How do we fix the mess left by tenants..?

[Northern_Lass]

Hi all,

 

We rented out house out for the last 15 months and have had to move back as we want to now sell.

We went through an estate agency and paid then £60 per month to manage the letting for us.

The tenant moved out and the letting company gave them their deposit back after doing an inspection. I use the term loosely. We went in and there is a catalogue of issues that we have raised with the letting company but they aren't interested now they have given the tenant back the full deposit and we aren't paying them anymore.

E.g:

1. Before we let it we took all the internal doors and got them dipped which cost us £180. The tenant - without permission - has dark stained them all.

2. They have put up 2 shelves in the kitchen attaching them to a kitchen cupboard panel. Again without permission and if we take them down there will be 4 big holes in the side of a kitchen cupboard.

3. They took the fence panels that separate some sections of the garden and took them to the bottom of the garden and nailed them to the fencing at the bottom of the garden. They also removed shrubs and trees from the bottom of the garden. All of this again without permission.

4. There is a kitchen floor tile cracked.

5. I allowed them to smoke in the conservatory, however on entering the property I was overcome by the smell of stale smoke. They have been smoking throughout the house and not attempted to get rid of it.

6. The dishwasher handle is broken and no longer able to use. This was raised with the tenant and they told the lettings agent that the handle was brittle and never used. If it was never used for 15 months there would be mildew and stale smell in the dishwasher. However it was clean and smelled fine.

7. Bathroom tiles had come loose and this was never mentioned so the tenant was using the shower and water was dripping down the side of the bath causing damp on the downstairs wall.

8. Fridge stopped working – they didn’t tell us, the simply removed the plug and wired an extention cable to the live end complete with sellotape wrapped round to make sure it was well and truly together – just to make the cable longer!! Left in a dangerous state with bare wires showing and no earth wire fitted. The fridge was working when we left it, again not notified.

The photos that the letting agent showed us of the check out inspection were actually 18 months old from before we decorated the house to get ready for letting it!! So they never did a full check out. They have sided all the way with the tenant and not done anything to earn their £60 per month we have paid them for.

I’ve called them, spoke to them, but I might as well be talking to a wall. What can I do to recover some, if not all of the costs I have incurred on getting the house fixed..?

[danielr]

you'll need to chase the tenants for the money that they owe you.

after all they broke the stuff, it's their job to pay for it. and you'd likely pursue them in small claims the same as you would have had to if their deposit didn't cover all their damage.

 

you might (seperatly) pursue the landlord for the cost of the check out fee at least that you'll have paid to have the inspection done. since they haven't done the work. you might get some luck trying to pursue them for some kind of loss of earnings since them not doing their job led you to loose the protected deposit. -but that's doubtful