Taking money from deposite at end of tenancy

[TryAgainAnotherDay]

LL sold house. DH and myself have been really accommodating allowing for viewings and surveys whilst still living there. Moved out last week and had to move in with family.

House was a quite dirty when we moved in and it took a long time to get this cleaned, did the garden nice. Carpet was very old, grubby and frayed on the stairs asked numerous time for new carpet as unsafe due to being slippy, but never happened.

Had an email today from estate agents saying after speaking to LL they will be getting quotes for a general clean and carpet clean and will let us know once they have obtained the quotes.

I'm livid, the house was generally clean when we left, not immaculate but better state then when we moved in.

Do I just have to accept this as apparently its in the contract we should have a professional clean when we move or should we fight it, if so how??

@TryAgainAnotherDay The LL can dispute the full return of the deposit. Then negotiate. I’ve had places totally messed up by tenants and found it difficult to get much money off them. I always professionally clean before they move in. Always decent carpets. In your case, you shouldn’t have to pay but sometimes tenants really should. I’ve nearly cried when I’ve taken properties back. I now don’t let anything out. Sold up as it’s too stressful!

If the inventory says it was dirty when you moved in it should rule in your favour. Did he do a check out inventory? Also a LL and my carpets are very old so I would not ask for cleaning costs. I'd only charge for damage via neglect, missed rent, pet damage, utter filth ( bin bags left, doo poo etc) or willful damage to fabric of house.

How long was iou there? My friend had this but Googled and found out a law that says after x years a carpet is end of life.

When I used to rent we had the same thing. We were also charged £70 to dry clean each pair of curtains (which we actually took down on moving in day and stored in vacuum sealed bags until we moved out) I argued this and they said we could take them to court over it. I didn't, but some estate agents are dodgy af.

In the end we basically lost our whole deposit to the most stupid things.

£240 quoted for carpet clean.

Dispute it. You may well find you can settle for £0. You need before and after photos though and agent should have these or your check-in company. The only issues I had was when I was a diY LL for a bit. Never again!

Looked at inventory and says stairs and bedroom carpet clean, entrance hall carpet dirty and hallway consistent with use and worn.

In my time renting I had this every time I moved out.

Did you take any photos after you cleaned it to leave? This is the easiest way to show the LL is just money grabbing. I never had any deductions after I provided the photos I took despite them always wanting to keep the majority.

If in your contract it states you have to have it professionally cleaned then I think you might have to. It happened to me once. However, don't let them get the cleaner in, do it yourself and find the cheapest.

Another thing to note is certain goods and flooring lose value every year. I think white goods are worth nothing after a year (so they can't charge you for a replacement), and carpets are similar. If the carpet has been there years then it is worth nothing so they cannot claim anything to replace it.

I would double check my last points, it was what citizens advice told us when one LL entered the property whilst I was showering without permission then served us with notice when I complained. This was roughly 10 years ago though.

Ha the landlord and agency are chancers. You will get it back!

The agency won't get anything from the LL withholding back some of the deposit. They're just a go between so no they're not 'chancers'

I think I'm most angry at the situation as LL already bought a new house in July of last year with his partner. We where going to buy the house when he put it on the market, had it fully surveyed, mortgage offer and all our paper work signed and due to problems with paper work over who owned the land on his side, this took over a year and out mortgage offer expired, due to increase in interest rates we couldn't get another offer. We where so accommodating when he put it on the open market, allowing estate agents to visit when then wanted, allowed for short notice viewings and for conveyencers coming round, and agreed to leave the house despite having a 2 year old. Then we left at the end of tenancy despite becoming homeless and having to move in with family. This just feels fully like a kick in the teeth

@TryAgainAnotherDay Photos. There should be photos. Difficult to prove either way with just a description re cleanliness although worn carpet is clear. Dispute it.

Yes, exactly this. If the inventory states the property was not clean at the start of the tenancy, the LL cannot reasonably withhold cleaning costs at the end of the tenancy. In my experience, TDS adjudicators generally fall on the side of the tenant where there is any ambiguity (eg: unclear photos or ambiguous inventory descriptions).

@fullbloom87 the agency need to wind the landlord in. By allowing this kind of rubbish they are as much to blame.

At the high end I've had several LLs/agents try and claim for a full clean - even after I have had Molly Maids in at a £480 charge and it looks mint- and I take photos I'm sure some of them are just try on merchants and on some kind of kickbacks with cleaning companies!!

Always went away completely when I forwarded my photos plus Molly Maids invoice to the deposit company.