Tenancy inspection today - can they say anything about a messy house?

[YorkshirePuddingBelongs]

I have a tenancy inspection this afternoon - my landlord is a nasty prick, his DD is doing the inspection. It’s a long story but he’s been awful, sending me harassing emails, making threats and breaking the Tenancy Fees Act as well as his part of the tenancy agreement. I move next month, thank god, but he’s 100% out to get me - and I think he has likely briefed his DD to look for problems.

There is no damage in the house bar a scuff or 2 on the walls (it’s an old house with tiny narrow staircases and this was from carrying the bed up - he’s seen them before and said it’s fine it always gets scuffed). But we’ve been going through some stuff and I haven’t had time to spring clean line I always do. I have a horrible feeling she will comment on the mess. It’s mostly things like the bathtub and shower needs a clean, the kids’ rooms need a hoover etc. but I KNOW they will be looking for problems because they’ve heavily hinted at it, sending me messages about “if there’s damage you haven’t reported you will be liable for the costs” etc.

Good god, read the post. The child's Dad left yesterday. I really worry for society as people seem to have lost empathy.

err I did. It said DH & I kinda seperated. When did he leave yesterday? If that was in OP, I think the advice may have been different!

I'm so sorry that you've come on MN looking for support with your situation and have been treated appallingly by some posters @YorkshirePuddingBelongs. I hope you and your little girl are ok.

Cancel, if he sees it grubby he'll just harass you more. Do make sure that you film and photo EVERY detail when you leave. Film it including the meter readings and an iPad showing the date. Leave him not a smidge of a chance of taking any of your deposit.

It’s not ‘heart strong pulling’ - its what happened.

I know you get hygiene freaks on MN it id like to think anyone would console their devastated DD over cleaning a bath. The cleanliness level of my house does not represent what it will look like when I leave - I just wondered if anyone knew of my LL could officially raise the fact it isn’t show home clean as an issue

I read the thread and I know what that means.

You have managed to go to work, another excuse for not cleaning.🤣🤣

<ring ring> Oi Yorkshire why aren’t you at work

Me: I need to clean my bath. Work is not an excuse to not stay at home and clean!

I think it is reasonable to expect a tenant to keep a house clean and a relatively tidy as you sometimes can’t tell whether a house is clean if it is so untidy you can’t see through it. It is reasonable for the landlord to want to inspect if they have concerns. You sound like a very difficult tenant.

Actually it’s nothing to die rig the LL as long as no damage is being made. Which it’s not.

Can you explain how I’m a difficult tenant please?

Just ignore the muppets OP, there's a million threads on here from people who have let cleaning slide. It's fine.

Are you a landlord? Then maybe you should read up on the law.

OP relax. Inspections whilst you are in residence are just to check you've not removed any internal walls, started a cannabis farm or become a hoarder. It's that scale of thing. General untidiness and not being sparkling clean are neither here nor there. At the end of the tenancy you may get charged for cleaning if you leave the place filthy. Scuffs on the walls are "normal wear and tear" unless extreme. At any rate, take lots of photos when you leave and negotiate any deductions via the deposit scheme.

Hopefully your next landlord will be more professional.

I’m just gonna go ahead with the inspection to get him off my back - but they will have to deal with dirty dishes in the sink from breakfast, overflowing linen baskets, toys in the kid’s room and a bit of muck round the shower and my home office having piles of paper everywhere. There is no damage to the property, Google is letting me down but I’m pretty sure that he can’t do anything/deduct anything for a mid-term-yet-no-damage mess.

The oven is filthy but I’m getting it professionally cleaned the day I leave

Just open the door to his daughter and say "I understand you are here to inspect the roof" lead her straight up to your bedroom (all other doors closed).

"See, all looks absoloutley fine with the roof. The neighbour has checked hers too and no rain damage to us or them. Right, I'm off out so I'll show you out as I leave"

No, I just don’t want a harassing prick in my home. Even us renters have a right to not have the man who’s continually intimidating us to be home alone with us

There's fair wear and tear and there's damage. scuffs would be damage- and he can withhold part of the deposit.

