AIBU or is landlord?

[Shizlack]

DH and I have rented for 10 years, 3 properties including this one. We've never had inspections and have always had our full deposit back and wine/compliments when leaving.

Landlord said they wanted to "pop round and say hello" "put a face to the name" as we rented through an agency. We said yes, planned a time, got some cakes. Husband and wife (the LLs) came in and sat down, husband was chatty, but wife kept interrupting.

She said we had too much furniture (don't think we do, it's lamenate anyway so can't be worried about marks on carpets?), then complained that where we've walked down the middle of the hall corridor is more worn than the edges (she said that we must have dragged something down the hall to make it more worn-we haven't, we also don't wear shoes inside, and the hall only leads to bathroom, so isn't at front door) and started pulling open drawers, opening doors (we said not to go into the spare room as Gran was visiting and taking a nap-she barged in anyway).

She said as she left that she'd give us 6wks to clean the carpets (not dirty, just more worn in middle) and oven, then she'd come back and re inspect (oven is not dirty, i haven't actually given it a good scrub, but keep the glass and bottom clean/no specks or drips). I was so shocked and put out I agreed.

Would IBU to say I'm not available in 6 weeks. I feel like a naughty child, and we didn't actually get written warning, unless the chatty texts count? Honest answers please from any point of view, am very new to this.

She absolutely can't do this! Ask the knowledgeable folk on Moneysavingexpert for help: forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=16

IKEA recommend you secure tall furniture to the wall. She's deranged. I've been landlord before and shortly will be again (and lots more years of experience renting), her behaviour is completely out of order.

If damp is likely to become an issue from furniture against the wall then I'd be complaining about the build quality of the house.

We had a LL like this, let herself into our home when we weren't there, complained it was messy, told us we would have to repaint throughout when we moved out for the next tenants..the list goes on! She also left us with no boiler for months, leaking roof, no fence, no gate..the list goes on!
Deny her the inspection, find a new rental ASAP and move out on your terms. Nobody wants to live with that hanging over them.

If the deposit is protected, the LL do not say if it is returned. They have to prove that yuu have damaged it beyond fair wear and tear.

Thank you all. Each, I do think we need to start looking for a new place. It's just so annoying and costly, but then we can pretend it's on our terms!
Apparently we only had a letting agent to get us in the property. They're not hired my the LL anymore (so paid £500 letting agent fee for nothing! My fault as I should have looked-not sure why rent is still paid to them though?)
Thank you all!

Agent will be doing tenant finding and rent collection - not management. These LL sound horrible and it is so unsettling. Good advice here and on Shelter website. LL cannot keep your deposit. This is the shit side of renting. So sorry OP.

If damp is likely to become an issue from furniture against the wall then I'd be complaining about the build quality of the house.

A hundred times this.

They are so out of order - you cannot dictate how someone looks after their home, and that's what this is, your home. As for getting someone to clean the oven - she can piss off. I've been a landlord. No way would I ever have behaved like this because 1) I'm not an unreasonable tosser; and 2) I knew my obligations and the law.

I would now print off info from the deposit company on what wear and tear is and what deductions can actually be made and a selection of guidance from Shelter on what landlords can and can't do and post it to them with a note stating that they clearly don't know what they are doing so you're helping them out. Put your letter giving notice in there too.

Let them have a void period over Christmas.

Speak to shelter asap this is beginning to sound a lot like constructive eviction which I think (I may be wrong) recently became illegal along with revenge evictions.

Shelter will definitely know. Have your tenancy agreement to hand when you speak to them. Speak to the letting agency to get their take on it.

You need away from this batshit woman asap! Damp from furniture against walls never heard the like.

At this point seconding the person saying change the locks as I wouldn't put anything past her.

Can I just say people becoming landlords without needing to undertake any training or membership of any regulated authority is how we end up with idiots doing it who don't have a clue. I've rented privately for 18 years and while mostly good (current one is great) some have been absolute horrors! Inc one who tried to make me live by her religious morals! (No sex before marriage so no men allowed to visit, no alcohol allowed in the property, no TV or radio on a Sunday...) Craziness!

This is totally out of order.

As a landlord I have always expected fair wear & tear.

The oven things is just nuts.

As for furniture against walls causing damp - I have never encountered this before, unless there is an existing damp problem, in which case you need to be raising that if there is damp which causes a threat to your health you will be taking further action against them.

Take lots of photos. Record the latest visit and communication in writing to them, staying you dispute their position and it is preventing your quiet enjoyment of the property (and send it recorded delivery).

As others have said, speak to Shelter.

Yep, she's going to make things difficult.
She's just looking for reasons.

I have actually seen the issue of damp behind furniture, but (a) that is an issue of the house, which (b) she ought not to even know about through experience, as it's a newbuild!

You're entitled to keep the house in whatever way you like, during your tenancy, with the proviso that you hand it back in the same state, minuswear and tear. It sounds as though you're considerably more on top of the housekeeping and maintenance than most people!

