How often can they have inspections?

Oh_Noes

Well basically my question is about my landlord (letting agent) inspecting my flat. As it is, they have quarterly inspections, one every three months, and I'm given plenty of notice etc, but I really think it's a bit much to have them so regularly.

Anyone else have any experience with this?

Paulw

They can inspect it once a week, if they want, once you're given notice and arrangements are made.

At least they care about the place.

BlitzKrieg

Oh_Noes wrote: »

As it is, they have quarterly inspections, one every three months, and I'm given plenty of notice etc, but I really think it's a bit much to have them so regularly.

ever 3 months is the standard for inspections. as long as they give enough notice and are willing to move the day and time to suit it's really not that much of a pain, they usually last all of 15 mins depending on the size of the place.

convert

As mentioned above, a landlord or agent can inspect the premisis as regularly as they wish, provided they have given adequate notice. In fairness, every 3 months is preferable to monthly inspections.

Victor

Paulw wrote: »

They can inspect it once a week, if they want, once you're given notice and arrangements are made.

Tenants are entitled to peaceful enjoyment of their homes, so once a week would be excessive.

Graces7

Victor wrote: »

Tenants are entitled to peaceful enjoyment of their homes, so once a week would be excessive.

We've had them who owned the land around the house and would walk past every day peering in... Most intrusive..

Duckjob

Victor wrote:

Tenants are entitled to peaceful enjoyment of their homes, so once a week would be excessive.

Unless the tenant has already been causing problems, I'd consider anything more frequent than 2-3 months to be out of order.

Graces7 wrote: »

We've had them who owned the land around the house and would walk past every day peering in... Most intrusive..

You should drop around to their gaf of an evening and peer in their front window while they're watching TV.

bugler

Every three months sounds excessive to me (I've never had an inspection during a tenancy since I was in on-campus accommodation in first year of college). Particularly if a couple of inspections have been made and nothing was out of place. It just sounds like paranoia.

As Victor says the tenant is entitled to peaceful occupation of their home. When inspections become excessive and impinge on the tenant is a subjective call, but I would think anything more frequent than quarterly is blatantly over the top.

OP: As it sounds like you've been through a few inspections already, you could try and reason with them. They should appreciate by now that you are not wrecking the place.

dahamsta

Sounds excessive to me too. I'd guess the respondents so far are all landlords.

I lived in 5 rented houses over the past 6 years, they were never inspected. Not once, bar when leaving of course.

D3PO

I dont think once a quarter is excessive. Id take it as a good sign that the landlord / agent wanted to ensure the upkeep of the property was happening rather that look at it negatively.

Mint Sauce

over 4 years in the house, only one inspection.

MysticalSoul

bugler wrote: »

Every three months sounds excessive to me ........


but I would think anything more frequent than quarterly is blatantly over the top.

3 months is quarterly, so you are coming across as contradicting yourself in that message.

OP. To me, this is not excessive. I used to rent out a house when I first moved to Dublin, which I then sold in order to purchase in Dublin. However, the agency were such so bad, that they didn't even notice that the tenants had left with a bed when they moved out. Thankfully I had done an inventory list before said tenants had moved in, and after 6 months finally got some money towards a new bed from the agency.

If I were in a position to rent out again, this is what I would have in place. Some of the problems from that first letting could have been avoided if a quarterly viewing had been in place.

bugler

MysticalSoul wrote: »

3 months is quarterly, so you are coming across as contradicting yourself in that message.

OP. To me, this is not excessive. I used to rent out a house when I first moved to Dublin, which I then sold in order to purchase in Dublin. However, the agency were such so bad, that they didn't even notice that the tenants had left with a bed when they moved out. Thankfully I had done an inventory list before said tenants had moved in, and after 6 months finally got some money towards a new bed from the agency.

If I were in a position to rent out again, this is what I would have in place. Some of the problems from that first letting could have been avoided if a quarterly viewing had been in place.

Personally, I think every three months is far too often. It's assuming tenants are untrustworthy.

Objectively, i.e. in the eyes of the PRTB, I would think anything more frequent than every three months would be deemed excessive, but that every three months itself may well be allowable (who knows?)

Quarterly inspections would not step the theft of a bed. Unless, bizarrely, the tenants were siphoning off the furniture on an ongoing basis. You had a bad agent who should have caught the missing bed by checking versus an inventory (afaik, you are obliged to do up an inventory, it is not optional), but didn't. More frequent inspections are not an answer to letting agent incompetence.

I dont think once a quarter is excessive. Id take it as a good sign that the landlord / agent wanted to ensure the upkeep of the property was happening rather that look at it negatively.

There is nothing in this for a tenant, I find it strange that some posters are trying to polish this particular turd. Not all tenants are dribbling morons who aren't capable of spotting issues within their own home and have to be protected from themselves.

Landlord inspections are about one thing only: checking the tenant is behaving themselves. I wouldn't particularly have a problem with a LL inspecting after 3 months of an initial tenancy. But to continuously inspect a property when the tenant has shown good faith in terms of paying rent and upkeep of the property is petty and obsessive. And in the OP's case it sounds like a letting agent keen to justify their charges.

