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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think lots of landlords see a tenants deposit money as rightfully theirs?

176 replies

Strawbroke · 07/09/2018 14:50

Third (and last, whoop!) time I've left a rental property after leaving the marital home 4 years ago.

Every single one has forced me to use the dispute service tovretirn my deposit, even though I have tried to negotiate with them. First two I agreed to them taking half as I was a bit of a wet fish but nothwanted it all. Forced me to go to dispute. They got half. After loads of stress and a delay of 3 months.

This last tenancy was a 20 month tenancy and I was determined to get the house perfect on leaving. 5 adults cleaned the place to pristine levels and i mean or, we covered everywhere. After final inspection from letting agent she said it was in good condition but needed extra cleaning Angry so I agreed to £45 for cleaning. They then proceeded to come back over the next 4 weeks to say they wanted professional carpet cleaning at £255. I said no way, the carpets were as new. So the LL said okay, I'll settle the carpet cleaning bill but you owe me £180 for a new oven door. Which the letting agent broke and admitted via email! Again I said no. Then they added £150 for painting the bannister and handrail in the hallway. It was unpainted when I moved in. I offered £55 as goodwill. They refused it. £100 not enough! At this point I just said give me an itemised list of everything you want to claim off me, they ignored me for two weeks so I had to raise a dispute.

Landlord has put in a claim for 650 for carpet cleaning, oven door, handrail and replacement light bulbs! So with the £650 basically. My entire bond.

AIBU to think a lot of landlords see deposits as an entitlement to keep? The property was let within days so obviously was in great condition! I had to create my own check out report as they didn't bother doing one. It's so frustrating and I was a great tenant. The LL even said when I moved out. I am so glad I've finally managed to buy and not have to deal with this anymore!

OP posts:
TotHappy · 07/09/2018 18:00

I wish landlords would stop decorating rentals in shades of cream... Of course it's going to look scruffier quicker! Stains on a cream carpet are a nightmare to get out!

LRDtheFeministDragon · 07/09/2018 18:03

I would love a cream carpet. I've always had revolting shades of dark brown or really ugly 'buy this cheap' hash dark greens and blues.

Magnolia paint, OTOH, is the devil. FFS if you must have neutral paint it white.

pigsDOfly · 07/09/2018 18:13

The only time I've applied to keep a deposit was when the tenant didn't pay any rent after the first month and it took six months going through the courts to actually get them out, and bailiffs were involved.

They also left several thousand £££ worth of damage.

Too bloody right on that occasion I got to keep the whole deposit.

CuriousaboutSamphire · 07/09/2018 18:18

Stains on a cream carpet are a nightmare to get out! I've seen many trying darker shades, they look worse, quicker. That weird mottled cream/nutmeg stuff wears well, but is hideous underfoot Smile

Slightly dark cream carpets actually look better for longer, from what I have seen!

As for cream or magnolia walls!!!! I once had a LL phone me at about 9pm to remonstrate that her walls were not cream, they were Hessian No. 16, or similar!!! It's posh houses with clay paints i can't get to grips with... I mean who the hell knows what basic colour Farrow and Ball's Moles Breath or Ball Green actually is when they first see it? Grin

CuriousaboutSamphire · 07/09/2018 18:20

Magnolia paint, OTOH, is the devil. FFS if you must have neutral paint it white. Sorry, I meant to say Noooooooooooooooo not white! Your tenant won't know where they are! Every elbow brush to a wall leaves a mark.

You don't see when you are living in it, furniture shadows hide it all. But move the sofa and OMG!!! The wall will be scuffed grey and black all over! There's something nigh on magical about magnolia paint, it simply doesn't scuff as much!

DuchessThingy · 07/09/2018 18:27

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll · 07/09/2018 19:43

I can't understand why there's no requirement to obtain several quotes for work that needs doing and/or to provide receipts or other proof that the work has actually been done.

A dishonest landlord could still claim that, say, a perfectly acceptable carpet needs to be replaced at the outgoing tenant's expense, but they should at least have to show evidence to the the tenant and/or independent arbitrator that the carpet has been replaced. If they knew that they couldn't just score themselves a Brucie bonus and pocket the money, they might think twice about scamming a tenant. On the other hand, if a bad tenant has indeed wrecked the carpet and an honest, conscientious landlord genuinely needs to replace it to maintain the quality of the property for the next tenant, they won't have any issues with showing the receipt from the carpet shop for the necessary purchase.

It sounds like some landlords try the same tricks as certain car-hire firms, who magically manage to find the slightest cosmetic damage in a very hidden place, claim an excessive repair cost from the customer and then rent the car out again straightaway without ever repairing it. Why ever would they repair it - if they can make £300 from every customer for a tiny little scratch under the bumper or a scuff deep inside the wheel arch, they're not going to kill their golden goose, are they. Some might even suggest that they could deliberately have done the damage themselves in the first place....

fantasmasgoria1 · 07/09/2018 20:06

Well we weren’t penalised for the mould as the landlord is fully aware of it and accepts it’s an issue with the whole building. But they just took £50 off the deposit for cleaning a carpet that didn’t need it! I’m thankful it was only £50!

LRDtheFeministDragon · 07/09/2018 20:37

curious, I've lived in white-painted houses and magnolia, and trust me, white is much better! Much, much easier to re-paint, too.

Both houses that were painted white, incidentally, I had not the slightest issue with returned deposits from the LL. It is a myth that magnolia hides dirt - it just looks dirty!

