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.

I didn’t know you went in two hours after they left!

You probably arrived before any end of tenancy professional cleaning and carpet steaming could be done (which would usually only be required to be paid for by the tenant if you had done the same for the tenant when they moved in due to the fees ban).

Go back with the agent when they are doing check out inspection and after any cleaning is done.

You will be able to deduct for the wardrobes, but not to put new ones in unless you can prove that the old ones they removed were damaged beyond repair by the tenant and cannot be simply re-installed by a handyman/woman for a few quid.

You may be able to get something for the carpets, but depends how they look after cleaning compared to how they looked at move in, minus wear and tear allowance. So you certainly won’t get enough to replace the carpets with new carpet.

The hooks, blinds and outlet are minor. I’m not sure I would go after money for those as DPS is biased against landlords and it’s often best to limit your damages to the open and shut, easily proven big ticket items than to give them any hint of suspicion to think you’re trying to get a move-in redecorate off the back of the tenant.

Assuming the tenant was not due to organise and pay for an end of tenancy professional clean, and handing keys back suggests not, book one and see how the carpets come up. You may find a lot of the stains and marks are superficial.

the agents shouldnt have given you the keys till they done a check out inventory-major mistake that could cos t you

OP as a tenant I would be utterly ashamed to leave any property in this state.
The wardrobe situation is just beyond unreasonable, I would fully expect to be charged for the cost of new replacements and rubbish removal.
In terms of carpets, I would agree with some other posters that fair wear and tear ought to cover this, but the walls, I suppose it depends on the terms of your agreement? For instance when we moved into our current property, there were existing picture hooks which we have used, but we have not put any further hooks up as it states we would have to pay for repainting (high ceilings here so cost would be insane).
I would expect any deposit scheme service to withhold some if not all the tenants deposit here, you have a lot of costs to cover. I am sure if your original inventory was detailed enough, you will have a positive comparison.

I’ve calmed down a little today! I’m meeting the manager of the property company tomorrow afternoon at my house to do a thorough inspection, I’ll be taking the photos that were taken when the tenant moved in as a comparison. I want to know why they did not do an exit inspection and why they let me go round so soon. I had checked that the tenant had left and told them I was calling round to get the gas and electric readings and make sure that nothing had been left plugged in or anything like that. It seems like they should have warned me not to visit the house then.

I wonder what their reaction will be when they see the missing wardrobe and the mess that has been left behind! That was my craft room, the wardrobe was fitted out with shelves for my wool and fabric stash and I had a sewing machine table and samples of my crochet work on display.

I wish I had some photos to show you what my house was like when I lived in it, I kept the walls white and used colour in the cushions, pictures and rugs, a bit minimalist but still cosy. I can’t wait to get it all out of storage after I get the house cleaned and decorated.

I have no reason to believe these were cheap either (my LL seems to have gone for quality on everything else), and I’ve cleaned them the way you describe. Yet the metal on the long ones has just distorted. Short ones, fine. Long ones, shit and the devils work.

everything else though, arses, and I hope you manage to get some recourse for the damage. Shitty tenants give us all a bad name.

Check out inspections & inventory normally happen a few days after the tenant moves out depending on weekends/holidays and their schedule or the schedule of the contractor they hire to do it- there are specialist companies that only do property inspections and check in/check out inventories.

You said the tenant dropped off the keys Saturday morning and it is now Monday morning, I would not have expected the check out to have been done by now. (It is done without the tenant present btw.)

yes in which case they shouldnt have given the keys to the landlord till it was done

So therefore there should be a claim against the agent.
What on earth have they been paid for? What have they done?

Except OP said she was going round just to get meter readings, which is done the day of moving out.

Claim for what?!

I mean, that's what deposits are for. Claim for every bit of damage, will most likely be they're whole deposit though and still some.

Even flooring is expensive.

That's a lot of damage for a short amount of time