Damage by tenant

[Babysister]

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.

If the property was managed they should have done an inventory before the tenants moved in.

You need to put this on the agents to sort out, that's what you've been paying them for!

I'd get detailed/up close photographs of everything to prove the state of the property before you start putting stuff right, you may need to give them the opportunity to put it right before you start arranging works also.

Hopefully he keeps it that way!

mine was great for the first 7/8 months. Then it went downhill from there

How long ago did the tenant move out? A 'check out inventory' should have been done ASAP. Now that it's been left and not done, the tenant could argue that they didn't cause the damage...

The blinds were new when the tenant moved in, ie 2 years old. They were not cheap, they are the same type and quality I have in my house which are in perfect condition after 12 years. We had no thoughts about replacing them before the sale. I have no idea how the tenant managed to cause that much damage through wear and tear.

I’ve had the same blinds for 12 years and they are not damaged! They are not cheap and can be cleaned with a damp cloth very easily without bending. The only things wrong with the blinds is that the colour is a bit darker than I thought when I ordered them and I take bad photos! They are not even in a south facing room!

I guess we might just remove them but then the front of the house would be overlooked by people passing by.

Did your agents take photos when they did the move in inventory?

Yes, that’s very annoying and we will take it up with the agents on Monday. The keys were dropped off this morning and I went to the house a couple of hours later so I suppose I could have damaged the blinds and thrown muck over the carpets but I doubt I had enough tile to dismantle wardrobes and drag them outside, knock holes in wall and badly repair them or draw childish pictures on the walls! I am disabled anyway and use a walking stick, not a ninja!

Thank you, something to try, my brother could not get them off today although he easily removed command strips from the wall paper in the back room.

Tbh that’s really not the point.

The agents should have made clear to you not to go in until they’d been in and done the check.

Little things like this can end up being really expensive if you have a tricky tenant who plays games, and it’s these little things that you pay the agents to know and warn you about.

He's been there almost 3 years

Tenant moved out yesterday, ( Friday), returned keys at 11 am this morning, I was there by 12 noon.

I would've thought they would lose all of their deposit.

Landlord insurance won't cover any of this. Your agents are seriously at fault - look at your contract with them. How often were they to inspect? Mine do it every six months. Then they should have done a check out inventory check and detailed everything, some will be considered fair wear and tear, sone won't, snd they should recommend an amount to be withheld from the deposit.
I'd put it back on them to sort out - it's what you are paying them for.

I agree! I’m going to get my sister to read through the contract we have, she dealt with that sort of things when we first let the house. I spoke to them this afternoon and they are going to go round on Monday but I’m not convinced that was their intention, only after I complained!

I think picture hooks are a normal part of wear and tear tbh and the fireplace hooks with the right tools and some acetone should come off fine and aren’t what I’d class as damage. Some degree of carpet marks and/or minor stains could also come under everyday wear and tear.

Removing fitted furnishings such as wardrobes without prior consent however is totally unacceptable whether the job has been finished off well or not but the fact they’ve left it looking an eyesore to boot is just not on and nor is leaving a badly patched hole in the wall and I’d definitely be with holding funds to sort those out if nothing else.

I’m on the fence about the blinds because they look like metal ones which in my experience do damage / get bent quite easily, that said I’d also not expect them to look quite so bad so is 50/50 wear & tear / carelessness.

Your LL insurance may help you if the agents have made multiple balls ups.

Did they take move in photos? I know you said earlier in the thread you had advert photos, but did they take any? Did they do a move in inventory? If they’re lax at move out double check with move in.

Also given they have cocked this up double check everything before you do anything - if they organised the gas cert, for example, make sure it’s all done.

Hopefully they’ve only cocked this bit up, but do check before you proceed just to be sure.

Needing to replace 2 yr old carpets is not normal wear and tear- and neither is the removed cupboard. I would be billing for everything/ including the botched patch up jobs. Maybe not the blinds as they are horrendous......(sorry couldn't resist that) but yup/ claim everything. They appear to have really done a fair bit of damage.

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=goo+gone&client=safari&hl=en-gb&prmd=sivn&sxsrf=APwXEdfoA146IIxbaR7qyn0Jvs3ucY34hA:1681605855850&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiKssL9la3-AhU-SkEAHUJ7AIYQ_AUoAnoECAQQAg&biw=390&bih=664&dpr=3#imgrc=jm8J2LxfcrpIUM&lnspr=W10=

This will get those hooks straight off, I can’t believe what she’s done to your home! I think I’m this case you’d have to keep the whole deposit back to pay for putting the damage right.

@LadyAstor I think 'fitted wardrobe' is a bit of an extension of the truth. A cheap flat pack secured to the wall, probably collapsed & was then removed.

unless there was something in the contract to firbid them to put pictures up they haven't done anything wrong there either.

the hooks on the fireplace will come off with the correct stuff.

the blinds are cheap & ridiculous for a rental.

the phone socket hanging off the wall was clearly badly done in the first place.

mountain out of a molehill.

I’m a landlord. Rookie error was assuming the house was free for you to go in a hour after the keys were returned. Presuming the agent is decent and created a check in report signed by the tenant prior to moving in, they will also be carrying out a check out report. You need to stop doing stuff if you’re seeking compensation until this is completed.

You’re moving back in by the sound of it so you want it as before I presume. On the plus side, you’ve made money out of the tenant and had your house heated for the 2 years and the council tax paid so you’re not actually down money. It’s just annoying and the tenants have treated the house pretty poorly and left it in a state. The positive thing is they have not trashed it.

If the fitted wardrobe fell to pieces, the tenant should have contacted the letting agent. Did that happen? If not, you should seek compensation. Ditto for the 2 year old blinds. The stains on the carpets are possibly above fwat by the sound of it and also need professionally cleaning. Every bit of glue and poorly done filler, any screw holes, damaged skirting and so forth needs to be made good.

As you’ve already started to try to rectify certain issues, the best bet is to organise to meet with the clerk at the property just before they make a start on the exit report to ensure they don’t photograph the evidence that you’ve been in the house as this could nullify the report. The agent should have scheduled this for some time on Monday.

You’ve previously been told on this thread that you need to detail every single thing as the administrators of the deposit scheme often decide against the landlord. This is really good advice and will ensure you get the maximum possible amount of compensation.

As for someone upthread saying carpets are changed every 5 years. This simply isn’t true and the deposit schemes will offer limited compensation on 6/7 year old carpets. Older if they’re of exceptional quality. And it is not a mountain out of a molehill @SorePaw Most of us wouldn’t live in a house looking like that and I certainly wouldn’t be offering a property to rent, which wasn’t in excellent condition.

Eucalyptus Oil will remove those hooks easily

Goodness that's terrible! I'd certainly be keeping back sone/all the deposit to make good again - good luck!

Most of it sounds like wear and tear but them removing fitted wardrobes is the biggy. They can't do that without permission and you can be compensated.

None of it sounds like wear and tear!!

I never said the outlet was wear and tear. I’m saying it looks like it may have been faulty from the get go.