Hey here from the UK, England me, my wife and my baby recently moved out of a property due to black mold growing throughout the house, we were release as the landlord couldn't (or wouldn't) pay for the repairs or improvement needed to make the property livable. when we first moved in we did have pets (two smalls dogs) but as you can see in the email below they were removed from the property. we have now moved out and had the carpet professional cleaned as instructed in our agreement, i went back into the property to finish cleaning with a horrible smell of damp in the property and was still there when we handed back the keys, me and the man who conducted the inventory commented on the smell. we have now received a call for the letting agency saying that we need to sort out the smell of dogs in the property, i said that it was the smell of damp and she disagreed. we have now received emails that you can see below: Thank you for your receipt for the cleaning of the carpets. With reference to my conversation with lee last week regarding the strong smell of dogs that remain at ** Address removed ** have you spoken to the cleaning company regarding this ?. Unfortunately the smell is not acceptable and this will need to be rectified before we can release the deposit. If you wish to discuss the matter further please do not hesitate to contact me. Kind Regards. We replied with: The smell in the property is not that of dog but rather the smell of damp. The damp is visible in all rooms of the house and is the reason we were released from our contract in the first place. We haven't had dogs at the property since 15th February, I informed Louise of this in an email, so I think it's highly unlikely that there would be a smell of dog over a month later, after all the carpets in the property have been professionally cleaned and deodorised. We have not spoken to the cleaning company regarding the matter, you have their contact details should you wish to contact them directly. I have read through the contract and cannot find anything regarding the smell of the property upon check out. If I have missed something then of course, please send me the section highlighted, otherwise we have abided to the terms of the contract and had the carpets cleaned as requested so I will be expecting the deposit back without further delay. Kind regards and she has replied with: I have personally visited the property and both I and the check out clerk can confirm there is a strong smell of dog at the property, to such an extent we would not be able to relet it with that smell. Under section 3 (e) (xi) of your assured shorthold tenancy it states that you are to hand back the property in the same state as specified in schedule A. If you would like to re visit the property with myself and the cleaning company to discuss how we could resolve the issue please contact me to arrange a mutually agreeable time. we have had multiple inspections and visits during our short time there because of the damp and this has never been mentioned before any advice would be amazing. Thank you. EDIT: i forgot to mention that the damp was there when we moved in and we were assured with was dealt with. we found from a neighbor that the damp has been there for years with previous tenets getting there rent reduced because of it.

Hi, If you are considering renting from a letting agency for the first time then please read my story. Initially it was just going to be a simple post on a forum but the never ending chain of problems I experienced with both Austin & Wyatt and Countrywide resulted in such a mountain of material which I did not want to go to waste so I wrote an entire website. I hope it will save you some trouble or at least prep you for what's ahead. Prevention is better, cheaper and less time consuming than cure especially when you are inexperienced in dealing with such matters. [unauthorised link information removed for checking]

Hiya, I was wondering if anyone knows whether the Scottish legal system allows for you to lodge a small claims by sending all the relevant documentation by post rather than going to the Sheriff Court in person? Thanks in advance.

Hi I am currently a student studying in Manchester for university, however prior to this I was due to study in Plymouth and had signed a housing contract with a letting agency for accommodation. However upon arrival I found the household to be below standard of a property that had been 'refurbished' with other issues such as leaving doors open in the house due to the threat of damp and mold. So in this situation i contacted the agency to inform them that i would be returning to Manchester and that I would return the next week to hand back the keys (whilst also still under contract to pay the rent until the room was relet) and that it was confirmed that any possessions i left in my room would remain untouched upon my arrival to pick them up at the next weekend. However a week later I arrived back at the house to find my room had been entered and left unlocked with possessions such as my tripod and camera equipment having vanished since my last duration in the room. I was told by one of the flatmates that the landlord had gained access to my room which to me triggers a breach of contract as I wasn't given 24 hours notice as detailed in the contract and as a consequence of this I have now lost valuable items for my photography course at university. I'm wondering which course of decision to make.

Hi all; thanks for taking the time to read this. We are looking to move to a new town, and by reasons of luck and chance, we've never rented with an agency before. We've found a home we like, but it's with an agency and they are requiring a £200 credit check before advancing our application. My husband is baulking at the cost. Is there any way to get a credit check independently and hand it over to them, or is that pointless? Is an expensive credit check something we just have to accept? Thanks.