New tenant asks for maintenance work that is financially not viable

[Amadeaa]

My tenants moved in this week. They’ve asked me to undertake maintenance work which they believe are in my responsibility as a landlord, but these works are financially not viable. The costs would exceed the yield of a whole year’s rent with no guarantee that the problem might not reoccur within 6 months. I also don’t have this kind of money available right now. What are my options? They are at the start of a 1-year contract. I don’t think I can terminate the contract without any fault at the tenants side.
Should I offer them money if they agree to terminate the contract early?

You could probably get a loan to fix it since the money will obviously be recouped from rent.

If it’s damp it has to be sorted, it can cause health problems .

If the property is damp it is your responsibility to put it right - unless you want to find yourself in the news over the adverse effect on the tenants' health.

Damp can be unsafe.
If you kicked them out not only would you loose the rental money, but you’d still have to sort out the problem

its weird though as the owner of the house, who will have made frequent visits you didn’t notice the damp, but you expected someone who had an often too quick look round, didn’t notice

Unfortunately as a landlord you must take steps to sort out the damp. It's unfair on the tenants. It's not their fault the property is damp. It won't be good for your property either, it'll end up costing you more in the long run. You can offset the cost against income.

Damp has many causes, not all cost £££
Check gutters for leaking etc
Where is tge damp and how big?

It's called running a business. There are profits and losses. There are unexpected costs. I honestly think all landlords need to be checked before they start renting out properties. Not the other way round.....

Would you want to live in a damp place? Why should they?

I’m not planning to evict them, cause then problems or anything…I feel genuinely terrible for having unknowingly put them into this situation. I was just wondering if I should offer them say 3k-5k as apology and reimbursement for the trouble and 2 months rent free while they are looking for another property and see if this could be a workable solution

And the only way I would leave would be for my deposit to be returned up from, the rent I have already paid you and the costs of not only moving to you but the costs to the next place.

Was going to say exactly this.

OP, if you were living in the house yourself, how would you finance this repair? Do that.

And what happens in two months if they cannot find somewhere else?

What you are suggesting is evicting them.

There are some steps you can take to mitigate damp, including making sure there is adequate ventilation etc. But ultimately damp is a health hazard, and you will need to get it sorted. Or your tenants will leave of their own accord eventually, rather than get sick or see their belongings destroyed by mold.

You may need to look at a loan or other finance if you don't have the money. But the first thing to do is establish the nature and extent of the problem. If you can, get an expert in to take a look at the damp and quote you for the remedial works. Get more than one if possible, to give you a broad idea of the likely costs.

But even if the tenants agree to leave, what will you do then? Sell the property?

Whereabouts is the damp for a start ?? Have they been ventilating the property and not drying washing indoors ??

I'd get someone in to find out the cause first and go from there, fwiw it might not cost that much to sort, we had horrific damp in one room, we got a plasterer who did other jobs to tank it and its been fine since. It cost about £800 and has lasted 10 years so far so he obviously did something right.

It would make more sense to get it assessed and work out the best course of action and use money for that, not throw money at the tenant. Have you done that? Was it obvious when they viewed the property before renting?

They've literally just moved in.

Can you say more about the problem? Is it a case of damp causing black mould in rooms? Or is it more like, a damp course is needed to make a basement useable?

You know people can die from living with damp and mold long term?
It needs fixing and keeping your property in a habitable state is part of your responsibility as property owner. It's not free money for you, you are taking on risks and responsibilities that mean that yes some years you don't make a profit. The mold can be kept at bay temporarily with regular anti-mold spray but the underlying cause needs to be tackled - often poor insulation.

Where is the damp coming from? A lot of tenants confuse damp with condensation. You’ll not rent it again without addressing it. Put an PIV unit in if it’s damp

£3-£5k and a couple of months rent would go a long way to sorting out many damp issues. Depends on what is causing it and how bad it is but seeing as you and the agent didn't notice it, I'm surprised it's going to take many thousands to fix. You need a professional opinion or two to see what's causing it. You do need to get it sorted though.

Have you had the damp assessed to ascertain the cause?

Some damp is caused by a structural issue (roof or leaks). But some is caused by the person living there (not ventilating),. We had terrible damp in our bedroom when we rented in our early twenties. It as due to us not opening the window. Obvious now , but we didn't know.

You actually say they have lived there a week? Is that right??! It can’t be that damp Surely

is your Epc above D?

We’ve had problems with damp. All we had to do was replace some plasterboard and we installed a PIV system in the loft which circulates air through the house. Wasn’t a big job and it wasn’t expensive. Hundreds as opposed to thousands.