round a newborn and still managed to do mowing, etc (in fact I just bought a strimmer and it isn't bad out there).

I went out and followed them around basically till they went away, they started hacking at my grape vine as well, I told them to stop and I would tie it back when I got a moment.

I just felt so invaded. One of them I had never met, he was smoking, dropping his fag ends in the grass where ds3 crawls, I mean it's like there is no fucking respect.

I HATE feeling like this. We treat it as though we own it. I've put in a new kitchen and bathroom and paid for most of that myself. I've laid tiled floors and I've put down carpets and I've painted the door and replaced the back door.
LL is never around anyway.

It's just every now and again something happens and you feel like you are nothing, and you have nothing, and your life belongs to someone else.

[angelinterceptor]

Have to agree - renting sucks

[mrshap]

I think you need to put this in writing to your ll..I think LL is bang out of order for just turning up like that to do your garden...

You sound like a nice tennant btw LL should be gratfull you are looking after the house.

[Jan49]

I'm renting and I prefer it to owning.

Our landlord sent people round to do the gardening but they knocked when they arrived. Is it possible that yours did knock but got no answer, as you say you arrived home and they were there?

I like knowing that the major things aren't my responsibility. Rain leaked through the neighbour's (terraced house) roof and it was nice knowing it wasn't me that had to work out who paid what or how to get it done. I like knowing that if we have neighbour problems we can move and we don't have to worry about reporting or complaining which would affect the house sale if we owned it. I don't think I ever want to own a home again. I just want a nice home with a good landlord and good neighbours.

[Rooners]

Thankyou for the replies. It helps to know I'm not alone

I should have been clearer - I'd been back a little while before I heard it, maybe half an hour. They definitely didn't knock.

Next door have been doing building work so thought it was them using power tools.

I don't mean to be unkind, he is a lovely youth (about 17yo) and his dad is also lovely, though speaks very little English, they are from Poland.

But setting a 17yo with no knowledge of gardening loose with a petrol strimmer in wet grass is just stupid, he couldn't really do anything, and I have done a 2 year course in horticulture...it felt so awful to have these three hefty blokes trampling over regardless. I haven't even looked to see the bit where he actually managed to strim, because I know he will have killed my rose bush

There are some good points to renting as you say Jan...not having to worry about structural issues etc. But I'd take that on purely to avoid the complete invasion of privacy.

I will be on top of the garden in the spring, I've done masses to it this year already and I was out there cutting things back with the baby in a sling when they were here just to show that I can and will do it.

It is finding time as much as anything. I'd fAR rather they said, Oh, can you do this and this and I would do it, whenever they wanted, than leave me with no instructions or complaints and then send in the cavalry.

Anyway I think it would be the same anywhere we rent - I really want people just to leave us alone. As it is we get the agents round every 3 months with the clipboard. I am 40, the woman they send is at least 10 years younger, I feel too old to be at the mercy of kids who don't know as much about running a house as I do.

sigh

[MaggieW]

Well, it's no consolation but I'd be v v grateful to have a tenant like you.

Is it worth letting agent know that you don't expect to have any surprise visits in the future and that they're to contact you before anything like that happens again - that should be the norm anyway - an appointment, if necessary, at a convenient time to you.

BTW next door to us has employed a couple of "gardeners" to sort out their garden on a weekly basis. God knows what they're paying but when I saw the "gardeners" attacking the bamboo with a strimmer, I knew things won't end well....

[Rooners]

Oh that is lovely of you Maggie. I do try - it's been very hard to keep on top of things the last year or so, but am finally beginning to see the light (and the carpet)

They said the LL will be around next week so might get an idea of the schedule for works - there's going to be scaffolding involved apparently.

I know he is just trying to help me sort things out, sending them to do stuff in the garden, but really I'd rather he didn't bother! Still I think he is planning a new shed which will be brilliant.

They did run away to another job when I had followed them around for half an hour or so. Bless