AIBU? Private Landlord wants to be evict for the following...

[Maddie2019]

Hi all, I’m a little stuck to say the least and am gobsmacked by the morning I’ve had.

We have lived in this rental for the past 3 years and I love the property and the location! We have never paid the rent late and have thrown so much money into being here. The house has a fair amount of problems as of expected for a house built in the 1800’s. We have awful damp issues on the front wall of the property which affects our bedroom and living room, and as the walls are granite they have no cavity wall insulation.

The front wall needs repointing, the loft needs insulation, the chimney stack is leaking so needed to be rebuilt and we are missing a fascia board on the front of the house. Our rent is rather considerate so I’ve been happy to put up with these issues until the landlords can Afford fix.

Landlords came this morning for an inspection and are convinced me and my partner don’t use the heating!! We have a 3 year old, of course we do! The heating tends to come on for 2 hours in the morning and around 6 hours in the evening. They said the damp on the front wall is down to us (we ventilate and heat the property accordingly). I have explained that without a fascia board being on the front the water will run in, particularly
Through the poor pointing where the weather hits the worse.

They called me and my partner liars and that we never use the heating, and even if we do it should be on everyday while we are at work as well as in the evenings to. I disagree with this, we have not got money to burn for heating a property when we are at work!

Because I disagreed they have said we will be served our notice. I’m gobsmacked and don’t know how I should react. The last thing I want is to move, I love it here. Do you have your heating on all day everyday despite not being in? I’m thinking maybe I’m being unreasonable with their request. I have never been raised to have the heating on when you’re not home, I think it’s basically just chucking money at nothing! It’s frustrating when the builder has confirmed the houses issues but they still blame us! Arrrrrgh

When I lived in a Victorian House prone to damp, I kept the heating on constant but a at a low temp. I would say 8 hours a day is on the low side.

I'm in all day as I work from home and I do NOT have the heating on all day. That is fucking absurd, I've never heard of that before.

I know you love it there but with landlords like that, I wouldn't even bother trying to stay.

That’s some food for thought, thanks! I would have no objection to keep it at a running at low all day if the main problems for the source of the issue were fixed :( with no roof insulation I feel like I would paying for the heat to go straight up and out again.

I may keep on a low all this week and see what the bills and result is. We have oil heating so can get fairly expensive but worth a go. Really don’t want to move!

What exactly is it that you love about living in a damp, leaking, poorly maintained property with a shitty landlord?

Have you actually had a look at what else is available in your area? You might be pleasantly surprised?

Granite houses are very prone to condensation. Do you have any photos of the damp issues?

I dont have the heating on all day, but I do have a dehumidifier on all day.

Thanks, I’m glad I’m not the only one. They’re relatively old and I know they will have the heating racked all the way up at their home so I think they may just be used to a ridiculously warm house!

I think the worst part was being told I was lying. Nothing more frustrating than telling the truth and not being believed ☹️

@skiptheskip when you say it like that it makes me question it myself. I guess the area is really lovely and my little boys nursery is a 2 min walk. I think I need to stop using that as a justification to stay!

They should insulate the loft and repair the property. We heat our house for 2 hours morning and 4 hours evening - I think that's pretty normal. Although if the landlord is that unreasonable it may not be worth arguing!

@Ineedanamechange79 I will try and grab some photos later, it’s probably not as bad as it sounds! The worst part is having the windows running with water when we wake up so we have to leave them slightly open to dry, which the landlords said isn’t keeping the heat in. It seems to be a vicious circle ⭕️

I’m baffled that you love living in a damp house that isn’t being maintained properly, especially with a young child. Have you been putting up with a crappy landlord for so long that you’ve totally lost perspective of what’s normal perhaps? If I were in your situation I’d be making plans to move as soon as is feasibly possible.

8 hours isn't on the low side. Ours is on an hour in the morning and 3.5 in the evening unless we are at home.

OP get out, your landlords are knobs.

Your landlord should have provided you with an EPC - did he? It's the law. If he hasn't, you can sue.

I am not an expert, but I would think that replacing the facia board and installing loft insulation are absolutely essential.

Also, I assume you have gas bills as proof of your gas consumption.

Contact Shelter. Hopefully they can advise you on the best way to proceed.

