Is there a builder on this site at the moment

[tattietoo]

Just on the off chance a builder is out there or someone who could tell me how much it would cost to "put right" 6 picture hook holes and relace a lock in a door (bog standard one). Agent is trying to charge us £166 and I think thats a bit steep but please correct me I'm wrong. Also £30 for two loo brushes and two light bulbs!

Thanking whoever in advance

[PKea]

Originally Posted by tattietoo

Just on the off chance a builder is out there or someone who could tell me how much it would cost to "put right" 6 picture hook holes and relace a lock in a door (bog standard one). Agent is trying to charge us £166 and I think thats a bit steep but please correct me I'm wrong. Also £30 for two loo brushes and two light bulbs!

Thanking whoever in advance

What do you mean by put right?

Skilled professionals are in short supply so their Hrly rate can be high. I would ask for a copy of the invoice/quote.

I would have thought that you should have been given the opportunity to get the repairs done yourself first

Loo brushes & two light bulbs, i would have thought no more than £5 from the market, including bus fare there ..lol

[tattietoo]

Sorry "put right" and is in fill the holes and touch up. Is it rocket science to change a lock. We lost the damn key to the back door!

[MattyH]

Originally Posted by tattietoo

Sorry "put right" and is in fill the holes and touch up. Is it rocket science to change a lock. We lost the damn key to the back door!

I'd say

• £50 per hour labour.
• 1/2 hour to fill holes and touch up, and an hour (tops) to change the lock, depending on the type of door, plus probably £20 for a lock set, again depending on the kind of door.

Also,

• Light bulbs, £1 each tops.
• Toilet brushes : £5 each tops.

This is only based on opinion, becuase labour rates depend on where you are in the country etc. Just my thoughts.

Matt

[PKea]

His figure is probably about right then for the build work
Probabaly a morning for the builder including materials and travel so sounds about right.
Did you get the chance to out these right yourself first?

[tattietoo]

So an hour and half to do the work (£75) and £91 for the lock and a bit of polyfilla? I think not!

I found loo brushes for £3 in Tesco's!

I have asked for receipts of what needed to done. We were so busy after the move adn I arranged with the agent during the final inspection that they would do it and take it from the deposit but there is another woman in the office who is like Mini Hitler and she has taken it over. She caused us so much aggro when we lived there and intent on carrying on!

We moved out on 29th December and still no deposit back! That will make you all jump up and down!!

[Joa]

Regardless of whether £160 is about right or too much - you should have been given an opportunity to sort it out yourself first. if that wasn't suitable, you should be presented with a least two quotes and the work should be done following receipt of your permission.

Personally, I think that £166.00 is a joke but then I do not have the breakdown (big holes? small ones? polyfilla, paint, or wallpaper?- still, hundred and sixty quid is a bit steep)

Write to the landlady that you do not accept this costings and require detailed breakdown. Offer to repair the holes yourself. Give her a fortnight to respond, then, if no joy, either draw a line and move on or proceed with LBA and MCOL.

[rosysparkle]

Originally Posted by tattietoo

Just on the off chance a builder is out there or someone who could tell me how much it would cost to "put right" 6 picture hook holes and relace a lock in a door (bog standard one). Agent is trying to charge us £166 and I think thats a bit steep but please correct me I'm wrong. Also £30 for two loo brushes and two light bulbs!

Thanking whoever in advance

The builder will have a call out charge plus an hourly rate, plus the cost of materials. The charge will vary according to where in the country you are, but I personally wouldn't be surprised at £166 (which is £140ish plus VAT) As well as the replacement lock, a new pass set of keys and an additional tenant set will have to be cut, as all the existing keys will be no good. Keys here cost 3.50 for a Yale and £5.50 for a mortice, so a set soon adds up.

£30 for bogbrushes and light bulbs seems pricey if the above builder is doing the work, but if someone else is having to source the items and go to the property then it's reasonable. Having said that, the bogbrushes should be replaced like for like so the £3 ones may not be appropriate.

However, you should receive the undisputed part of the deposit back pending settlement of all this.

[Joseph White]

By touch up they may be asking the money so the whole wall will be painted.

Joseph

[Sorcerer]

You dont say if the door is locked and cannot be opened if this is the case then it will take the services of a locksmith which can be extremely expensive unless its an accessible lock like a yale which can be removed from the inside, personaly i would charge you about a mornings work to put right the holes in the walls it might be a five minute job in your mind but once filled they need to dry so that they can be sanded and if need be the wall may need repainting all depends on how big the holes are.

In my experience landlords will try to find any means by which to relieve you of part or all of your deposit.

[tattietoo]

Thank you Sorcerer.. The door wasnt locked as we always used the bolts. The make was possible the same as the one here at the office which is a Henderson lock, wasnt a Yale and certainly not Mortice. I wrote to the agents a couple of days ago and no boubt the old *&^% was write back an unpleasant letter but I have held out on informing her that the moneys she is disputing may be held back but we should have had the rest returned. Looking at other threads that does seem to be the case. When we first moved in tothe property, the previous tenants had removed all the bits for the TV aerial and booster so that needed sorting, the outlet for the boiler had a birds nest in it and caught fire when we turned the boiler on, the boiler didnt work and we had no hot water and the chimney needed sweeping/wasnt connected properly to the log burner. To date we have still not had a copy of the signed lease. This is how brilliant these agents are. We then discovered that the dimmer switches in the kitchen and sitting room had the wrong transformer in them and should not be used and we did not an Elec Certificate either. Then, we had to arrange for the boiler to be serviced and as we did not use who they wanted us to use, will not pay the bill and now we are having to pay as he is also a friend and we cant make him wait while we dispute it with the agent.

So, ina nutshell, the agents are *&^%$ useless and all we want to do is receive at least some of our deposit back, enjoy our new place which is grand and move on!

I shall remove myself from my soap box now!

Thank you for listening!

XX

[tattietoo]

Getting back on my soap box!!!! adn refering to above... As the agents have been so useless from the beginning, would we have grounds to have a winge to the relevant authority, does anybody have any ideas?

[Joa]

Check this post: http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk...ent-where.html
There are few professional bodies for letting agents:National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA). Association of Residential Letting Agents (ARLA). Association of Residential Managing Agents (ARMA), UKALA (UK Association of Letting Agents).
Find out to which your agents belong, if any.
Professional body would not have a "jurisdiction" over the estate agent but may help in mediating.