I bet she's "read all the horror stories" and is determined to "keep on top of all the problems" so even if they get "nightmare tenants" they "won't be taken for a ride" because they'll have "nipped it in the bud"!

Control freaks like her will never allow "quiet enjoyment" of the properties they let out and are constitutionally unsuited to being LLs.

Sorry, but you're going to have to move. She and her husband cannot be rewarded for behaviour like this. Perhaps the void will teach them a lesson, or perhaps it's as Baconym says, and she really wants to sell instead!

Is there no one who can reign these loons in? What about the husband, is he approachable?

As much as a pain in the arse it is I think I would start looking for normal landlords, she's going to stress you out.

Nightmare though moving is I think you should leave. Had landlords with this kind of attitude once and it was HELL.

Started off as friendly popping round just to say hello, quickly escalated to weekly 'inspections' where they complained about things like a pile of books on the floor next to armchair, dining table not being polished daily, and corner of bath mat being flipped over (Her: "Just LOOK at that! Do you think that's acceptable?" Me: "Er..."). Once shouted, actually shouted, at us because one of the beds had the wrong coloured sheets on it.

Ended up epically awfully with big to-do and police being called after they threatened to "bring round heavies". Found out after we'd left that they'd been letting themselves in to use the shower during the day. Some landlords just cannot accept that a place they're renting out is not the same as their own home.

I actually think a lot of people are giving you misguided advice.

Yes the landlady to is being a pain, but you are only on a 6 month lease, and would like to stay for longer.

In this situation I would acquiesce to some degree, as it is easier than moving. Deep cleaning the oven can be done with a kit from poundland, and rug doctors can be hired from homebase and tescos.

It would probably be good to get advice from the letting agents as to what they think is reasonable, as they can act as an intermediary.

She is out of line. I'm a LL too. Quiet enjoyment is paramount for you and she can't dictate how you live in the property. She shouldn't have been opening drawers and rooms. I'd advise you to keep everything in writing to her and document EVERYTHING in terms on photos when you move out. We too have rented from a nightmarish LL who tried to screw us on cleaning, garden etc. despite having a raft if professionals in to sort everything out. Thankfully we had an idea of what was coming and 300 photos were taken before we moved. We could also provide DPS with full invoices. The LL didn't get a penny of our deposit. Hope you get sorted...

53rdAndBird cheeky fuckers!

I would open up communication with the letting agent and ask for their advice. Moving is a huge hassle, but the LL is being batshit crazy, so it's hard to know what to do.

It maybe as someone described above, constructive eviction, but the agent needs to know that you are being harassed, and then this can possibly be brought to bear with regard to the letting fee if you want that agent to find you a new home (i.e. they should have done their own due diligence and made sure the landlord wasn't deranged).

As a renter who likes to stay long term and has just moved so well aware of the hassle involved, I still say you need to get out of there as soon as your contract ends!

I've rented a room in the LL's home before now and while I got friendly reminders about shared areas of the house, she only accessed my room with permission and for repairs or viewings when I was leaving.

Fair wear and tear is expected. Carpets will of course wear more in the Middle thsn at the edges, and there will be the odd scuff mark on walls etc.

I rented a house with friends once for two years and only met the landlord when he gave me a cheque for our deposit when I moved out! Throughout the tenebcy we communicated by email and he arranged repairs etc as needed.

There's no need to allow your ll unfettered access to your property. You're entitled to quiet enjoyment of the property. As long as you hand it back in the same state you took it over, it doesn't matter what happened in between.!

hibbleddible, I'm afraid it's your advice which is misguided. Tenants have a right to "quiet enjoyment"; they are paying for a home, not paying to be some sort of caretakers for a house which belongs to a LL. This is all laid down in law.

"acquiescing to some degree" is not actually easier than moving. Treating this kind of control-freakery as though it needs to be pandered to will actually result in a lengthy situation which is longer and less easy to endure than simply moving! The OP states that she has rented for 10 years, with three sets of LLs, including this one... so it does sound as though she's capable of good LL-tenant relations, unlike this LL.

Deep cleaning the oven can be done with a kit from poundland, and rug doctors can be hired from homebase and tescos.

This bit of the advice isn't misguided, of course. End-of-tenancy cleaning is, of course, a serious business for any civilised person.

Set out in writing that you are refusing their next 'inspection' and why they are being unreasonable. Get some proper legal advice though, Shelter? (if you can get through).

If you are on a fixed term contract for say, 6 months, then I would just leave at the end of the period without giving notice (as you are legally entitled to do). Then the landlords should have a nice long void period, which is exactly what they deserve. You mustn't go even one day beyond the end date though, or otherwise a statutory period tenancy is created, resulting in you being obliged to give at least a month's notice.

Another LL here. Tell her to get stuffed with her oven cleaning. And how dare she go opening drawers.

Sounds to me as if she's trying to find problems that she's going to try to bring up when you leave in an effort not to give you your deposit back.

Unless you've been skateboarding down the middle of the carpet I fail to see how you could have caused much wear during such a short time.

Are you sure they've put your deposit into a proper deposit scheme?

It all sounds a bit odd to me.