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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To wonder why all landlords seem to be such shysters!

49 replies

Jewels234 · 31/10/2014 08:52

Have rented for 10 years, 5 of them in London. Moved into a new apartment yesterday, the shower doesn't work. Landlord tells me it's my problem to deal with, and only when I quote the Landlord and Tenants Act does he change his mind. In addition, we had a clause added into the contract to have something put in the house that the landlord has conveniently 'forgotten' about and is now refusing to do.

Why do landlords do this?! It's a legal requirement. What part of the landlord thought they could get away with that behaviour without a fight?!

Not really an AIBU, but a question to you landlords about why you behave so badly?

OP posts:
pantone363 · 31/10/2014 08:55

I agree. The majority of LL will do everything they can to avoid spending one penny of money if they can get away with it.

But you're about to get 60 anecdotal LLs telling you they maintain and upkeep their houses to the letter.

DelGirl · 31/10/2014 08:59

You've rented from the majority of landlords then Pantone so you know that for a fact?

Sorry for your hassle op but no, we're not all the same.

Avonmore · 31/10/2014 08:59

Not all of us do! I am a landlord by accident- couldn't sell the house as it was in negative equity.
I charge rent below market value and in the 2 years I've had a tenant I've put down new flooring, put in new heating, new front and back doors, painted and a host of other improvements.
This week I have a joiner boxing in gas piping as the tenant thought it would look better- not a necessary fix but he's a good tenant so I'm happy to keep him happy within reason.
That said I'm not in London where prices etc seem totally out of hand!

antarctic · 31/10/2014 08:59

When I was renting in London, I rented three different places within a similar budget range and area. I would describe one landlord as extremely good, one as reasonably good and one as rubbish. So there's a mixture!

fairgame · 31/10/2014 09:01

I've only ever had 1 bad LL the rest have been lovely. But i don't move very often I've been in my current home 4 years. I always go for landlord's that only have 1 or 2 properties they seem to be more caring than the btl landlords. My current and previous LL were letting out their own homes after moving in with partners. They seem to fix problems very quickly and care about the house being looked after.

pantone363 · 31/10/2014 09:02

Yes, clearly I've rented from the majority.

Or five. All of whom have been somewhere on the scale of lazy to dangerous.

And the majority of my social circle also rent. And also have the same problems.

Delgirl, I'm going to make a guess you don't rent or know many renters?

Hatespiders · 31/10/2014 09:04

I've never rented in London, only in Edinburgh and Glasgow (13 different places!). My 2 nieces rent up there too. Landlords have been excellent (we must have been lucky!) I think it must be that they're a mixture, as in anything else. At least here in UK one has rights and can insist on them.

jollygoose · 31/10/2014 09:05

yanbu however not all the same. I am also a ll due to hving the luck of an inheritance I was able to let my house and buy another. We had just had a beautiful new ensuite and lovely fitted wardrobes.
The tenant managed one or two complaints which were dealt with immediately, my only beef with her is the mess she has allowed the garden to get into.
I made it a condition that she kept garden to a reasonable standard, average would have been fine but alas there are weeds several feet tall and am feeling sorry for neighbours.

magpiegin · 31/10/2014 09:06

I was a landlord for about 9 years. I did everything that needed doing for the flat.

I rented for years, all the landlords were great, no problems here.

DelGirl · 31/10/2014 09:07

I rented until 2 years ago and have friends who rent. I guess you've not been lucky!

Preciousbane · 31/10/2014 09:08

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

specialsubject · 31/10/2014 09:09

can I say 'all tenants are messy, dirty, fradulent slobs' and get away with it? Of course not. Actually looking at comments such as pantones I think I will.

I hope neither of you ever want to rent from me. Don't want you in my decent, well-maintained property.

Original poster
Jewels234 · 31/10/2014 09:12

I just think that they are probably decent people in real life, and they wouldn't conduct any other business relationship like that...so why treat your tenant so poorly?

I am a professional, renting apartments that are not cheap in London...but the amount of times I've had to Google to see what my landlord is responsible for by law, and looked in my contract, is ridiculous. I shouldn't have to quote the law to get what I am entitled to. I'm their customer essentially!

