Can my tenant change the front garden of our house to a 'off road' parking area without our consent

[Oldsu]

Just after Christmas 2022 an elderly aunt died and left us her house, I love the house but its too far from, where I work, so we will move there in a few years time when I finally retire, the house is a Victorian cottage with a lovely front garden (roses and a magnolia tree and original railings) as neither DH drive we wont need a parking area when we move in, parking in the road seems to be difficult but there are no double yellow lines or residents parking permits so not impossible, we have factored this in with the rent and are charging 1/3 below market .

We rent this through an agency who have spoken to us a few times about putting in a parking area and we have said no, last September our tenant emailed me directly and asked me when the work was going to start, I forwarded it to the agents and told them to speak to the tenants, last November the tenants emailed me again asking about the work and said they would be looking to pay a reduced rent until the work is done, again I forwarded it to the agents for them to deal with, today I got another email telling me if the work is not done in 3 months they have the 'legal' right to get their own company to do the work and charge us afterwards. I want to forward it to my agents but it seems the agents are not making it clear about the parking area or the tenants are ignoring them so I think I am going to have to deal with the last email myself

When we inherited the house all paper work was done including updating the property records on the Land Registry so DH and I are on the LR as owners.

So my question is, I understand they wont need planning permission if the correct material is used but would need it to put in a dropped kerb, if they do apply would the council check the LR to check they are actually the owners of the property, if they didn't get planning permission but got a company to do the work anyway would the company also have to check the LR to make sure the customer has a right to make the change. I know it would be easier and simpler to put in the parking space and revert to a garden when we move in but I don't want to its my property and my garden. Any help would be appreciated

This!

It’s funny how many people are having a pop at the tenants. It’s common advice that if you are having issues with a letting agent to contact the landlord directly.

Clearly they’ve been given the impression - most likely by the agent - that this work is being done at some point. They’ve chased it up several times.

The OP and the tenant are being thoroughly let down by the agent. Many people don’t seem to realise how shit many, many, many agents are.

suggestions of calling round unannounced, put the rent up, etc aren’t helpful. The Op simply needs to communicate clearly with her tenant to get an idea if they are actually dickheads or if they’re just people who’ve been messed around by the letting agent.

I'd send a signed for letter to the tenants and estate agents, telling then in no uncertain terms that they are not allowed to change the front garden, it is not to be changed into parking of any kind.
Then get rid of them and the management.

last September our tenant emailed me directly and asked me when the work was going to start, I forwarded it to the agents and told them to speak to the tenants, last November the tenants emailed me again asking about the work

I don’t understand why you didn’t reply to them directly and put them straight in the first place.

No absolutely not. And you do not need to go fishing for reasons to keep it as it is (historical reasons etc). It’s yours, your decision is final. Seriously, start telling yourself that and believing it.

the agents are being bloody useless. I would get rid of them. If they’re the only ones in town or something , keep them but be super firm with them. And definitely give notice to the tenants (who sound way rude)

But yes also true about agents often being useless.
we used to live in a 1st floor flat. When the ground floor flat below us was let, the agents misled the tenants into believing both front and back gardens were theirs, when the back belonged to us !!!
bloody cheek.

Wow! Just wow! I rented for years and had plenty of tousels with landlords for things they were responsible for, but this isn't a broken boiler or a fence, this is major structural change to your property. If they needed off road parking they should have rented a place that had it already. This is probably the slimy work of a letting agent not being honest with either side!

Change agent asap. They sound useless and if they’re useless over this they’ll be the same over other things ( been there, done that, paid the repair bills!)
The agent may have verbally told the tenant there’d be a parking space. They should not have done this, check there is nothing in the tenancy agreement.
Write to the tenant directly stating they must not change the front of the property in any way. You explicitly forbid any physical changes. Be very direct and specific.
Check that any agent does a 6 monthly check and send you photos. I stopped using letting agents after they ignored overcrowding and damage to a property .

Anyone can apply
But they must have written permission from the home owner
standard doc to be included in application

I don’t understand your letting agents.

If a property doesn’t have off road parking it is valued as such and that rental figure used. Unless it is one of very few in the whole area which doesn’t have off road parking, so no other benchmark, there is no basis for deducting a percentage.

I have no idea if the letting agents promised off road parking to the tenant. From the tenant’s communication it’s seems likely they did, but it makes no sense. They made a big point of valuing the rent without off road parking. It’s only a one year tenancy, and the work would involve huge expense, so why would they?

The landlord’s contact details are normally shown on the Tenancy Agreement, and that is probably how the tenant got them. The tenant seems to be under the impression that the landlord is at fault.

OP you need to look at the written contract to make sure that nothing has been included about off road parking.

Either way this is a difficult situation. The letting agent is YOUR agent, and if they have made inappropriate promises it is not the tenant’s fault. They are entitled to rely on promises made by your agent.

