Inconsiderate landlord taking advantage?

Caroline_ie

The landlord of the place I am moving from is being a condescending ass. I went back tonight to get my deposit back and he said the flat wasn't clean enough.

He said that it should have been the same as the day I moved in. He pointed out spider webs and finger marks on the painted wall. He said the carpet wasn't clean enough either.

I replaced the couch my cat had damaged with a second hand brown couch, very good quality, really comfortable. He said it doesn't suit the place colour scheme and that I can take it, cause he doesn't want it in there.

He's a highly ranked garda who doesn't declare the revenue he gets from the flat. I lived there 3 years. That's nearly 20 000 worth of undeclared revenue. Probably pocket money to him.

He was insulting and patronising when he spoke to me. He said to me 'if you choose to live like this' about the spider webs. ( Personally spiders don't bother me).

I stayed 2 hours tonight after he said all that to me, to clean the walls, windows, skirting boards, stairs, washed the floors again, vacumed again.
I removed the accumulated dust on the light features. I really don't know what else I can do.

I am not letting the place : he is. I am not supposed to get the place ready for the next tenant.

I am not sure if I'll get my deposit back. I'm going back to meet him tomorrow.

What a f*cking as.s ... is he because I am a 5foot foreign woman, or he's just being as.s because he can?

\rant

hognef

Caroline_ie wrote: »

The landlord of the place I am moving from is being a condescending ass. I went back tonight to get my deposit back and he said the flat wasn't clean enough.

He said that it should have been the same as the day I moved in. He pointed out spider webs and finger marks on the painted wall. He said the carpet wasn't clean enough either.

I replaced the couch my cat had damaged with a second hand brown couch, very good quality, really comfortable. He said it doesn't suit the place colour scheme and that I can take it, cause he doesn't want it in there.

He's a highly ranked garda who doesn't declare the revenue he gets from the flat. I lived there 3 years. That's nearly 20 000 worth of undeclared revenue. Probably pocket money to him.

He was insulting and patronising when he spoke to me. He said to me 'if you choose to live like this' about the spider webs. ( Personally spiders don't bother me).

I stayed 2 hours tonight after he said all that to me, to clean the walls, windows, skirting boards, stairs, washed the floors again, vacumed again.
I removed the accumulated dust on the light features. I really don't know what else I can do.

I am not renting the place he is. I am not supposed to get the place ready for the next tenant.

I am not sure if I'll get my deposit back. I'm going back to meet him tomorrow.

What a f*cking as.s ... is he because I am a 5foot foreign woman, or he's just being as.s because he can?

\rant

Your landlord has every right to expect the flat to be cleaned before it's handed back to him (assuming it was clean when you moved in).

On the subject of taxes - are you claiming rent relief? If so, Revenue will be well aware of his rental income as you will have provided them with his PPS number.

Caroline_ie

It was clean, just not up to his standards. He expected me to scrub all the walls and ceiling and clean the skirting boards. ( which I ended up doing tonight). He wanted to show the flat as early as tomorrow. I am just out.

No I do not claim rent relief. He said he didn't want to pay taxes because 'it wasn't fair, the taxman taxes too big a chunk'. He told me that the day I moved in. I had nowhere else to go, I'm foreign, I said OK ...

EricPraline

Caroline_ie wrote: »

No I do not claim rent relief. He said he didn't want to pay taxes because 'it wasn't fair, the taxman taxes too big a chunk'. He told me that the day I moved in. I had nowhere else to go, I'm foreign, I said OK ...

As far as I'm aware, you can claim for past rent relief, even after moving out. Plus you get the "feel good factor" of bringing this kind of whining tax evader to the attention of the Revenue.

Caroline_ie

Seriously though, am I expected to shampoo the carpets before moving out? Is it not wear and tear? Same for the walls, surely after 3 years, before renting out the flat, the landlord should get it repainted?

I visited a few flats before moving in to the flat iam in now. When the agency made me visit, they all said the place was going to be further cleaned and repainted before anyone would move in. The place I left this morning was clean, the fridge defrosted, bathroom clean, floors clean.

