To think being a tenant is an absolute misery

[nellyelloe]

For reasons I won't go into, we have found ourselves having to rent for 18 months after selling our house. Luckily we are now buying again so this won't be forever.

It has been the most eye opening 18 months of my life, and I feel SO sorry for people that are stuck renting. It has a genuine negative impact on my mental health. The constant reminders that it's not your home, never feeling relaxed as you're terrified of damaging something, the constant rent increases, the inspections. It's a total misery.

Now I do understand there are some awful tenants about who destroy houses, but that's not us. We haven't even put a single picture on the wall, pay our rent early every month and keep the house beautifully.

We have to suffer inspections every 3 months as per the contract. Now I know the landlord has the right to see how the house is being kept but it feels like an absolute invasion of our privacy every time, to have some 19 year old from the estate agents come round and take photos of the house and how we live. Every inspection fills me with weeks of dread even though I know the house is spotless and exactly as we moved into it. I stupidly didn't even think about it but we got our daughter a hamster and during the last inspection were really told off for it and told they would need to seek the landlord's permission as we had broken the no pets rule. After being a home owner for 20 years, it stupidly didn't cross my mind. Luckily we got the landlord's permission and a clause in the contract to keep Nibbles 🙄 I was made to feel like an absolute criminal for it, like I was storing a body in the loft. It is awful that people are made to feel like this over a pet, something that brings families and children so much joy.

The hinge fell off the integral dishwasher as it was old and dodgy. The 19 year old estate agent came round again to see if it was our fault or if it was due to reasonable wear and tear.....it was reasonable wear and tear as the dishwasher is 10 years old but again, made to feel like some careless idiot for a faulty hinge.

We have an app where we go on and pay the (£1700😬) rent and it has a lovely countdown on it saying when our contract ends...it's really unnerving seeing it and knowing they could kick us out at this point and we would have no right to stay, even if our house purchase doesn't complete in time.
Every 6 months, the rent has gone up £100. We are totally overpaying compared to other properties but again, we can like it or lump it. We are paying £300 more a month than we did 18 months ago. Our salaries have not increased. The mortgage on our house we are buying will be half our rent.

Renting is a constant reminder that it's not your home, that you need permission to breathe and you have people round to check up on you like a child has their parent check their room is tidy.

I honestly find it hellish. The housing system in this country is fucked. The renters reform act is now abandoned. I'm so glad I will be out of this soon but genuinely so sad for others who are in it for the long haul.

It's not always the same. My landlord hasn't stepped foot in the house in the 11 years i have been renting it. They used to have a person who looked after it but even they only came a couple of times.
I also haven't had a rent increase in 8 years.
I think my situation is probably pretty rare to be honest though.

It's a hamster not a cat or dog..

People don't realise how disruptive private renting is to children too. (If you can only get hold of yearly tenancies and have to constantly move/ change school etc). There should be a complete change in the system.

But it's luck that you have a good landlord. A person's housing stability shouldn't depend on that kind of luck.

The state confiscation of private assets has worked so well in the past. 😂

You clown.

@LameBorzoi totally agree and one of the reasons i won't move even thought the house is too small for us now really.

Not all LL's are the same, just as not all tenants are the same. I had a new tenant move in on 22nd and she has asked if she can paint the freshly painted white walls a colour. I said yes provided when you leave they are white again. She asked if she could put up shelves and pictures. I replied yes. This morning she asked if she could get a kitten. I replied yes. I have got no intention of checking up on her every few months. It will be once a year for a cursory glance at the same date a gas certificate is carried out and I collect a copy of the certificate. My mortgage is 3 years fixed so she won't be asked for a rent increase for at least 3 years and then whatever inflation is capped at 5 percent. I think agencies are always more picky.

OP I feel your pain !!!

I'm a decent landlord

My tenants went through some difficulties and I let them off with half rent for a while

We never put rent up and trust them so none of that inspection madness

It will get better I hope

I’ve always rented and am happy with it tbh and will never be a homeowner, unless my personal circumstances change drastically. If boiler packs in I don’t have to panic to find the money-I just phone my landlord and they sort it.
i think getting a good landlord is key from speaking to friends. I’ve previously been in local authority housing and I jumped at the chance of going private renting as they were so shit. It did take me a few years to feel like this is my home because as my landlord has told me it is which was nice. I’m allowed to put things on wall, including my tv and I just asked permission for a cat and was told absolutely no problem. My landlord is great and I’m a good tenant so we run along smoothly.

Also I don’t have inspections and rent has only gone up once in 7 years. (Thankfully!)

This sounds awful OP, I'm sorry you're in this position. I think (hope) you have an unreasonable landlord - none of my friends who rent have ever had an inspection, except prior to moving out. An inspection every three months is really unreasonable. As is putting the rent up every 6 months. It is usual for it to go up every year (particularly if managed by an agent) but, again, 6 months seems unusual.

