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AIBU?

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Original poster

Damage by tenant

137 replies

Babysister · 15/04/2023 16:30

Am I being unreasonable to feel the way the tenant has left my house is unreasonable?

Two years ago I was offered a job in France through a teacher exchange and decided to rent out my house while I was living there. I was not sure of my future plans so put all my belongings and furniture into storage to let my house unfurnished. My dream was to move elsewhere when I retired but my personal circumstances have changed so I decided to move back to my house when the tenant gave notice.

I arrived in the UK last week to collect the keys to my now empty house having got a new job here. I fully expected to need to decorate after a two year let and clean carpets etc but was hoping that would be all. Maybe I was being unrealistic!

All the carpets are stained, there are lots of picture hooks on the walls as well as damage where the tenant has used poly filler to fill in a large hole but not sanded it down, there are sticky hooks on the fireplace which I cannot get off and the blinds ( new two years ago) are badly damaged in two rooms - will need replacing.

However, the main issue is that they have removed fitted wardrobes in the box room and left a real mess behind - missing skirting board, bare walls with uneven plaster and large holes in walls where screws were. I did find the wardrobe and drawers in pieces in the garage, along with some other rubbish like old carpets, only fit for the tip! The carpets were not from my house!

The property agents are going to come and look at the house on Monday to give their opinion but I thought I would ask here if I would be wrong to hold back some of the £1000 deposit to replace the wardrobes and blinds, as well as repair the worst of the damage caused by holes in the walls. I’m not sure some of the carpet stains can be cleaned but I’ll be replacing them soon so am not bothered too much about them.

My plans were to get my things out of storage in a couple of weeks after the decorators have been in but I think it will take longer than that now so I’ll be staying longer in my hotel room than I thought.

I’ve attached a couple of photos to try to show the damage.

Damage by tenant
Damage by tenant
Damage by tenant
Damage by tenant
Damage by tenant
OP posts:
Original poster
Babysister · 15/04/2023 17:16

SunnySaturdayMorning · 15/04/2023 16:55

Is the deposit in a DPS?

Yes, the deposit is in a protected fund, I have the paperwork.

OP posts:
Moraxella · 15/04/2023 17:20

Have you paid for an inventory on arrival and checkout from the agent?

BritishDesiGirl · 15/04/2023 17:21

Do you have enough pictures of the property and in particular the areas of " before" which you say are now damaged?

Bedtimemode · 15/04/2023 17:26

I think it would be fair to keep the whole deposit. Do you have "before" photos of how it was? Fitted wardrobes aren't cheap, is the deposit even enough to cover all the damage?

drpet49 · 15/04/2023 17:26

TheObstinateHeadstrongGirl · 15/04/2023 16:42

This is exactly what a deposit is for OP - claim it back!

This.

Livebythecoast · 15/04/2023 17:26

Gosh, that's awful! Did the agency not do any inspections?. We rent and our agent comes round every 6 months to check and take photos to show our landlady as she lives far away.

Definitely keep the deposit.

L3ThirtySeven · 15/04/2023 17:27

Your agent should be advising you.
However, unless the carpets were new, a few stains could be fair wear and tear. The blinds look fair wear and tear to me. The outlet thingy sagging out the wall, fair wear and tear.

BUT the built in wardrobes they should have put back, so that is damage you can get a quote to put back into your home to take off their deposit.

It’s better to be conservative on what you charge as damage because the deposit service are very much on the side of tenants and any whiff of a landlord charging damages for fair wear and tear and they dismiss and refund the whole deposit to the tenant.

SunnySaturdayMorning · 15/04/2023 17:30

Babysister · 15/04/2023 17:16

Yes, the deposit is in a protected fund, I have the paperwork.

Show quote history

That’s good, although you may struggle with some bits by not having an inventory on check in and check out.

Original poster
Babysister · 15/04/2023 17:31

I do have landlord insurance, I forgot about that, maybe I need to investigate the policy.

