Tenant

[LoveHK]

My tenant owes me half a month's rent and the shortfall for the refurbishment fee.

They used the security deposit to partially cover the refurbishment fee due to the damages they caused to my property.
They have informed me that they are applying for I.V.A. and have asked me to join the queue.

Could anyone advise me on what I should do?

Thank you.

I don't understand your post I'm afraid.

If your tenant is behind with rent, then you can initiate proceedings to recover it, although this can be a lengthy process.

What do you mean by 'refurbishment fee'? And what do you mean by 'they used the security deposit...'? You should have the deposit held in a suitable scheme so neither you or the tenant can access it.

Do you have an agent?

Hi HappiestSleeping,

Thank you for your response.

Last year, a situation occurred where my tenant informed my agent that they could no longer afford to pay the rent. They expressed their intention to terminate the agreement and vacate the property within two weeks. When the agents retrieved the keys, they discovered that the property had been damaged and required repairs and refurbishment. Initially, I covered all the associated fees, and my agent was able to obtain the security deposit from the Deposit Protection Scheme (DPS), as agreed upon by the tenants. Unfortunately, the security deposit did not cover all the expenses.

My agent made several attempts to contact the tenant and proposed a repayment plan. Eventually, the tenant informed us that they were applying for an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (I.V.A.) and requested that we join the queue. As per my agent's advice, we were recommended to seek legal counsel and guidance. However, after looking into the costs involved, we are exploring the option of seeking advice here due to the expensive nature of legal services.

Thank you for your assistance.

Write it off. I've had similar recently. Mine didn't enter an IVA, however they didn't have any money. Whilst I would win if i took them to court, I would have all the expenses and probably be awarded £2 per week or whatever amount the tenant could pay.

Thank your lucky stars that the tenant did vacate. They could have stopped paying and stayed there and you could potentially have had a year or more of a tenant not paying while you go through court.

Unfortunately, your experience is part and parcel of being a landlord these days.

Is there any scheme available to blacklist the tenant? We want to prevent other property owners from experiencing the same difficulties.

Write it off. They vacated the property.

How much extra do they owe? 2 weeks rent can't be much, how much extra is needed for the repairs etc?

Trying to blacklist someone who is in financial difficulty so they can't find another place to live seems pretty vindictive.

Just give them a bad reference

Agree about vindictiveness. Don’t do it, just write it off.

Thank you for all your advice. I want to clarify that I'm not seeking revenge; I simply want to prevent other property owners from going through a similar experience.

While I understand that tenants may face financial difficulties, it doesn't justify them causing damage to my property. If they had left the house in good condition, we would have been alright. However, their actions resulted in property damage, which not only required financial investment for repairs but also left the property unavailable for renting for several months. This situation is highly frustrating and unacceptable to us.

We will write it off & moving forward! Thank you

Goodness me, just write it off and be grateful they are no longer in the property.

Hopefully you will never be in a position where you can't afford your home.

You can give a factual reference if asked but there isn't a database of tenants.
I understand your frustration at being left to deal with the damage but there is very limited redress for landlords.

^This.

Your chances of getting the 2 weeks rent back without spending it in court fees etc is low.

What's the cost of the damage expenses beyond the deposit? Unless it is £000s I'd say you just have to move on really and be grateful they've gone.

It's a bad situation that people can just damage your house and get away with it, but I'm afraid that's just how it is in the private rental market right now!
That's also why I'm a landlord now selling up. Sick to the back teeth of it! Last tenant - a supposedly professional woman with good references - left the place in such a disgusting filthy and broken state that I've only just got it into shape ready to sell now - 3 months after she left! 😡

No, unfortunately not. The only thing you can do is be honest in any reference you give (I.e. tenant did this).

Otherwise is would be the court CCJ route but that would cost you more money (although being very satisfactory)

The easiest thing you can do is write it off. Don't offer a reference. Let local estate agents know their name and show a photo of how they left it. It's very unlikely they would pass a reference check for another private rental. Very glad you let MN know about bad tenants though as usually on MN all we hear about are bad LL's.