Letting agency house checks

[Nettos]

I am a bit concerned about my the letting agent who performed daughters house inspection. The letting agent went round and made comments about food out in the kitchen, this was the chicken defrosting for the next day and mince which was for tea that night. She pulled my daughter up about the living room rug needing cleaning, but the rug is my daughters and not the landlords, she was kicking herself as her son had just crunched up his biscuit and the agent arrived before she could get the hoover out. There were marks on the stair and landing carpets which she advised was unacceptable and the walls had marks on which needed cleaning, the problem is the paint washes off as soon as you get a cloth near it. She complained about everything and took a full camera of photos to prove her point. The windows in the bedrooms had some mould and my daughter advised she was going to do them with mould spray but had not had time, the agent then said the windows should be left open and my daughter advised they were, she snapped her head off telling her not cracked as they are but fully open. My daughter has 5 children two of which are toddlers, when is it advised to leave upstairs windows open when a child could fall out? She was rude and left the house telling my daughter that it was disgusting and she would send a list of everything that needed doing and she would return in 2 months and if it wasn’t right they would not renew her contract so basically telling my daughter in 6 months she will be made homeless. I live 300 miles away and am sure the stress this is causing is not good, my daughter was historical for hours after the visit and I was past myself to the point I nearly drive down to take her to the doctors fearing she was having a mental breakdown. I suppose what I could do with knowing is what are her rights, she lives in a 4 bedroom house with her husband and 5 children and who would expect it to be a show house with the exception of the agent?

That is really unprofessional and rude of the letting agent to behave like that. The purpose of an inspection is to look for issues that need repair or addressing and check that no illegal activity is taking place, they are not there to comment on a few crumbs or food defrosting for dinner. I would be making a complaint to the branch manager. There was a recent thread you might like to read “Agent telling me to do washing up...” this thread is similar to the issue your daughter has experienced and there is information that may be helpful to her.

I've seen more and more posts like this. Since there is such a shortage of affordable rental properties, letting agents seem to be getting out of control.
Your poor daughter must be beside herself with stress. That's literally her shelter being threatened. It's Dickensian.

It's a tricky one.

Legally the tenant has a right to quiet enjoyment of the property and as long as the property is in its original condition when they end the tenancy and leave then they can in theory do what they like.

On the other hand if you have an agent like this then you risk an S21 eviction notice.

But... its quite hard to evict someone. An s21 is just an invitation to move out. If they want the tenant to actually move then they need to take it to court.

So I wouldn't worry too much! As long as she is paying her rent on time and I'd tackle the mould.

Hmm I don't know. It does sound like the house was a bit of a mess but it was not right for the agent to be rude.

They do normally advise about mould and managing condensation through ventilation so that is fair enough. A dehumidifier could be another option if windows can't be opened for safety reasons. No-one expects a show home but cleaning mould off the window frames is basic maintenance. The crumbs are not their business. The marks on the wall, maybe if they are more than something that could be easily painted over. Marks on the carpet again it would depend on the severity. I'm the least bothered person about food hygiene but defrosting chicken at room temperature is not safe.

Being hysterical for hours is an over reaction - I can understand your daughter being annoyed though! Has she rented before? The inspections are a necessary annoyance - best just to try and do what they want, if your daughter otherwise likes the house.

I disagree with previous posters

it doesn’t sound like your daughter is able to keep up with the housework.

People can say letting agents Abu all they want but if your daughter wants to stay she needs to work with them

Perhaps next time tho could help her deep clean ahead of an inspection?

This is shit advice. A section 21 is not an invitation to move out and providing the notice is valid, if it goes to court the tenant has to pay costs.

Hmm I don't know. It does sound like the house was a bit of a mess but it was not right for the agent to be rude

I was a landlord for a bit and the house being a mess is absolutely irrelevant. The inspection is for structural and maintenance issues and proper damage, and even a bit of damage isn't a reason to berate a tenant, wear and tear happens.

This issue always gets some weird replies on MN though, firstly as some people get very odd about cleanliness (some of the how often do you wash your towels/change your sheets threads are eye-opening), and secondly as there's a clear streak of snobbery on show about people who are tenants rather than owners.

Being hysterical for hours is an over reaction - I can understand your daughter being annoyed though!

OP and her children could literally be made homeless, or at best put in temporary council accommodation after an eviction process. She's had the roof over her head threatened, no wonder she's hysterical. The private rental market is horrific at present, prices are through the roof and there's next to nothing available.

it doesn’t sound like your daughter is able to keep up with the housework

Irrelevant. If it's not causing damage to the property it doesn't matter.

Yes I know there is currently a situation where tenants can be illegally bullied by unscrupulous agents due to the current market conditions, but people shouldn't be condoning that.

Huh?!? You've repeated what I said.

Yes the tenant would have to pay court fees but if someone has bo where else to move to then this is often the only option.

Its also what most councils advise if you want social housing!

Yes if you want council housing you need to actually get evicted. If you move out on the basis of the S21 you'll be deemed intentionally homeless.

I wonder if they do this so they have a “reason” to evict and then raise the rent drastically before renting again

This sounds like a case of major overstepping by the letting agent! As long as the house is clean and no damage you can be untidy or messy and crumbs or marks on the walls are to be expected in a house, especially one inhabited by kids. After our last letting agent visited our landlord came to do a house inspection too and advised when I mentioned some of the weird issues that were flagged up by the LA, that the agents were trying to make it look as though they do something to warrant the fees landlord pays each month for their services 😅 As people have said rentals are hard to come by at the moment but no excuse at all to be bullied!!