It was a managed property, I have been living abroad but I think there have been two or three inspections and I have photos of the wardrobes still in place in February 2022. Unfortunately the damage to walls and stained carpets are not really shown in the photos, they tend to be wide angle views of the whole room.

Carpets in hall, stairs, landing the three bedrooms were brand new but I hope they can be cleaned enough for me to move in and gradually replace them. The blinds are not awful really, just look bad in my photos! They were also new and are the thin aluminium type, a bit darker looking that I expected from the sample but matched the carpets and white walls well enough. Certainly there was no need for the tenant to be and the slats like that! The ones in the back living room are just as bad!

I’ll be having the whole house decorated before I move back in so the wall damage is not really an issue although I wasn’t planning to replace the backing paper which has been ripped by the bodged hole filling, I was thinking I would only need to have the painted.

Ill do what people have advised and get some quotes then work out prices based on how long I had them, I have receipts for the blinds and carpets anyway. I’m disappointed that the property agents did not do an exit inspection as I was paying 8% on the rent as their fees, I need to read the terms on the contract.

At least no one had blamed me for being an unreasonable, money grabbing landlord which I was worried about. It’s worth pointing out that I did not evict the tenant, she gave in her notice at the end of the lease.

OP posts:
Arewehumanorarewecupboards · 15/04/2023 17:33

Have you looked behind the posters?

We privately rent and wouldn’t dream of letting our home get in that state.

TheObstinateHeadstrongGirl · 15/04/2023 17:37

Honestly OP unless your tenant pays a really small amount the deposit will cover this. There is no structural damage or huge massive bill.

From one accidental landlord to another - you can’t sweat these things, it’s part of being a landlord

LIZS · 15/04/2023 17:37

8% is pretty low, might it only be tenant finding and rent rather than full management service.

PinkiOcelot · 15/04/2023 17:40

I would be keeping the whole deposit. How can people think this is ok?!

Original poster
Babysister · 15/04/2023 17:40

L3ThirtySeven · 15/04/2023 17:27

Your agent should be advising you.
However, unless the carpets were new, a few stains could be fair wear and tear. The blinds look fair wear and tear to me. The outlet thingy sagging out the wall, fair wear and tear.

BUT the built in wardrobes they should have put back, so that is damage you can get a quote to put back into your home to take off their deposit.

It’s better to be conservative on what you charge as damage because the deposit service are very much on the side of tenants and any whiff of a landlord charging damages for fair wear and tear and they dismiss and refund the whole deposit to the tenant.

Thanks for your comments about the deposit service being on the side of the tenants. Unfortunately the wardrobes cannot be refitted as they were damaged when being dismantled and the some of the doors are in pieces. They were old and flat packed though so wouldn’t expect as new replacement, just a portion of the cost of buying a new unit. Would it be reasonable to get a quote for repairing the damage to the skirting boards and making the wall good enough to paint as I was thinking of putting a desk in there instead - although the room will need a new carpet as there was none underneath the wardrobe.

I’m struggling to work out why she removed the wardrobes, they were definitely there in Feb 2022 in an inspection photo when there was a bed there as well. The room looks such a mess that I cannot imagine anyone sleeping in there recently!

OP posts:
Original poster
Babysister · 15/04/2023 17:42

LIZS · 15/04/2023 17:37

8% is pretty low, might it only be tenant finding and rent rather than full management service.

No definitely inspections as well as I have photos from two previous ones. They asked for 12% initially but I bargained with them as my sister uses them for three houses she rents out! I8

OP posts:
EsmeSusanOgg · 15/04/2023 17:42

You will be able to successfully (get quotes for replacing/ repairing) hold back money for the big hole that has been badly poly-filed and the ripped out fitted wardrobes and skirting board (but you do need to log all of this, and have 2 to 3 quotes for repair/ replacement).

The carpets and blinds, it depends on how bad they are. Is the wear and tear beyond reasonable use? Can the carpets be made good with a professional clean (in which case you can hold back the cost of that). If not, you should be able to claim for those costs from the deposit. Again, photos, quotes and any evidence you can gather.

