To keep their deposit!!

[LivFG]

DH and I have a couple of properties we rent out. We have been renting to a young couple who always seemed like good tenants. We gave them notice a couple of months ago as we are going to start renting on AirBnB instead as DH thinks we will get more money (don't get me started).

Anyway, they moved out on Saturday and everything seemed fine. Today I went to get everything cleaned and I found (what I think to be) weed residue next to the sink. I'm Furious. I feel completely violated and uncomfortable being inside the property. I'm sick with worry that they have been using illegal drugs in my home and what the legal ramifications could be!!

Obviously we have their deposit. I was planning to refund it this week. After my discovery today, I now feel incredibly reluctant to make any sort of refund. The idea of supporting/funding their lifestyle makes me very uncomfortable. And they never would have been given permission to abuse my property in this way.

DH seems to think none of this is a problem and seems to completely miss the point - it isn't about cleaning it up - it's about the abuse of our trust.

AIBU?

Illegal drug taking is absolutely not acceptable but unless you have a Time Machine it’s done. Move on! Clean the property and give the deposit back. You’ll need to toughen up if you’re a landlord . Don’t sweat the small stuff.
Ps we once had a drug dealer in our farm cottage. The police broke the door down on one occasion. Can’t say we ever lost any sleep over it as there was absolutely nothing we could have done. Door was fixed, tenants moved out and new tenants moved in. It wasn’t a big deal and neither is your situation.

I don’t think you have any control over illegal activities. I mean let’s say there was domestic abuse going on? Would that be a reason to withhold a deposit? What if they were earning extra money cash in hand, let’s say tutoring with kids coming to the property and it wasn’t declared? Don’t you see, unless there is tangible damage you can’t keep the deposit.

You are basing all of this stress on pure speculation. Firstly you don't even know it's weed.. do you have a photo?
Secondly even if it was weed, do you know that cannabis can be got on prescription in the UK? So therefore legal.

All will be just fine, no need to stress, let it go.

Oh that hug 🥰

FFS I’ve done it agaib

😂

I'll meet you there in 10 @ApocalypseNowt - you bring the spliffs and I'll bring the lube!

I guess people have mentioned that you are awful, awful landlords?

Maybe you're stoned 😉

Done!

Have they damaged your property? You can’t keep their deposit just because you don’t agree with their lifestyle choices! And unless you kept the ‘weed’ residue and had it tested then you have absolutely no proof that it was ‘weed’.

Get down off your high horse and give these people their money back!

Quite. There will be lots of human waste/bodily fluids to mop up as well as drug residue. Op you had better unscrew that bleach bottle & unfurl your Marigolds now in readiness.

That too.

I ask , yet again - do you know for certain it was weed??!!! You seem to be deliberately ignoring the fact you could be wrong!!

Do you usually catastrophise things? You sound unhinged, and in need of serious help.

And I dread to think the apoplexy talc on the closed toilet lid would cause.

@LivFG sorry to hear how much this has stressed you out. Just a heads up that airbnb guests love doing drugs, nitrous oxide at Airbnbs which are also v popular with sex workers, drug dealers and party crowds. Airbnb don’t give a damn so you’ll have to fight hard for deposits or costs from them

its not an easier ride than tenants by any means

Omg. They probably had sex in your house too! Scumbags.

I’m still dealing with the fact that you don’t have a proper clean between tenants

Oh how ridiculous! The whole place needs to be bleached and sterilised?! Pull yourself together.

From being really pissed off with this idiot woman and her greed, I've gone full circle and am finding it fucking hilarious.

Mrs. Bouquet sobbing into her Earl Grey wailing:
'But DRUGS. In our Bijou residence, darling?! Yes, I know we are useless illegal pretend landlords who make people Homeless..... but DRUGS!!!!'

For me, the best bit of this whole thread is Trish's random dressing gown posts!

😂😂😂 oh OP- you can’t be a real person. What on earth is wrong with you!?

I absolutely adore that the only people who have definitely broken the law is the OP and her dolt of a husband. 😂

It is indeed the most perfect irony

Stealing is illegal. Stealing off someone because you don't approve of their lifestyle is equally illegal. "The idea of supporting/funding their lifestyle makes me very uncomfortable." You haven't supported their lifestyle and giving them their money back won't be supporting their lifestyle, it's their money that they earned to do what they want with.

"And they never would have been given permission to abuse my property in this way." In what way have they abused your property? You should do an end of tenancy deep clean which you would do between any tenants paid for out of the money you earn renting out the property. If you need to clean anything more because of the lingering smell of cannabis, then you can take only the money you spend for this extra cleaning out of their deposit.

You simply don't have any other right to their money. You say "And they never would have been given permission to abuse my property in this way." All is good because they maybe have made the property a little more dirty than normal which you can recap the costs of using their deposit. Otherwise, it is pointless to worry about how to punish them for abusing your property, because they HAVEN'T!

"DH seems to think none of this is a problem and seems to completely miss the point - it isn't about cleaning it up - it's about the abuse of our trust." Except again it isn't about abuse of your trust, because they haven't really abused your trust. They have lived their lifestyle in the house they legally rented from you. Other than making it a bit more dirty than you'd like, they haven't done anything wrong that affects you.

Maybe make sure you have good evidence that they have moved out, just in case they are in horrible debt to fund their addictions or something and bailiffs might be involved, and make sure that your next tenants have something to prove who now lives there. That's very do-able though, we had it with the house we bought and just gave documents proving it was ours and all was good. Otherwise it's all good, stop pretending something affects you way more than it does to make pointless drama and get on with your life!