tenants deposit, am i right to be a bit suspicious..

[HerHonesty]

So our tenants are moving out of our rented flat, they've been quite tricky customers. paying rent late etc so we are quite glad in a way.

I have already indicated to them that there shouldnt be a problem returning deposit in full provided place is cleaned well.

But this morning i asked for their forwarding address for their deposit cheque and so I could tell the council they were moving (as I have always done) and they emailed back saying they wanted their deposit returned by internet transfer and that they had put in place a forwarding service so didnt need to give us a forwarding address.

Am i right to find this a bit odd, and to be slightly wary that they may be leaving us with a load of unpaid utility bills etc? or should i just respect their wish for privacy?

Sounds dodgy to me.

Sounds very dodgy. Will you be able to meet them at the property just before they leave so you can take meter readings together. I would also make the phonecall to the suppliers whilst you and them are there. Then there can't be any dispute. I would also be tempted to take a photo of the meter reading, but I'm not sure that proves anything at all.

Why does it make any difference?

You can tell the council they have left without needing a forwarding address. A transfer mean they get the money quicker so is reasonable (and the more usual way these days).

WRT not wanting you to have the address, well, my mind does automatically go to balliffs I am afraid, the only good reason I can see is that they know there are going to be knocks on the door and they don't want you to be able to send them on to the new house. In that respect I would ensure that you have a signed letter of some description vonfimring that they have left the proprety - maybe ask them to sign a receipt whtn they hand the keys back or something?

DMNC thats a good idea but i dont want to get into a confrontational situation with them.

Council has a set form which you fill in online to inform them of change of tenancy and you cant submit form without a fowarding address, which is why i asked.

Just call them and say you don't have one, the tenant has refused to provide it. They only ask you for it to make their lives easier if they need to chase them at all, it is not actually your responsibility!

Just draft up a letter saying something ike "I XXX the tenant of YYYY have today [date] returned all keys to landlord BBB and officially vacate the property at this time"

Signed...

Witnessed...

Landlord...

Tell them it is just so a landlord cannot accuse them of keeping the keys and charge for new locks (or something along those lines). There is no need for a confrontation about it, just pop over to get the keys and take the readings (you could add that to the letter too if you like "I further confirm that the utility readings are as follows Leccy Gas )

Actually, DM have decided that i will stick to my guns. if they dont have anything to hide then it shouldnt be an issue. Dont see why i should be going to an awful lot of extra effort just because they dont want to do something which is very common practice.

I've rented out two properties to several tenants over the years, and this has never been a problem before/

Fair enough! Good luck