Our rent is rather considerate so I’ve been happy to put up with these issues until the landlords can Afford fix

I reckon the landlord might be waiting for you to apologise and for you to offer to pay for the work.

I also reckon they would have foynd anything as an excuse, rather than say - we want you out.

Keep an eye on the property when you leave, I bet the rent goes up for the next tenant.

Think of it as your ticket out of there.

You should have been given 8 weeks by the way.

I thought if your windows are dripping with water and you're heating the property then you should have the windows open at least slightly for ventilation..otherwise the condensation doesn't go anywhere. They sound like idiots with money to burn if they have their heating on all day!

@expressedways it’s mainly down to the location and character which is a love. Although from looking at the opinions of this post I think we may have lost the perspective of what’s acceptable. I guess because we pay a little less due to it being private I almost accept the repairs which are needed. Although paying less shouldn’t equal a poor service. I think we will have a look into moving. I thought we may of been the inconsiderate ones!

@FlowerArranger they didn’t have an EPC when we moved in and I politely asked for one which equates to an F. We spend around £500 on heating oil around every 4 months but they wouldn’t believe us despite me showing them a receipt. Was all very odd!

I think they must be looking for a reason to evict you because those repairs are going to cost tens of thousands to put right. Using the heating all day will make no difference given the problems with the property. You could try and fight it, but why not look for something without these issues.

We had similar issues in an old property we rented, i phoned environmental health and they issued landlord with order to fix problems or not be allowed to rerent when we left

@esmerelda1988 that’s what we thought also, I can’t leave dripping wet windows shut! They went upstairs and closed them all on inspection and told us to use the heating instead. I’m beginning to think that maybe they’re the ones who don’t understand.

I have a solid granite cottage - no work needed - and we have to keep the heating on permanently to avoid damp issues. I have it set to 15 degrees when the cottage is empty.

We've had the worst affected walls dry lined now which has helped a lot

Having heating on at a steady low temperature isn’t insane - it’s recommended in most guides in how to minimise condensation which can result in damp. Most contracts also state that it’s the tenant’s responsibility to adequately ventilate and heat the property to prevent condensation.

Sorry but I would bet it’s condensation and not building issues. I had tenants screaming at me for endangering their kids health when in reality it was them causing the condensation. I even had a damp survey done showing there was nothing wrong with the building and they still insisted there must be. The chartered surveyor who I paid dearly said that almost always damp walls are due to condensation. When it’s structurally, the water mixes in whatever sediment there is in the building. It doesn’t produce mould - the black kind that grows on walls. He said for that you need pure water, so unless a pipe was burst In a way that the water didn’t get mixed with sediment... nope.

So your landlord believes you’re not upholding your terms of the tenancy agreement.

"What exactly is it that you love about living in a damp, leaking, poorly maintained property with a shitty landlord?"

I wondered this too. Just move somewhere that is actually fit for human habitation! (And the recent new tenancy law requires rentals under new tenancy agreements to be fit for human habitation.)

OP, I suggest you do the following two things:

1. Write a formal letter to your landlord (by email and/or post, recorded delivery) to complain about the damp and disrepair, give information about how long the problem has been going on for and make a reasonable request about what you would like them to do about it.
2. Contact your local council's environmental health department. They may decide to inspect the property and they have legal powers to force your landlord to remedy serious problems. If the council decides that there is mandatory action your landlord needs to take, you will be protected from "revenge eviction", in other words your landlord can't evict you via section 21 for at least 6 months (off the top of my head).

Even if your landlord issues a section 21 notice before you manage to do both of the actions I have advised, it will be a long time before you are actually evicted.

Tbh if the landlord won't maintain their property and blames you for their own failures you should just move already.

What type of damp do you have? We live in an old house and have trouble with condensation damp in the winter, so the advice is to have the heating on low all the time and turn up when at home, otherwise the walls will get too cold when the heating is off and when it comes on condensation will form on them causing damp, you should also try to ventilate the house by opening windows, especially if drying washing indoors, cooking, having showers etc. If it is penetrating damp due to the walls needing repointing that is nothing to do with not having heating on or ventilation and your landlord is trying it on.

Send them a copy of your gas/electric bill as proof you have the heating on?!