Beelin · 07/09/2018 20:37

They are twats but then they and letting agents are in the business of getting money for nothing so I guess it's a logical step for them. Luckily the arbitrators for the deposit schemes are wise to their tricks so if you raise a dispute you'll get back what you should.

batshitbetty · 07/09/2018 20:43

I always make sure to send an email summarising a full list of everything the LL have previously been made aware of but not yet sorted (including the dates it's been raised previously) a few weeks before I issue notice to leave a property. It avoids a lot of discussion and 'confusion' over whether they were made aware 😉

An ex LL was quite direct that he saw the deposit as part of the payment he was entitled to, and had no intention of ever paying any of one back to a tenant when they move out. I got 100% back

CuriousaboutSamphire · 07/09/2018 20:56

I'll beg to differ LRD Of course it could just be that I just go snow blind in white houses, but they don't photograph all that easily in some lights Smile

I must see the inside of some 20+ houses a week and I always find patch painted white walls far more easy to spot than touched up magnolia ones. Maybe it is just me, I have a prejudiced eye???

Original poster
Strawbroke · 07/09/2018 21:08

It's frustrating because he's had nearly 14k in rent from me, and whilst I understand I got a home for that, the quibbling over 650 quid galls because like I say even he said himself I was a great tenant. I fixed loads of stuff myself whilst there so not to hassle him Sad

OP posts:
swingofthings · 08/09/2018 08:17

Strawbroke being a landlord is running a business. Don't assume you LL is making tons of money out of it. By the time I've paid the mortgage and taxes I have nothing else left over so any additional cost comes out of my pay from my job. Why keeping the business? Because of the disgusting tax I'd have to pay to sell. I didn't buy to become a LL I moved in with my OH.

£650 is a lot of money to me as it is for you. If I believed that you caused damage of that value I would also claim it back. In the end if your LL is wrong you'll get your money back. All it means is that an independent party will make the decision.

SusanneLinder · 08/09/2018 09:02

My DD had an issue on moving out her rented flat.
She and her DH were saving for a house so moved into a flat that was not the best but rent was cheap. Kept complaining to her landlord about condensation and he brought her a dehumidifier.
When she was moving out, myself, her sister, MIL and SIL scrubbed the place within an inch of it's life AND got the carpets professionally cleaned ( DD was heavily pg). Sadly her landlord ( who was lovely), had taken ill and his daughter decided that the ( worn when she moved in), needed replaced and this was DD's fault, plus she had caused the damp problem allegedly despite no central heating in house!
Luckily agent backed DD and her DH who stated that flat was left in an extremely reasonable condition and she got her deposit back! Agent suggested that landlord do the repairs needed before it was relet! They didn't so some other poor sucker has moved in.

SusanneLinder · 08/09/2018 09:03

Haha , missed out worn sitting room carpet!

LuvSmallDogs · 08/09/2018 09:10

Swingof, diddums. Another LL with a gun to their head, forced to let out a property they’re unfortunate to own....

Beelin · 08/09/2018 09:12

Yeah, I fucking hate it when I get hold of a spare house. It's so difficult!!!

swingofthings · 08/09/2018 09:22

Well we all have choices. Mine was to return to work Ft when my kids were under 6 months old and work hard to get promotion and continue to do so when I became a single mum. I could have opted to give my job up and rely on income support like many of the single mothers opted to do.

I'm a fair LL respect that the house is my tenants home and not mine any longer and will carry out repairs as necessary. I rent at a cost on the low side of market rate and have never increased the rent during a term however I am not prepared to take on costs that are the results of tenants who expect hotel service because they think it's their entitlement for not owning their own home.

lowtide · 08/09/2018 09:44

@swingofthings
I don’t understand your first paragraph at all?

In your second paragraph you say people expect hotel service in their own home? I’ve never come across this. Perhaps your house in not in a very desirable area and it’s not a very desirable house, therefore you’re not getting very desirable tenants

swingofthings · 08/09/2018 10:06

Low mtide the hotel service is mentioned here page 2 I think.

First paragraph was to explain that it wasn't through luck that I became a home owner. There is such an attitude towards LLs in this country assuming that they became so through luck or grabbing easy opportunities and that all are in it for pure greed despite statistics showing that something like 80% of LL only rent one property and often came to do so through circumstances rather than looking for a business opportunities.

I hate being a LL but resent even more paying yet more tax to stop being one on a property I worked so hard to afford in the first place so I'll continue to be one.

swingofthings · 08/09/2018 10:08

In regards to desirability of the house you are absolutely right hence the decision to refurbished fully and now have fantastic tenants but with that rent has gone up accordingly.

Beelin · 08/09/2018 10:31

Just pay your taxes and stop mewling.

Original poster
Strawbroke · 08/09/2018 10:40

swingofthings what point are you trying to make re you being a lone parent and working FT?

I'm a FT worker and a lone parent of 3dcs who is just about to become a homeowner after 4 years of hard work. There's loads of us out there, we are lucky to have had the resources, good fortune and support to ownna property individually. Some people do not have the same opportunities-that's not their fault. It's society that dictates things like that? It's very fortunate to own a home nevermind own a home that you don't need to live in and you can make money from. That house is yours and security for the future.

My LL has several houses that he puts in his partners name for tax reasons and has his own business. He's grasping for MY £650 because he can. Somebody could have moved that house the moment I left and it's nothing to do with variable standards.

My LL and many like him see renters as scum who haven't got their act together to own businesses or houses and they think they can use their money to fulfil their own obligations so they don't have to. Not all of them are like that, no. But many many are. And it's utterly shit behaviour.

OP posts:
Original poster
Strawbroke · 08/09/2018 10:53

What's interesting is that when you buy a house and pick up the keys you go in and if you are lucky the recent owners are decent enough to have cleaned and hoovered and you feel grateful. When I bought with my exH we moved into our second house and it was a total tip. Stuff left in the property, food dried on the floor etc. The guys wife had just died in an awful accident though so we didn't mind and understood and just got in with it. Weird how nobody would expect hotel standard when you've paid thousands Grin

OP posts:
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