Sorry what??
Why would a shower affect my DD’s MH?

These people’s kids will be on the stately homes thread in 15 years

”I had a breakdown aged 10 but my mum was too busy cleaning to listen to me thinking it would solve my MH problems”

He’s taking a break from us. Given our circumstances it’s the best thing

I had a couple of days away last weekend. My kids knew I was coming back. The return date is very much tentative for DH.

dirty shower AND home.

https://www.verywellmind.com/how-mental-health-and-cleaning-are-connected-5097496

https://www.oxfordcbt.co.uk/stress-management-cleaning/

I did see later where you said your DH left yesterday, so of course I understand things are upside down for you.

Probably best to delete the post @YorkshirePuddingBelongs .
LL can’t do anything about what sounds like a minimal amount of mess while you are still living there.

Are you okay? Sorry that you are having a shitty time.

I’m hardly living in a crack den. Utterly ludicrous to suggest abandon my upset DD so I can clean

Normally, an inspection so close to moving out, would be just to get the gist of the state of the place, re whether it needs redecoration, new carpets, new white goods, etc., so that the "turnaround" between you moving out and the next tenant moving in can be planned for, if the landlord knows in advance what needs to be done. The next tenant will be wanting a moving in date confirmed and the landlord can't do that until he knows what works need to be done. Being untidy or unclean is pretty irrelevant for that kind of evaluation of the state of the place.

Of course, if the landlord is genuinely a weirdo, then things may be different, but giving him the benefit of the doubt on that score, he needs to know, sooner rather than later, whether he needs to be arranging for new carpets to be fitted, ordering a new cooker, booking in a decorator, etc etc. That kind of thing can't be done at a moment's notice in the few days before one tenant moving out and the next tenant moving in, if it's not arranged in advance.

I think a lot of people making rather glib observations haven’t read your updates and are wrongly assuming you’re some sort of gremlin who hasn’t cleaned for months and is living in filth.

A few dishes and the need for a hoover might have been noted in my previous inspections when I was a tenant, but certainly never used to harass or intimate. Of course the sign of a declining home could be a sign of bigger problems but ONE inspection isn’t going to psychoanalyse that.

I think you’re doing the right thing op, let him do the inspection. If he flaps his gums just ignore him or grey rock the replies, if he could do anything anyway he’s not going to be able to in a month. He can’t withhold deposit based on an inspection a month before you leaving. The scuffs on the wall could absolutely be classed as wear and tear if it doesn’t need repairing or replacing, or a specialist to repair. It will go with a scrub or a coat of paint (which he should be doing between tenants if he’s a decent landlord anyway).

On the subject of proving the date of photos, it's easy to change the date on an electrical device, so that's not proof at all. Far better to buy a daily newspaper and have the newspaper front page in view in all shots. That IS definitive proof that the photo was taken on or after the date of sale of the newspaper!

In all honesty if you are leaving he will be at some stage in the marketing, letting and preparing it for a new tenant. He wants to know what the place looks like so he knows what he needs to do. He made up a reason to do the check now without saying that.

Like others say there’s nothing he can do now but moan about cleanliness and tidiness. But just reply it will be deep cleaned and tidied before you leave on x date.

IME, he will want to viewings now and will be frustrated that the place isn’t looking its best. In a way you will probably put him off doing that which is better for you.

I suggested a clean home would be beneficial to your kid's mental health especially with providing a sense of stability since you initially said you were 'kinda seperated'. You then provided further detail. No one suggested you should abandon your DD.

If you were so anxious about LL, you could have woken up an hour early to clean or cancelled the visit. You are expending a lot of energy at anyone who hasn't said what you want to hear. Take the 'good' advice, leave the rest. And good luck with DH, kids and LL and move next month. Sounds like you truly have your hands full.