Letting agent having a laugh

Edrof · 7 Jun 2011 at 13:55

AcidHell2 said:
You both sign the inventory off.

Ahhhh

Delvis · 7 Jun 2011 at 13:57

Forde said:
In regards to filming the items that the inventory says is in the property... if there is an item listed but not present in the house, how do you stop the landlord from saying: "Well, you just didn't film it"?

As above?

Whatever is on the inventory, is what is in the house / is wrong with the house

Nodiggidy123 · 9 Jun 2011 at 12:37

wouldn't marks on wall within reason be classed as wear and tear?

SeeKified · 9 Jun 2011 at 12:38

Letting agents are a frakking joke in this country. Don't use them again. /thread

But yes, if they won't give in I'd do some law digging and possibly contact a solicitor. In the future though, make sure you take your own pictures and write up an extensive inventory. Might take half an hour, but it'll save you a lot of potential trouble.

iamtheoneneo · 9 Jun 2011 at 12:45

Efour2 said:
One place we had in Cowley, Oxford the agents tried to charge us 2 years running for work from previous tenants that they charged to fix when they left!! Arggh it annoys me !!

Cowley Oxford have some of the worst estate agents in the world there i swear...but then its monstly student accom so they think they can get away with it.

Iv mostly gone private but in the place im in now is with a landlord and tbf they are pretty good, we had a lot of probs go wrong over winter and they were quick to sort it out...not sure whats going to happen come exit time though but i cant imagine they would screw us over.

in the OPs case i would really contest it and go as far as the CAB and make sure the agents know you are looking at court proceddings.

Nodiggidy123 said:
wouldn't marks on wall within reason be classed as wear and tear?

yeh theres a threshold, an agent cant expect you to live in a property and keep it 100% the way it was. especially new builds for example where mould in the winter is mega common and unavoidable.

Delvis · 9 Jun 2011 at 14:10

iamtheoneneo said:
yeh theres a threshold, an agent cant expect you to live in a property and keep it 100% the way it was. especially new builds for example where mould in the winter is mega common and unavoidable.

Probably why we got our deposit back then. There was mold all over the place

mcast · 9 Jun 2011 at 15:46

Efour2 said:
I despise Letting agents. They are up there on my "first people up against the wall" list come the revolution.

I've let from 4 different agents in my mediocre life and come deposit time its always been a similar story. I'm convinced you have to have undergone some kind of Moral lobotomy to run one of these companies.

One place we had in Cowley, Oxford the agents tried to charge us 2 years running for work from previous tenants that they charged to fix when they left!! Arggh it annoys me !!

I'll be right there holding the gun with you, no one in my life has managed to annoy me more than letting agents.

lakitu · 9 Jun 2011 at 15:57

First thing you should do is check that the letting agents registered your deposit in the DPS, if not your quids in. If they did, make sure you check the date. It has to have been registered within a certain time frame.

I recently had my old letting agents try and take £220 from my deposit. The DPS quickly acknowledged I was in the right and returned my full deposit.

bloodiedathame · 9 Jun 2011 at 15:59

The agent should have got a third party to carry out an inventory. If their inventory report said there were no marks on the wall and you signed it then it's legally your problem.

Morba · 9 Jun 2011 at 16:03

CoreKrogoth said:
i have stressed my views but i will have to wait until they have spoken to the landlord about the issues they have found. i will be disputing it all the way.

Ask them for the check out report from the previous tenant. See what they have written on there for comparison.

bledd · 9 Jun 2011 at 16:03

Tell them to bring the old video camera back and scan the room again with it

Sadly, this is why many people resort to not paying the last month's rent and doing a runner

Morba · 9 Jun 2011 at 16:10

bledd. said:
Tell them to bring the old video camera back and scan the room again with it

Sadly, this is why many people resort to not paying the last month's rent and doing a runner

As much as people say this I havent actually met anyone who has.

Also, the deposit is generally more than the monthy rent in my experience, so losing the tenant more.

It also is illegal and wont stand good when you need a reference from the agency.

"andy" · 9 Jun 2011 at 16:18

brick their windows and constantly post them turds

scumbags. all of them

Curio · 9 Jun 2011 at 17:51

We approved it on the basis they used the same equipment on check out, its even in writing, and they agreed at the time.

Discussion ends there. I assume you have copies of this paperwork? Tell them to do one.

Good example for first time renters - ALWAYS get something in writing, check/amend checklists, etc.

Let us know how it goes!

anything I don't mind · 9 Jun 2011 at 18:14

Take your own time stamped pictures when moving into a rental property. Make a note of the existing damage on the contract and get them to sign it. next time. Even damage that you can forsee, this one flat i rented did not have adequate sealing on the bath panel. I pointed that out and the guy said that it would be fine. 1 year later the wood path panel was rotted and needed it replaced.

A fair amount of use is not enough to take away your deposit. If you live in a property for a year, some use and wear and tear is going to occur and that is not something that you should lose deposit over. If you can show that you genuinely looked after the property then that should be enough to get all your deposit back.