Should we return tenant’s deposit in full?

[RedPepperGreenStepper]

DH’s mum passed away unexpectedly 13 years ago. We became unintentional landlords as it was the best option at the time.

We struck lucky with lovely tenants who made it their family home and lived in the house for 13 years; they have three DC and two cats. Due to a change in our own circumstances, we served S21 a few months ago and the tenants have already moved on.

We now need to return their deposit of around £700. However, DH wants to make large deductions , whereas I believe we should return it in full. The deposit it protected so DH will not make the final decision if the tenants dispute it.

The house was not decorated or professionally cleaned prior to the tenants moving in as it was rather rushed from both sides. We live hundreds of miles away so we have never inspected the property, but have arranged repairs when necessary.

The tenants have (with permission) and at their own expense:

*Replaced all carpets
*Decorated the rooms (one is wallpapered in Peppa Pig, the other is Zoo themed, so it’s not neutral decor).
*Re-decorated the hallway, stairway and landing in a neutral colour way
*Fenced off the yard (it was an open yard when they moved in).

The house is now looking tired but it is generally clean and tidy and has been looked after as a family home.

DH reasons for deductions:

*The wallpaper and paint is scuffed in quite a few places around the house (the wallpaper the tenants added).

*Theres a cracked patio slate in the yard.

*There’s a crack in part of the pipework under the utility sink (the tenant said this was present when they moved in but as they rarely used the utility sink, it wasn’t a problem. They did say it has widened over time and will now leak slightly if it is used).

*A fence panel needs to be replaced (this was the tenants fence) .

*There are weeds growing through the patio in the yard.

*The flooring joints have weakened and there are now sizeable gaps in the flooring (basic laminate).

*The entire home needs redecorating.

We are planning to move a relative in to the home temporarily before we sell next year and it will need some work. However, I do not agree with DH that this is the tenant’s issue and I worry he is going to sabotage our good relationship with our tenants over a small amount of money.

None of the issues were intentional damage as is clear from the way the house has been left. The tenants cleaned before they left and removed all rubbish. I’m concerned we’re going to pay out more to dispute this than to just return the deposit.

Thoughts?

Return the deposit in full. Your husband is completely wrong

I would totally dispute that as being reasonable wear and tear and frankly maintenance issues that you as owners are responsible for.
houses cost owners money and you are the owner.
pay back the deposit - it is protected anyway so save yourself time and embarrassment

Given you’ve done no maintenance at all in 13 years he should be giving the tenants their deposit and a shit load of gratitude for keeping the place in such good condition!

As a LL people like your DH annoy the shit out of me - he is exactly the kind of landlord that’s why the DPS had to be set up.

Your husband is a total joker and shouldn’t be a landlord.

You should have taken an inventory when they moved in with lots of photos , then when you do the checkout inventory photos you can compare them for damage. Without photos you can’t prove it wasn’t done before they moved in.

you can ask that they pay for a gardener if it’s not tidy and should get quotes or give them the chance to do it.

the TA should state whether they need to restore walls to a neutral colour.

most of it sounds like wear and tear though.

your DH needs to accept that it’s just what happens after 13 years and it’s long overdue for painting

You have had decent tenants for the 13 years, you husband should be grateful for that! Give them back the £700.

If the deposit isn't held elsewhere then they can possibly claim double back ? I think ?

It sounds like your dh has forgotten that the deposit belongs to the tenant.
It's not a way for him to fund improvements.

Your husband is a massive greedy arsehole! What a horrible grabby man.

As everyone else states totally unreasonable to deduct anything. Sounds like they have paid for jobs the LL should have and redecorating etc is totally expected at the end of 13 years!
It also sounds like he should have done various repairs over tge years and hasn't done

Everything you describe would be wear & tear even if the tenants hadn’t done any upgrades. The fact that your husband would consider trying to charge them for any of it does not reflect well on him as a landlord or a human being. You should expect that a house that you intend to rent out would need to be redecorated after 13 years of habitation. It’s not the responsibility of your tenants to pay for it.

The bigger issue is... how do you feel being married to a prick? I have a relly who was like this about a tenant's deposit, and to be honest, I never saw them in the same light after that.

This is all normal wear and tear. They did you a massive favour decorating and carpeting it for you at their expense. Husband is a total dick.

GIVE THEM THEIR DEPOSIT BACK!

I agree with others. All normal wear and tear so deposit should be returned in full. I hope you can talk some sense into your husband!

This OP.
Why don't you show him the threads on here, or from forums like LandlordZone where tenants have absolutely trashed the place, causing thousands of pounds worth of damage.

Homes that aren't lived in deteriorate, good tenants are also hard to find, you're lucky to have had decent ones for 13 years. Houses need maintenance anyway and everything you've stated is part of normal wear and tear.

Remind your husband that you've had an asset for 13 years you've done nothing to earn. You're still quids in even after paying for repairs - which you don't even have to, you can sell as a doer upper.

£700 is a piddly amount for you given the above, return it and wish them well.

If you ever get divorced, expect him to shaft you. Your H sounds horrible. And totally unreasonable. He's asking for the tenants to pay to renew things that were his responsibility to replace and maintain, but which they have dealt with for him. How unpleasant.

Yes I do think DH is seeing the deposit as a basis for improving the property once the tenants have moved on.

Myself OTOH, feels DH is being very unreasonable. I felt terrible serving S21 as the tenant had just had a baby and I know that the deposit will be a relief for them.

Not only was it not decorated before they moved in, but not at all during the 13 years of living there? Those poor tenants! Yes they deserve the full deposit. Imagine how 'tired' it would look if they hadnt done any work themselves

Assuming the deposit is in a protected scheme, you would lose a dispute based on what you've oput here. As you've served a S21, I think this must be the case.

If it's not in a scheme, I'd be sucking up to your tenants big time for fear they cotton on that they are due compesnation for this.

Either way, you'll be giving at least £700 back to them - so better to do it now and keep the relationship.

Oh and also OP you're also extremely lucky that your tenants have moved on when requested.
They don't have to. They could stay put and make you go through the courts. Caused damage in retaliation that's difficult to claim back. Etc.

Your DH needs to read up on what a deposit is meant for! Not improving the house.

Your husband is being the stereotypical greedy landlord here I am afraid. The house was not decorated or cleaned before they moved in, they have made improvements that were agreed upon, lived in it, paid rent on time and didn't cause a fuss when they were evicted.

Now your husband wants to profit from their deposit to decorate the entire house because of wear and tear, do maintenance that YOU should have done while they were there and fix a fence that wasn't there when they moved in? Maybe they should come and remove the whole thing, then there would be nothing to be fixed.

It's unbelievable really, I hope if he does go down this route the deposit scheme hand his arse to him for being so ridiculous. I hope you manage to talk some sense into him

I can't believe you haven't done any maintenance in 13 years, which means your poor tenants have done it for you.

I rented a fully refurbished, newly decorated, new flooring house 3 years ago. Since then my landlord has upgraded the draught proofing, had the gutters cleaned, pruned some large trees, and removed a derelict shed that finally gave up the ghost during a storm.

Shocking attitude.

The only thing that is reasonable is for the tenants to change peppa pig and zoo themed wallpaper back to neutral decor.
DH is being picky about the rest.

Your husband is being mean. I would give the deposit back as they've been hassle free tenants and kept up with the house maintenance for a very long time including making improvements