He also gave out to me because I left the mattress protector to hang out in the living area to dry. I had just washed it.

Caroline_ie

EricPraline wrote: »

As far as I'm aware, you can claim for past rent relief, even after moving out. Plus you get the "feel good factor" of bringing this kind of whining tax evader to the attention of the Revenue.

How can I claim retroactively when it was all cash in hand, and he will never give me his PPS too btw.

opti76

its not the landlords fault that your a dirty tenant. and i dont see why saying your foriegn should exempt you from cleaning.

KindOfIrish

hognef wrote: »

Your landlord has every right to expect the flat to be cleaned before it's handed back to him (assuming it was clean when you moved in).

On the subject of taxes - are you claiming rent relief? If so, Revenue will be well aware of his rental income as you will have provided them with his PPS number.

Really?:eek:

hognef

KindOfIrish wrote: »

hognef wrote: »

Your landlord has every right to expect the flat to be cleaned before it's handed back to him (assuming it was clean when you moved in).

On the subject of taxes - are you claiming rent relief? If so, Revenue will be well aware of his rental income as you will have provided them with his PPS number.

Really?:eek:

Really what?

hognef

Caroline_ie wrote: »

It was clean, just not up to his standards. He expected me to scrub all the walls and ceiling and clean the skirting boards. ( which I ended up doing tonight). He wanted to show the flat as early as tomorrow. I am just out.

Assuming the walls and ceiling were scrubbed before you moved in, I'd say it would be reasonable to expect you to do the same. Spider's webs certainly shouldn't be present in a "clean" flat.

devotional1993

opti76 wrote: »

its not the landlords fault that your a dirty tenant. and i dont see why saying your foriegn should exempt you from cleaning.

Are you a landlord too? . Pretty nasty comment I must say. I dont think the lady is a dirty tenant.

Caroline_ie

Let me point out that the landlord knew I was replacing the couch. I had told him and he was ok with it.

hognef

Caroline_ie wrote: »

EricPraline wrote: »

As far as I'm aware, you can claim for past rent relief, even after moving out. Plus you get the "feel good factor" of bringing this kind of whining tax evader to the attention of the Revenue.

How can I claim retroactively when it was all cash in hand, and he will never give me his PPS too btw.

It might be difficult to get hold of his PPS, but you can at least threaten him with reporting him to the Revenue if you don't get your deposit back. I'd say that should change his tune.

Also, it might be possible to claim without the PPS number, but the way to find out is to talk to the Revenue.

Personally, I'd make sure to get my deposit back first, then report him afterwards, to feel good on behalf of both myself and the taxpayer in general.

ahnowbrowncow

Report him for evading tax first and foremost.

And after three years living in the house, it's up to him to repair and maintain the interior of the property to the standard it was in at the start of the tenancy so that would include painting the walls every couple of years and it's most certainly not the op's responsibility to repair or maintain a carpet due to wear and tear

Monty Burnz

Caroline_ie wrote: »

He's a highly ranked garda who doesn't declare the revenue he gets from the flat. I lived there 3 years. That's nearly 20 000 worth of undeclared revenue. Probably pocket money to him.

Why do people let landlords defraud the state like this?

If they are not declaring the income, the chances of them being a good landlord to you are pretty low too. Live and learn.

Oh, and you should be able to claim the rent relief even without his PPS - just his name and the address of the property you rented should be enough. Talk to Threshold if you need to.

hognef

hognef wrote: »

Assuming the walls and ceiling were scrubbed before you moved in, I'd say it would be reasonable to expect you to do the same. Spider's webs certainly shouldn't be present in a "clean" flat.

Rubbish, especially if you've been there for a considerable length of time. Paint doesn't stay pristine forever.