You are unlikely to be able to claim for picture hooks in the walls.

Quite frankly, the costs you can claim are likely to exceed the deposit. Which is really frustrating. Have been in the same boat before, and it is utterly disheartening.

Original poster
Babysister · 15/04/2023 17:43

Arewehumanorarewecupboards · 15/04/2023 17:33

Have you looked behind the posters?

We privately rent and wouldn’t dream of letting our home get in that state.

Ahh, didn’t think the posters might be hiding something! I’ll remove them tomorrow and look.

OP posts:
YetMoreNewBeginnings · 15/04/2023 17:44

You’ve definitely got cause to hold some deposit back.

you’ll have to work out the costs involved and the calculate their share in a way that doesn’t show you seeking betterment.

The carpets you’ll have to work out if they need replaced or professional cleaning.

The blinds you might not win on - those thin metal blinds just don’t last unfortunately.

Your agents don’t seem very on the ball - they should have been in taking photos right away and it doesn’t sound like they took in move in photos?

YetMoreNewBeginnings · 15/04/2023 17:45

Babysister · 15/04/2023 17:43

Ahh, didn’t think the posters might be hiding something! I’ll remove them tomorrow and look.

Show quote history

Don’t remove them until photos have been taken!

Your agent should have taken photos before you went back in - the tenant could turn around and say “that wasn’t like that when I left”.

You’re going to be claiming quite a chunk of deposit so you need to be super careful and get everything done completely properly to protect yourself

whynotwhatknot · 15/04/2023 17:45

i think youre main compaint should be with the agency why didn they check it at all and do an inventory on check out

they need to shoulder some of the blame and give you compensation

Moraxella · 15/04/2023 17:46

Def pull up the management company/agent as the havent performed contracted duties too

HappiestSleeping · 15/04/2023 17:48

Presumably , you had their deposit in an approved scheme? If so then you will be fine to retain some. Make sure you have detailed photos from the check in, and check out to be able to compare the two and show the difference, and expect a row. I can't recall the process offhand, but the tenants will likely argue (hence the check in / check out comparison). You'll need the tenancy agreement too.

If you did all this through an agent, then they will help you.

I doubt you'll get additional money, but you may well be able to keep the whole deposit.

Good luck

JustFrustrated · 15/04/2023 17:50

L3ThirtySeven · 15/04/2023 17:27

Your agent should be advising you.
However, unless the carpets were new, a few stains could be fair wear and tear. The blinds look fair wear and tear to me. The outlet thingy sagging out the wall, fair wear and tear.

BUT the built in wardrobes they should have put back, so that is damage you can get a quote to put back into your home to take off their deposit.

It’s better to be conservative on what you charge as damage because the deposit service are very much on the side of tenants and any whiff of a landlord charging damages for fair wear and tear and they dismiss and refund the whole deposit to the tenant.

Blinds look fair wear and tear? What? How is snapped slats fair wear and tear? Maybe a bit bent and bashed....
Outlet hanging out the wall? Not in anyway wear and tear. Why were they even removing it?

L3ThirtySeven · 15/04/2023 17:57

JustFrustrated · 15/04/2023 17:50

Blinds look fair wear and tear? What? How is snapped slats fair wear and tear? Maybe a bit bent and bashed....
Outlet hanging out the wall? Not in anyway wear and tear. Why were they even removing it?

Show quote history

They’re old, cheap and in a sunny window. The sun damage will have made them brittle. The OP was going to redecorate anyway and TDS will view charging for blinds as old as that as trying to get a redecorate on the back of the tenant.

If you look at the outlet it looks like it was bumped and the plaster board just tore. It’s not been deliberately removed. It looks like it wasn’t installed securely in the first place or perhaps Chinese plasterboard has been used which isn’t the fault of the tenant.

lipstickwoman · 15/04/2023 17:58

No way would I accept things hanging out of the wall, stained carpets and damaged blinds as normal wear and tear.

People who appreciate and care for things don't end up with that.