Landlords - how often do you redecorate, and other questions!

[Paddingtonthebear]

Just that really. We want to renew our current tenancy. The house wasn't newly redecorated when we moved in a year ago and looks a bit tatty. From the agents particulars and the previous inventory it doesn't look like the house it's been decorated for several years. Is this something landlords do? Or do rental properties generally stay a bit unloved and tatty?!

Also, there's a shed in the garden which is falling apart. Felt has come off the roof, wood is rotten and the shed has half sunk into the garden. We've got a bike in there, there's some other junk in there which we assume is the landlords. Should the shed be fixed/replaced/removed? We don't really care about it but it's not really fit for purpose.

We would like to stay in the property long term. Landlord is a nice guy and has responsed quite well to minor maintenance issues so far, leaky porch, broken boiler etc. Not sure if the landlord is considering any rent increases as we haven't heard anything about the renewal yet, but I guess we would be a little reluctant to pay an increased rent when the property hasn't had any work done to maintain /improve it to justify an increase.

Any advice gratefully received!

time for some communication! Landlords don't have to redecorate but it is good practice, and it sounds like it may be time. Of course this will be very disruptive for you.

how about a deal, especially if you want to stay long term? Redecoration throughout, either share the cost and reduce the rent or he pays and you continue at market rent. I've done this deal before and it works well.

the shed is a hazard (and certainly not secure) so flag that up too. BTW is access to it part of the let?

just to check the normal stuff; gas safe cert, deposit protected?

Rent is generally reviewed and increased annually as part of keeping up with the market.

You should report the maintenance issues with the shed to the landlord.

Yes, the landlord should be redecorating it, but generally between tenants. If rental properties remain unloved and tatty, they risk not being rent out or the rental value having to be lowered so that someone is prepared to rent it. As you are there already, nothing to stop you asking the landlord to redecorate but be prepared for a no. Or, as you are the one who is keen to stay in the property long term you may come to some sort of agreement as part of the renewal.

HTH

Thank you! Yes we have gas cert and deposit protection etc. we would stay here for another 5yrs if we could but would really want to see some cosmetic improvements in order to do that

The only thing that concerns me is that it is such a sought after area / road, they could definitely let out the property quickly as it is. Therefore maybe not much of an incentive to them to redecorate!

I definitely think you should have a dialogue with the Landlord.

It's all about the market conditions, supply/demand. In your case, it sounds like you might end up having to redecorate it yourselves, if you renew the tenancy. But talk to and negotiate with your landlord.

Is it managed with by an agent or is it all dealt with directly with the landlord?

First things first Paddington: what does your tenancy agreement say about who is responsible for what in the house?

You should also have a copy of the inventory (previous inventory? do you mean the one you signed when you took the tenancy?) and the shed should be listed.

If you like the place and want to stay, speak with the landlord and ask him about the decorating and the shed.

I am a landlord and have had a tenant ask can they redecorate, which I agreed to providing it was neutral colours, and I have also offered to have decorated the areas which were looking tired when I last inspected. If the tenant doesn't take me up on this, then I'll deal with that after the end of the tenancy.

DH a landlord. We use an agent but we have long term tenants who are good and the agent thinks DH is a good landlord.

Like your landlord we try to respond quickly to any requests for repairs, problems with heating etc. All our shed roofs have been damaged this winter so we are on to that.

I can honestly say though that the tenants seem to do any decorating they want done and we've not been asked to contribute to the cost. We sometimes paint through in between tenants, change carpets etc but not usually when tenants are in.

The last time DH went to see a house to discuss new fire (took B&Q fire brochure and asked tenant to choose) he came home depressed because the tenants home looked nicer and better kept than ours!

My mum rents out a few properties. We ensure the property is freshly decorated in neutral colours when the tenant moves in and then it is down to the tenant to keep it looking nice or put their own twist on it. We would only redecorate during an existing tenancy if there was a leak or something that caused damage to the paintwork.

You need to talk to the landlord about the shed.

Good luck!

Usually between tenants (my DH rents out his old flat andhas bad luck with tenants leaving place like squats so we had to fully redecorate between each tenancy...)

The property is managed by the landlord though the initial viewing and paperwork was done via a letting agency. Basically we got sent the previous tenants inventory first by mistake so I can see that the property hasn't been decorated for some time. I contacted the landlord a couple of months ago about the shed but I think he's forgotten about it. Tenancy agreement ends early August so we expect to hear his intentions from him soon as I know he has to give 2 months notice if he doesn't want to renew.

We did redecorate the lounge not long after we moved in last year, with landlord permission. The whole house needs doing though so not really something we want to completely pay for ourselves when it obviously has needed doing for some time. I totally understand why landlords would redecorate between tenancies but this hasn't happened here for several tenancies.

Perhaps I will approach the landlord and see if we can make a deal then. We are actually going on holiday in a few weeks so the house would be empty which would make it easier for him, if he is willing to redecorate

remember that six months is the minimum for a tenancy, you can negotiate for longer. You could have a tenancy of several years if you can agree rent and other terms.

while it may be easy to get new tenants, it is hassle and cost. So there is also incentive for the landlord.

If anyone would like to help me draft an email that would be great

As a landlord, I would come to some sort of agreement about decorating with you, but I think its unreasonable for you to expect the landlord to redecorate the entire house at his cost when you only moved in 6 months ago (and presumably accepted its condition at that time).

Email something like - as you know our tenancy agreement ends on xxxx. We are very happy living in the property and would like to agree a new long term tenancy.

With this in mind, I wonder if we could discuss redecoration of the property as it is looking a little shabby in places. There is also the matter of the unsafe shed, previously discussed.

I look forward to hearing from you.....

Pleased to say we are renewing for another year, rent has been increased very slightly but landlord is going to redecorate and is removing the old shed!

now that's what I call a result!

Absolutely!