Thankfully this attitude is rare, or else I'm lucky. In nine years renting I haven't had a mid-lease inspection.

Graces7

[QUOTE=MysticalSoul;67358108]3 months is quarterly, so you are coming across as contradicting yourself in that message.

OP. To me, this is not excessive. I used to rent out a house when I first moved to Dublin, which I then sold in order to purchase in Dublin. However, the agency were such so bad, that they didn't even notice that the tenants had left with a bed when they moved out. Thankfully I had done an inventory list before said tenants had moved in, and after 6 months finally got some money towards a new bed from the agency.

If I were in a position to rent out again, this is what I would have in place. Some of the problems from that first letting could have been avoided if a quarterly viewing had been in place.[/QUOTE]

No he is not He finds three monthly too much so anything over that is waaaaaaay too much..Makes perfect sense

convert

Having shared with some nightmare housemates who had absolutely no respect for the property which they were renting I would, if I was a landlord, definitely arrange inspections, probably quarterly.

Granted, not all tenants are as bad as those with whom I have shared, but having regular inspections every couple of months would go a long way in ensuring that the property is not being destroyed by careless or sloppy tenants.

While, as a tenant, I would probably not be overly enthusiastic about having my 'home' regularly inspected, I would completely understand where the landlord was coming from.

matrim

Personally anything over 2 a year and I'd be annoyed at the landlord. And that would only be for the first year, if I was there for more than a year I'd expect it to go down to every lease renewal (i.e. every year).

From my experience of renting if there is to be an inspection it's generally 1 a year on lease renewal.

dahamsta

I don't follow the logic. You had the option of moving out or reporting them.

happymondays

dahamsta wrote: »

I don't follow the logic. You had the option of moving out or reporting them.

don’t think i ever had an inspection in any house I’ve rented in 8 years. bar when moving out.
to be honest if i had to put up with an inspection 4 times a year then i wouldn’t be renewing the lease at the end of the current term.
plenty of houses out there where the landlord dosent interupt you.

Osgoodisgood

I rarely inspect a property more than twice per year but I would do so if I felt that the property wasn't being kept properly. The landlord is entrusting the tenant with his property which is probably worth several hundred thousand euro. A regular inspection to make sure that all is ok seems reasonable. And are 4 inspections (probably totalling an hour, when you can decide to be there or not) such a big intrusion?

I rented in America for years and got used to monthly inspections. It was no big deal to me as I had nothing to hide and it meant that any issues I had were dealt with promptly.

Graces7

You should drop around to their gaf of an evening and peer in their front window while they're watching TV.[/QUOTE]

We did better than that; we realised the tenancy was not registered so we reported him to the PTRB who "pursued him with an enforcement order.." He used that to try to get in yet again of course....

D3PO

bugler wrote: »

Personally, I think every three months is far too often. It's assuming tenants are untrustworthy.
.

As a landlord you have an investment. Would you make any other investment and not check on it regularly ?

Would you buy gold or shares and not keep an eye on it regularly to insulate against potential losses ?

You need to take the position that the tennants are untrustworthy. Thats not a slight on their character but a professional way of managing an investment.

D3PO

happymondays wrote: »

don’t think i ever had an inspection in any house I’ve rented in 8 years. bar when moving out.
to be honest if i had to put up with an inspection 4 times a year then i wouldn’t be renewing the lease at the end of the current term.
plenty of houses out there where the landlord dosent interupt you.

and plenty of landlords that dont interupt you because they dont give a sh1t and are the same landlords who will take an age to sort out any issues you might have. They just want your money and no hassle.

iguana

D3PO wrote: »

As a landlord you have an investment. Would you make any other investment and not check on it regularly ?

Would you buy gold or shares and not keep an eye on it regularly to insulate against potential losses ?

Being a landlord is nothing like other investments and the fact that so many people foolishly chose to believe it was, is a big part of the reason the economy is in the mess it is. You don't buy shares or gold and then rent them to people as their home. If you choose to be a landlord you take a risk and part of that risk is what happens in the house while it's rented out.

I'd be hard pressed to tolerate an annual inspection of my home. I'm not a teenager who needs my mum to make sure my bedroom is tidy and I won't be treated as one in the home that I pay good money for. OP there is a rental oversupply. Unless the house is being offered at a very substantial discount I'd be making it clear to the landlord that either the inspections stop or you'll be leaving as soon as the lease is up. What you are being subjected to is far from normal.

D3PO

iguana wrote: »

Being a landlord is nothing like other investments and the fact that so many people foolishly chose to believe it was, is a big part of the reason the economy is in the mess it is. .

wrong. Being a landlord is exactly like other investments.

The fact is many people foolishy saw it as something that could only earn them money is a big part of the reason the economy is in the mess it is. These are the people that dont understand anything about investments.

Dont confuse an single property bubble landlord with a professional landlord.