It has been a long time since i rented, but my last landlord came around once a month or so after I moved in (he said to ask if any post had been received, but clearly to check I hadn't trashed the place), then never again. He also never put the rent up in the four years I live there.

@booksunderthebed, the LL doesn't have the security deposit anymore. It's lodged with tenants protection schemes. I've authorised the release of their full deposit back to the tenant on the day they moved out, whilst they were there with me. Only to have the tenant ask me 10 days later where it is. I've had to chase the deposit scheme to release it. It's not like in the past when the LL held the deposit and could just move it back across to the tenants bank account the same day.

I agree with you OP, it can be absolutely miserable. The inspections were the worst - the way that talk to tenants: you would think that we weren't paying their wages. They certainly never seemed to acknowledge it.

As a pp said whether you have a positive experience shouldn't be down to luck, it should be an absolutely baked in norm.

Hope you manage to get out of it soon.

An inspection every three months is really unreasonable.

They do it so they can charge fees to the landlord. Which the tenant covers, via rent. So, the tenant is actually funding all of this nonsense.

@PurpleBugz, I'm a LL and after the first check when the gas certificate is due I just have a quick glance downstairs upon each gas certificate renewal. However I'm not in a license scheme so I can choose how frequently to inspect. If you fall under license requirements you have no choice. An inspection must take place every 3/6 months depending on licence and a report has to be carried out. Most LL's don't want to do this but council licensing schemes force them too.

The problem isn't that you made those choices. The problem is that you have the power to make all those choices (plus many more) for another person.

When we had 3 monthly inspections there was a charge for them, plus compulsory professional clean. And then he ran off with our deposit.
When I was applying to rent my next property, I said I had asked crappy landlord for a reference, and the new landlord laughed and said he'd done a flit, so I wouldn't see my deposit or a reference.
Btw, this was before deposit protection schemes.

Oh god I lost so much deposit money over the years, before it became protected. I actually took one to court to get it back, I was so sick of the cheeky bastards. He showed up completely unprepared and acting like "I'm such a nice guy [he wasn't, just posh] sure there's no need for any of this" and the judge ripped him a new one, ordered costs for the delay (I'd borrowed to cover my next deposit) - it was a long time ago now but still one of my best afternoons ever seeing the dismay on that shifty fucker's face.

The problem isn't that you made those choices. The problem is that you have the power to make all those choices (plus many more) for another person

Exactly this. The fact that renters are at the mercy of a landlord being "nice" is a scandal.

I'm so sick of landlords saying "I'm one of the good ones" and then describing stuff that should be bare basic rights for tenants. Oh you come and fix things when they're broken? You don't put up rent by more than inflation? Wow. Round of applause for you.

it was a long time ago now but still one of my best afternoons ever seeing the dismay on that shifty fucker's face

Brilliant. I still remember the look on my landlord's face when he tried to run off with our deposit and we revealed to him that our little blonde 23 year old house mate was actually a corporate lawyer working for one of the big firms

It's interesting as my experience is totally different. I've rented for the last ten years and have just bought my own house and am finding it so stressful. Everything that goes wrong is my responsibility. I'm used to reporting to the agent and it getting fixed at no cost to me. I also am feeling uneasy about the fact that we can't move even if want to

And if anyone wonders why you have young people and divorcees rushing off to do 25% shared ownerships -even though it isn't always the best option and paying overinflated prices on new builds - many of the reasons are on here are plain to see

Security - not being told you can't put a picture up, ability to plan for your children without thinking you might be out in 6 months etc , not having to worry where you will get the money to fund a new rental deposit before getting money back on old one which will no doubt try and have deductions because there is chip in a door frame, dust on a lamp etc!!

I would like Labour to bring back the DIYSO scheme ( we bought under this when our son was a baby) - basically shared ownership on the open market - part mortgage ( or an outright paid for share) - remainder owned by HA or LA and rent paid on that share- it was a great idea and didn't force everyone into new builds that wanted shared ownership. Problem was (and it was in under Blair for 2 years or so) - it was way too popular and house builders didn't like it- stuff the house builders, !

@TheCadoganArms is calling me a clown the best you've got? Shame you lack the skills to actually put forward a reasonable response.

Your entire tirade is something the Socialist's Worker sellers on uni campuses used to spout. I am all up for a larger stock of social housing, strong tenant protections and some form of rent controls. You want the entire private rental market abolished and the confiscation of private assets by the state. History has shown that the moment the state goes down that path it results in capital flight, collapse on FDI and economic malaise as no business is going to trust a government who sees fit to act in such a way. So yes, it was a clownish solution.

@PontiacFirebird
"As for this: I don’t understand the relevance of the estate agent being 19
Do you really not? 🙄
Well, I’m assuming it’s a bit humiliating having a near child whose mam probably still buys his underpants walking round your home to check up on you."

Why would his mother buy his underwear if he has a job?
How did the OP know his age?