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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

aibu to be annoyed letting agent dropped rent by £50

382 replies

toohoottoday · 30/05/2020 10:34

I have just found out my letting agent has dropped the rental for the property I rent by £50. This rental income represents over half my income, and I can't really afford a drop. He had chatted with me about rental but we didn't agree to drop it. He had said we may have to, but then rents had increased since our last tenant came in, so the drop due to the covid situation may even it out to the current rent level, and that he already had three households interested before it was even advertised. So given that, and being as we never agreed a decrease, I wasn't expecting it to be dropped. There are now several tenants who all want to rent it and he has asked me to choose this weekend. I am therefore surprised therefore after checking his website to see he has advertised it as lower than the previous rent.

AIBU to be annoyed about this? I don't suppose there is anything I can do about it now. That is £600 a year that I will be poorer off and I am already on a low income with two kids to support.

OP posts:
AdultierAdult · 30/05/2020 19:09

Want to scream on behalf of the OP, who has time and time again said she’s worked out her business plan/insurance/emergency money and it’s £50 less after fixed costs she can’t afford to drop - I.e. her “salary” after business costs. Not sure how she can be more clear?

OP - I would ring and say “I think there’s been a mistake as you’ve advertised the property for £50 below what I instructed. What do you suggest we do?”. See what they say and don’t feel pressured to agree to a solution there and then, you can always say you’ll think about it and call back.

GoatyGoatyMingeMinge · 30/05/2020 19:10

@thedancingbear

With respect, that's just sophistry.

And with equal respect that's just a bit of self-exculpation and a misunderstanding of capitalism, business and housing!

GoatyGoatyMingeMinge · 30/05/2020 19:13

Hi @JustAnotherPoster00

Due to unfortunate genetics goaty I'm disabled so a member of the underclass, so I'm more likely to be exploited by a BTL landlord

I'm more lucky with my genes, but I've been exploitated by several of them - I'm sympathetic.

LittleFoxKit · 30/05/2020 19:15

thedancingbear wont lie I've also been a tenant of the bad landlord to! Which is exactly why we decided we didnt mind playing slightly more then the average for a good one!
We did look at mortgages but ultimately we currently wouldnt be eligible for anything but the vary bare minimum in mortgage and although our landlord is great, we are both desperate to move to somewhere with a kitchen that has more then a single worktop and a small yard we can sit in! But if we bought, even if we could afford to it would have to be the same as what we rent, and unfortunately they are notorious for housing repairs and issues due to age! Which we simply couldn't afford at the moment! Although we do hope to eventually buy! Once we have both got established jobs and wages as currently working up from the bottom!

Kisskiss · 30/05/2020 19:16

The agent isn’t doing his job properly by listing it at a level you never agreed to.. you’re paying his wage abd it’s your property. Tell him to relist if you are not happy with the Price he set

KitMarlowesCodpieceOfThigh · 30/05/2020 19:20

No sympathy for you. What are the mortgage repayments on the property you're letting? I bet they're less than the rent you're charging.

Boomclaps · 30/05/2020 19:21

@Goatinthegarden

Landlords are nefarious for exploiting tenants by charging high prices for accommodation. Makes it difficult for low earners to save and thus get on the market themselves. They also buy up loads of properties, reducing the stock of housing available to buy and driving up prices.

A fairer society would have rent caps, making housing fairer but less lucrative for landlords.

🙌🙌🙌

highmarkingsnowbile · 30/05/2020 19:25

Can't believe I read this whole thread. Um, duh, go back to the agent, tell him zero is the tenant you choose because they fucked you over and you didn't agree to lowering the rent. You are therefore finding another agent.

Boomclaps · 30/05/2020 19:26

@EinsteinaGogo
its not that landlords are evil it’s that no one should be able to access more than one secure home when others can’t access Any

heartsonacake · 30/05/2020 19:31

[quote Boomclaps]@EinsteinaGogo
its not that landlords are evil it’s that no one should be able to access more than one secure home when others can’t access Any[/quote]
In an ideal world there would be world peace, nobody would be dying of starvation or disease in Africa, barbaric practices wouldn’t be happening across the globe etc. etc.

You’re being idealistic, not realistic. Live in the real world.

If someone has managed to buy a second home and decided to rent it out so others can live in it then good on them.