A professional landlord is renting out to gain a particular return on their investment. They will do what is necessary to ensure this including ensuring their property is kept at a certain standard cue regular property inspections

A bubble landlord is probably just desperate for any income to help keep them afloat as they drown in negative equity and cashflow issues as the sharks aka bank circle around them so they will pander to your demands becaue after all your paying "good money" however these are probably the same jokers who will use any excuse to hold onto your deposit and ignore any issues that arrise in the property.

But If thats what you want to rent its a free market go right ahead, but dont think your thought process is exclusive. Id argue that there are plenty of people that would be all to happy to ahve a landlord who they know is keen to ensure a property in top notch condition.

Im sure this landlord was delighted he didnt do regular inspections

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055980902&highlight=damaged

iguana

D3PO wrote: »

wrong. Being a landlord is exactly like other investments.

No it isn't. You are renting homes to people which makes everything different. Tenants have rights, gold does not. If you want to invest in gold and buy yourself some solid gold you can do what you like with it. You can put it a box under your bed and take it out and look at it whenever the hell you want to inspect it. You can put it where you want. Stand it whichever way you want. Store it with your dirty underpants if you want. The gold doesn't care.

If you are a residential landlord you are renting a home to people, one which people are entitled to quiet enjoyment of and you won't find too many people who define quarterly inspections as quiet enjoyment. Most people will put up with an annual inspection and many others won't even tolerate that. When you are a landlord your tenant does care what you do. So if you actually want to make any money out of your investment you are very limited in what you can do.

D3PO

iguana wrote: »

No it isn't. You are renting homes to people which makes everything different. Tenants have rights, gold does not. .

yes and those rights dont preclude quarterly inspections. At the end of the day.

Tennant = customer
Landlord = service providor

Your not obliged to signup to the Landlords terms so you can walk away, if they want to include a provision for regular inspections.

That doesnt mean you should have a how dare they consider me untrustworthy view. If you think about it the fact you have to pay a deposit means that no landlord trusts you anyway .... that doesnt put your nose out of joint becasue its percieved as "normal"

As another poster said in the US monthly inspections are common place. Just becasue people in Ireland are not exposed to it in general doesnt mean its not best practice from a professional letting standpoint.


Like any investment they are entitled to protect their interests. You dont have to agree, and if you dont, you dont have to agree to rent from them.

matrim

D3PO wrote: »

Im sure this landlord was delighted he didnt do regular inspections

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055980902&highlight=damaged

Well given that the landlord had been in the place less than 3 months before hand I don't think it would have made a difference, unless he was there every couple of weeks

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=67128629&postcount=4

I know someone is going to say I should have kept a better eye on it - I did visit the property relatively recently (within last 3 moths) and all seemed fine, condition-wise.

D3PO

matrim wrote: »

Well given that the landlord had been in the place less than 3 months before hand I don't think it would have made a difference, unless he was there every couple of weeks

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=67128629&postcount=4

well maybe if landlords here did what is common practice in other countries and inspected monthly it wouldnt have ?

My point is its only seen as a violation of a tennants rights here as its not seen as normal process. If tennants realise that for the most part they are renting a very expensive asset and take the landlords point of view they wouldnt mind.

It wouldnt be very hard to conduct regular inspections without causing any intrusion.

The core issue here stems back to the same issue as always with renting in Ireland.

Lack of legistlation, lack of regulation, lack of protection and I mean for both parties.

If you look at renting in other countries compared to here it beggars belief how much of a sham it is.

Tennants are always worried about being ripped off for their deposit, & landlords are always worried about their investment being damaged or rent being witheld essentially without recourse.

If this half arsed government pulled their finger out we could have a very well regulated rental sector but as like everything they cant do it right.

Graces7

iguana wrote: »

No it isn't. You are renting homes to people which makes everything different. Tenants have rights, gold does not. If you want to invest in gold and buy yourself some solid gold you can do what you like with it. You can put it a box under your bed and take it out and look at it whenever the hell you want to inspect it. You can put it where you want. Stand it whichever way you want. Store it with your dirty underpants if you want. The gold doesn't care.

If you are a residential landlord you are renting a home to people, one which people are entitled to quiet enjoyment of and you won't find too many people who define quarterly inspections as quiet enjoyment. Most people will put up with an annual inspection and many others won't even tolerate that. When you are a landlord your tenant does care what you do. So if you actually want to make any money out of your investment you are very limited in what you can do.

Thank you for this. The problems often with landlords here is that they see the houses as "theirs" in a possessive way that precludes a tenant feeling it IS their home.

Any inspection is per se an invasion into a private place. One we are paying for incidentally. If we were house guests maybe it would be different.

iguana

D3PO wrote: »

That doesnt mean you should have a how dare they consider me untrustworthy view. If you think about it the fact you have to pay a deposit means that no landlord trusts you anyway .... that doesnt put your nose out of joint becasue its percieved as "normal"

You really don't get it do you? The house I rent is my home, my castle, my refuge. That's what I'm paying for. Only people who I invite in get to come in, that applies double to the owner as that's the person I'm paying.