AIBU to expect the tenants to turn the heating up?

[LadyMaine]

I've owned my 3 bed Victorian house for 7 years. There was a little bit of damp in the downstairs bay window but nothing serious.

I moved for work at end of August this year and rented it out. Within a few weeks the tenants (3 adults & dog) started complaining of damp and mould. When I went to inspect the house was very cold.
They said they are worried about high heating bills. I do understand this but have told them they really need to turn the heating up.

The boiler is in full working order as are the extractor fans in the kitchen and bathroom.
I installed new double glazed windows throughout when I bought the house. It also has a damp course installed.

Now they are complaining that there is black mould and that one of the tenants' asthma is getting worse.
What can I do to get them to turn the heating up?

Sounds reasonable enough. The OP is being paid for a service she's not providing, namely a clean, safe home. The Environmental Health laws are there for a really good reason.

If the home is not capable of being kept clean and safe, it's not suitable to be used for letting business purposes.

Let our house (which has no mould in it) and stop up all vents and draughts and you will start to get mould. However much or little you heat it- in fact, more heat can make it even worse. Our predecessors had an old gas fire- the moisture they churn out is incredible.
That's just how older properties are.
I think this issue is a serious problem for landlords of older properties. No matter what they do to the building structurally, if the tenants won't ventilate it, it will get mould. Now if there are no extractor fans/hoods/vents/windows in the kitchen or bathroom, and the windows elsewhere don't have vents, I'd agree with you- that IS something that a landlord ought to install. But if they are there but the tenants won't use them, then I'm afraid the tenants are the ones at fault.

You could stick whatever “minimum heat” clauses into tenancy agreements that you want, along with other things, but they would be unenforceable and should a tenant take you to court for such clauses, you would lose.

Can seriously spot the renters who don't look after houses and blame the landlords. It's scary.

We rented out our flat when we moved overseas. No mould at all. It became a real issue with the tenants - the agents said they weren’t opening the windows or putting the heating on. And they were drying their clothes on (cold) radiators. It took YEARS to get rid of the mould. From looking at the thermostat they only had the heating on for an hour in the morning, and they stuffed the chimney with paper, which added to the problem. If you can’t afford to heat the flat or use the tumble drier, perhaps you should live somewhere smaller and cheaper.

I mean, it’s not bad advice. I’m just imagining that those who can’t use the East Wing for this purpose, would turn to the utility, spare bedroom, home office, separate dining room… all the kind of places that people who can’t afford to heat, and rent, tend to have.

It either that, pay the costs of using the heating or dehumidifiers, leave all the windows open because there’s laundry all over the place, or live with mould. There’s no magic solution and nothing a landlord can do to help other than ensuring there are no leaks and no water ingress or structural issues causing damp.

Not comparing you to this person at all, OP, but some comments on here have made me remember my old landlord who refused to install an extractor fan in the kitchen because he thought it was an ‘excessive’ request. Then he was concerned about damp and asked me not to dry laundry in the property. There was no dryer and no outside space. Not to worry, I assured him I always dried my laundry in the flat down the road that I rented specifically for that purpose.

I live in an older house which is prone to mold. I learnt last winter that if I air it every morning for 10 minutes, heat it to a reasonable temperature during the day and use a dehumidifier when drying washing inside then there is no mold. Unfortunately it isn't a cheap solution.

Not me, mid 40s, no mortgage. Rented in my 20s and encountered a succession of abusive cunts who tried to rip me off at every touch and turn. I know how the sector works, believe me.

Try offering to reduce the rent in lieu of the heating costs you think you're entitled to expect your tenants to incur OP. That might do it.

Honestly? I’d look at getting rid of them as soon as you realistically can. Sounds to me like they’ve heard the sad story in the press last week of the little boy who has died as a result of a respiratory illness exacerbated by mould in the family’s rental property and are going to use it to potentially cause trouble for you. My relative is a LL and has suddenly started getting lots of “there’s a bit of damp in the kitchen and my asthma is getting worse” complaints - I suspect there will be many “where there’s blame there’s a claim” cases as a result of this.
They’ll probably stop paying their rent soon…

People are being very unreasonable if they think their home will stay damp and mould free without any heating in a wet climate like ours.

To add he also had left one wall incomplete, the boiler and shower didn’t function properly and he left open a known entry point for rodents. He failed to rectify the damage from a leak from another flat and the ceiling was literally threatening to cave in. Happy days.

It's funny OP, because your issue highlights the fact that houses need to be occupied and heated, or they deteriorate quickly. As much as a landlord provides a service; a house to live in, so does the tenant, generally; upkeep and damp control. But no one ever sees it like that, do they?

If the property has a mould problem, owing to its age or otherwise, then it's not a suitable asset for a lettings business.

I own my house, no mortgage and think the landlord is at fault in this case

I disagree. I don't get that from reading the thread at all.

It's quite topical at the moment, given the recent death of the young boy due to mould exposure. It doesn't appear they were to blame given the measures they took.

OP DID live in this exact house though. If she hadn't had to move she'd be in the exact same position as her tenants - either heat the house regularly and accept the expense or suffer with mould.

She's not expecting them to do anything she hasn't/wouldn't do herself. Old houses get mouldy easily if not heated adequately. That's just a fact of life.

She's done everything she can do to treat the mould but on an ongoing basis houses need heat. What more, short of waving a magic wand or paying the tenants' heating bills for them, can she do?

A possible suggestion- our house is a little younger than yours. One thing which helped here is stripping all wallpaper off back to the lime plaster, giving the walls a good scrub to get rid of the old wallpaper paste, which like wallpaper itself, holds moisture like nobody's business, and painting with breathable paint- clay paint or limewash. The only wall with actual mold (under the paper, in fact) was where some goon had tried to tank it by sealing the plaster under the paper. Stripped off the paper, took the mold off (some of which was luminous yellow, I shudder to think what that was) with a Dettol mold spray, and sanded off all the sealant. Painted with clay, been as dry as a bone since.

I think you'll find that 'ceiling upkeep' is the tenant's responsibility.

And I'm a homeowner (see posting history) in an old house.

Where is the OP anyway

Used to rent, now own, no mortgage.

Also had a succession of arsehole landlords with terrible properties.

She said there was a bit of damp around a window, not mould. Most of the issues with damp and mould arise from condensation.

We’ve had our heating on much lower and less frequently than in previous years, so in the mornings the windows have been very wet. I use old towels to dry them off, put the heating on for an hour or so, and open the windows. 1930s house, double glazed, no open fire. As a home owner, no one else will step in to help if I ignore the early signs and let mould develop.

I worked in social housing years ago, taking repairs calls. Regularly got complaints about dampness and mould, especially in bathrooms and kitchens. It was nearly always condensation caused by no ventilation. As an earlier poster pointed out, its surprising how many people rarely open windows. Blocking air bricks doesn’t help either.

Or do you think that maybe, because of this poor little boy, people are not ignoring the nasty damp patch any longer?🙄

the Problem is the the U.K. is a very damp place In the winter, and unfortunately a lot of tenants don’t seem to understand that homes need to be aired.