We live in a capitalist society. Money pays. If you have the money to buy a second/third/fourth home nobody should be attempting to stop you.

Someone else’s shit situation shouldn’t stop others who are in a better position doing what they want within the confines of the law.

DomDoesWotHeWants · 30/05/2020 19:58

No sympathy for you. What are the mortgage repayments on the property you're letting? I bet they're less than the rent you're charging.No sympathy for you. What are the mortgage repayments on the property you're letting? I bet they're less than the rent you're charging.

On a thread full of stupidity this is the winner.

locked2020 · 30/05/2020 20:22

Wow. OP you are being bashed a lot for some reason. It's quite clear cut - your agent should have agreed with you first. Perhaps all those people giving you a hard time could donate the £50 per month to you? It could go towards fixing damages if you have a crap tenant!

Boomclaps · 30/05/2020 20:27

@heartsonacake
By buying more than we need we inadvertently make other people’s situations shit.

Boomclaps · 30/05/2020 20:32

That doesn’t mean the OP hasn’t been mugged off

heartsonacake · 30/05/2020 20:54

[quote Boomclaps]@heartsonacake
By buying more than we need we inadvertently make other people’s situations shit.[/quote]
No we don’t because they wouldn’t have been able to afford it anyway.

Boomclaps · 30/05/2020 21:45

I’m not going to argue this with you, but if we buy houses that we keep for our lifetimes we take them out of the market. As a result less houses are available and the prices rise.

Until 2011 the main rental tenure was social. Now it’s private. Because there are more private LL’s charging higher rent.

We also exploit People’s need for shelter, by charging over the odds for it. We are the reason there are less social houses - homeowners bought them.
We are the reason that people can’t afford to save for a deposit.

transformandriseup · 30/05/2020 22:09

YANBU and I would be very upset if my agent did this without asking.

JustAnotherPoster00 · 30/05/2020 23:17

In an ideal world there would be world peace, nobody would be dying of starvation or disease in Africa, barbaric practices wouldn’t be happening across the globe etc

So being able to have an equitable property owning/renting is akin to world peace and global famine, doesnt that seem a little ridiculous or are you often prone to hyperbole?

redwinefine · 30/05/2020 23:29

Sorry to sound cynical and suspicious - could this have possibly be done deliberately knowing you hadn't specified/ confirmed a lower price? That way, doesn't the agent get more money for having to readvertise? Especially if he is 'the' agent to go to in that area? The agent sounds like a CF who is trying to get away with this!

Mascaramademehappy · 30/05/2020 23:31

The agent works for you. You tell them what you want per month, tough luck on them if they have to relist it! It’s not £600 from his pocket is it.

heartsonacake · 31/05/2020 00:25

@JustAnotherPoster00

In an ideal world there would be world peace, nobody would be dying of starvation or disease in Africa, barbaric practices wouldn’t be happening across the globe etc

So being able to have an equitable property owning/renting is akin to world peace and global famine, doesnt that seem a little ridiculous or are you often prone to hyperbole?

No. My point was that that poster was idealistic and childlike in their response. They want the world to be as they ideally think it should, rather than accepting it for what it is.
Euclid · 31/05/2020 00:29

You are entirely unreasonable. Young people cannot afford to buy properties because selfish people like you are investing in properties as a money making exercise.

Mulderitssme · 31/05/2020 00:39

OP, I'd go back to the agent and ask if they're willing to top up the extra £50 that you're losing. If you're close to the property, it's so much easier doing it yourself and less stressful.
Yes I'm a LL. I'm also disabled, I've also just lost my job.

We bought a new house three years ago and as we had a tiny mortgage on our flat, we converted it to a BTL. Our tenants are moving out due to buying a house. We are good LL's and they've kindly given us a reference. We don't charge fees for applications and as our new tenants might struggle with furniture, we've lowered the deposit by over a third.

Yes some LL are awful as are some tenants.

When our former tenants moved in, I emailed them a list of Shelter's LL responsibilities so they knew what to do if we ever overstepped the line. We never did but it was to give them piece of mind. Being a LL is a privilege and a big responsibility. If LL's aren't willing to put the work in, they shouldn't be one.

FlyAwayLikeABird · 31/05/2020 00:54

Do my agree to it. YANBU

FlyAwayLikeABird · 31/05/2020 00:55

I meant don't agree to it 🙈