It could be the case that the tenant has some claim for damages against you as landlord, which you would then need to pursue from the letting agent.
Realistically it’s unlikely to get to that stage and they probably don’t have much of a case for financial compensation, but they are already indicating withholding rent, which makes it a problem.

The very first step is to notify the tenant and letting agent, in writing, that you categorically did not and do not agree to provide off road parking, and nor do you give consent for this work be done by the tenant. You also need to tell the letting agents very firmly that they must reiterate this to the tenant, and deal with any consequences.

You are possibly at the stage where you could issue a Section 21 notice for them to vacate at the end of the fixed period in July, but I think the notices are only valid for 6 months, so best check. I wouldn’t rely on your agent.

I don’t think the tenant is right about being able to get the work done themselves and charge/deduct from rent. There is some provision for this for essential repairs and maintenance, but it seems unlikely that an improvement of parking facilities would count.

My suggestion for your brass necked tenants is to move to a property with off street parking if that's what they want.

And you need to change agents OP. This lot are bloody hopeless

That’s happened in the block I have a flat in several times.

The first time I met with agents they told the tenant there was allocated parking (there isn’t), that I was planning on a new bathroom (I wasn’t), that I didn’t mind them ripping out carpets (I did) and worst of all that I followed the local authority in having a rent free week every year in Feb (I don’t). I didn’t know any of this, and other unreported to me minor repairs, until after the tenant left thinking I was a shit landlord

yur agents so9und like the promised something that wasnt true-id ask to speak to the manager

just aying theyre very persistant isnt good enough you never agreed to making a driveway and you wouldnt have rented it on that basis

id definitely drive by the house see if theyve starte anything

you need to get rid of that agent and deal with them directly maybe offer them out of the contract

theres no need to reduce the amount by that much just because theres no parking noone does that my dsis paid full market price for a house with no parking

Wow cheeky fuckers

@IamtheDevilsAvocado email is perfect

Clear concise

And if they stay I would put rent back to normal

A 1/3 off is huge !!

What a cheek

It’s funny how many people are having a pop at the tenants. It’s common advice that if you are having issues with a letting agent to contact the landlord directly.

Absolutely if the boiler stopped working 2 weeks ago. But “I’m going to tarmac over the garden of your cottage and withhold rent” is totally unacceptable.

I'd put money on the agent having lied to the tenant about a future parking space. You're annoyed that they keep asking; they're annoyed because they think you're dragging your heels over work they were 'promised'.

Cut out the agent and reply to the tenants directly to put them straight.

Destroying front gardens and replacing them with concrete to park a car is horrible for the environment and causes massive problems with flooding as rain water has nowhere to go. My local council are now recommending people try and turf their front gardens wherever possible. All that aside it’s your front garden so it’s a brazen cheek of a tenant to try and change it. Stand your ground!

Not if they were told by the agent that a parking space was being put in…

By all means people should slate them f they’ve assumed or demanded, but in my experience people that rude would just be using it already (or had it done themselves).

I’d put money on this being down to them being totally misled by the agents and now thinking the LL is also ignoring them.

Just say no- no need to apply for some sort of preservation thing.

I would also speak to and write to the council to confirm you are the owner and do not want a dropped kerb installed.

@Oldsu

You really need to contact the tenants direct, it looks very much like the agent has lied to them, repeatedly.

Mention that there is no plan to alter the property to add parking, there has never been a plan and never will be such a plan and that is why the rent was set at £xxx pcm, to reflect the fact there is poor parking.

I would also ask them to let you know who told them there would be a parking space created and when.

Mucking about with trying to get preservation orders on trees and listed status on features is a lengthy and frankly, futile process as if they DO remove/damage stuff, it will be a ridiculous amount of time before it is put back, it can never be put back entirely 'as was' and if they don't actually have the money you could be chasing them til the end of time.

Either the tenants are trying to bully you or the agents are playing fast and loose or both.
Belligerent bullying tenants can be a nightmare and cost you a huge amount of money I would be wanting to quietly get rid of them as soon as possible before they trash the place in their Fury at not getting the parking space they believe they are entitled to.

I agree with everyone else. Contact them direct, put it in writing so you have evidence.

Ask them where they got the idea that a parking space in the garden would be acceptable as the property didn't have one when they decided to take the tenancy. I bet, along with everyone else, that the agent has said 'it may be considered/is being considered by the LL'.

Tell them it is not and will not be considered under any circumstances, you will not be doing any work and do not sanction them doing this themselves.

Don't go down the route of preservation. If you decide to sell later you may be limiting your potential pool of buyers - what they do to the house when you've sold is their business. At the end of the day you will not allow a parking space to be put in the garden - end of story. It's like a tenant asking if they can paint the living room bright blue and you've said only neutral colours - they may want it but they can't have it and either have to shut up or ship out.

cc all communication to the agent and follow it up with the agent to say you don't expect to hear any more about this nor discover any work has been carried out or that the tenant is using the garden without a drop kerb (in other words just parking on the grass). Property stays as seen the first day the tenants moved in apart from repairs.

No it's your property