OP posts:
Avonmore · 31/10/2014 09:13

You're right that they should be doing what they are required to do Jewels but don't tar us all with the same brush.

lottiegarbanzo · 31/10/2014 09:17

Landlord here. I don't. I behave really well. Bye.

Asteria · 31/10/2014 09:20

I lived in damp, mouldy, draughty houses (run by the only private agent that took housing benefit an dogs) for years. The last one had an entire gable end covered in black moult and they did nothing! The one before had sewage from four houses back up on to my back garden whilst I was away - LL refused to do anything so I had to shovel about a tonne of shite myself.
Our current landlord is brilliant - a bit slow, but that is more his harridan secretary, who just tightens her headscarf and tells us we have to "make do" if we ask for anything. If we get LL or his wife it is always done straight away

pregnantpause · 31/10/2014 09:21

When I was renting universally my landlords were shits. I was very young and they all ( moved 5 times) did the bare min and took advantage of my youth and naiveity to serve their own purposes and get out of losing a buck ( to pay to repair their own house) I once lived for six months sept to feb in a house with single glazing and a single electric storage heater. The heater broke in nov but the landlord said he couldn't get it fixed as it was too old for parts. He gave me a slanket ' until he could sort something'. I damn near froze to death. Abd moved out before anything was 'sorted'

However I now work in connection with letting agents- as many shitty shitty landlords there are , there are shitty tenants to match. I'd never have thought people could be so crappy before I'd seen the way some tenants leave the houses. Shocking stuff.

So IMO it's not landlords or tenants necessarily but rather lots of people are shitsShockConfused

Original poster
Jewels234 · 31/10/2014 09:22

Ok, you're not all the same. But can this be a gentle reminder to any landlords who may be guilty of not always behaving well...treat your tenants with the respect they deserve.

I need to invent the TripAdvisor of landlords to weed you good ones out.

OP posts:
Original poster
Jewels234 · 31/10/2014 09:24

And the TripAdvisor for tenants too...

OP posts:
ipswichwitch · 31/10/2014 09:24

DH is not a shyster! His old house is rented out because when we were buying a place together, his was in negative equity and we couldn't afford to sell it.
He has agreed to a lot of cosmetic, non-essential work on the house to keep our lovely tenant happy. Any problems are sorted immediately, and the tenant more than happy.
Not all landlords are shit, just like not all tenants are messy, destructive PITA. you'd have had a better response had you said "AIBU to think that my landlord is a shyster".

LilAnnieAmphetamine · 31/10/2014 09:26

The worst shysters are letting agencies. A fee to register, a fee to find a home and be shown it, a fee to resign tenancy agreements every year. Landlords use them and have to raise the rent to cover their own agency fees. It snowballs.

They are despicable. I'd be ashamed to work for one of them.

TinyTear · 31/10/2014 09:27

Jewels please do, and also add a section about tenants.

I can add details of the last two sets we had in our London flat who caused nearly £10k of damage not to mention the mice infestation.

I guess rich kids as these were think living in a squat is cool but not reporting drips and not even adding a bucket underneath is trendy. also having heavy weightlifting equipment on a wooden floor, scratching the floor, damaging every single piece of furniture in the flat (not IKEA) and not report it, move out and leave shit in all toilets, leave hardly any bulbs working in the property and having kitchen cupboard doors ripped out, flood on the floor and mice droppings all over the kitchen...

so yes, the landlords take all the blame. I even changed my DD's nappy in the stairwell when we visited after they moved out as I would't dare lie her on the floor in the property

So yes, get a tripadvisor for landlords and I will add to the section for tenants

ipswichwitch · 31/10/2014 09:28

X-post there. Yes a tripadvisor for landlords and tenants would be great. Then maybe the shit tenants paired off with shit landlords so they're not inflicted on the rest of us!

TinyTear · 31/10/2014 09:29

LilAnnie yes yes and yes

We now have a lovely couple in the flat as my DH did all the vetting and finding himself...

The former agents never even inspected the flat properly to let it get to that state

WD41 · 31/10/2014 09:30

I'm a tenant and it's not all landlords to be fair. Our current place was completely refurbished before we moved in and it's amazing, they must have spent a fortune on it. There have been a couple of minor things that have needed doing since we moved in and they've done them quickly and without fuss.

Previous house also had great landlords who sorted things quickly.

Maybe we've been lucky?

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