My previous landlord screwed me in a similar way. I showed photos to someone in Threshold who didn't see a serious problem with the condition of the place (considering that the carpet hasn't been replaced since 1993) but I didn't have a leg to stand on due to giving insufficient notice under part 4 tenancy law.

devotional1993

Caroline_ie wrote: »

Let me point out that the landlord knew I was replacing the couch. I had told him and he was ok with it.

As a landlord and former tenant I can safely say there is a horrible breed of greedy racist landlord who will never ever give a deposit back no matter what. Its a disgrace but in no way unusual. Of course there are bad tenants also of course but normal wear and tear is expected.

gerarda

Caroline_ie wrote: »

'it wasn't fair, the taxman taxes too big a chunk'. ...

That's his problem, if he does or doesn't pay up report him to the revenue.

hognef

Karsini wrote: »

hognef wrote: »

Assuming the walls and ceiling were scrubbed before you moved in, I'd say it would be reasonable to expect you to do the same. Spider's webs certainly shouldn't be present in a "clean" flat.

Rubbish, especially if you've been there for a considerable length of time. Paint doesn't stay pristine forever.

Rubbish? Perhaps I wasn't being completely clear, but I was referring to the cleanliness of the place - not to wear and tear. If it was clean on moving in, it should in principle be equally clean on moving out. Obviously paint will deteriorate over time (is three years long enough to require a repaint? I don't know, that would depend on the paint and the flat, I imagine), but that can't be an argument for not cleaning properly.

That said, unless I misunderstood something, it sounds like the OP has re-cleaned the place, so presumably the cleanliness should no longer be an issue.

Victor

You are stuck for the couch - if you cat destroyed it, you have to pay for it. Find out what such a couch is worth new and adjust price for age.

Counter your perceived weaknesses - bring someone with you, some one who will seem more assertive and informed to him.

Before he gets there, take photos of the entire property - include the day's newspaper if you can.

Bring a copy of Form RENT 1 for him to fill in his details. Demand that he give you everything - the couch, the deposit, the form details, etc. www.revenue.ie/en/tax/it/forms/rent1.pdf On the day, you want to leave with the money, don't worry about the forms.

Make sure that you have forwarded your post - there is a service where An Post will do this automatically for about €30 for a month. It would be useful to retain evidence that you have lived there - e.g. utility bills, bank statements or official documents with your address.

When you have you money, submit the Form RENT 1 anyway, even if you don't have his details.

From: www.revenue.ie/en/tax/it/forms/rent1.pdf "Note The credit for the years 2011 onwards applies to individuals who were renting a property on 7 December 2010. No credit is due to individuals who began renting after 7 December 2010."

Media999

When you get your deposit back please name the person here and what barracks hes based in.

Also am i right in saying Guards cant have criminal records? Can he be thrown off the force if hes charged with tax evasion?

Victor

opti76 wrote: »

its not the landlords fault that your a dirty tenant. and i dont see why saying your foriegn should exempt you from cleaning.

She didn't say this. Please don't make things up.

Media999 wrote: »

When you get your deposit back please name the person here and what barracks hes based in.

Do not do this.

Moderator

---

Caroline_ie wrote: »

Seriously though, am I expected to shampoo the carpets before moving out? Is it not wear and tear? Same for the walls, surely after 3 years, before renting out the flat, the landlord should get it repainted?

Some wear and damage to paint can be expected after three years, especially around door handles, light switches and other heavily trafficked areas.

The carpet should have no (new) stains and should be vacuum cleaned. Shampooing would not be required from the tenant (unless the cat ...).

If he tries to withhold the deposit and assuming the property isn't registered with them, you can also make a complaint to the PRTB, he can't.

maringo

Reasonable wear and tear is assumed when a property is let to a tenant. A young relative of mine had a similar experience when she was moving out. The landlord disappeared on the Saturday she was moving and couldn't be found to repay her deposit. As she had a removal van organised she couldn't stay around which he well knew. I was over giving her a hand and the place was spotless when she left. I decided to pay him a surprise visit on the Sunday and demanded her deposit back. He tried to say there was damage to paintwork but I told him I had taken photos of when she moved in and some when she moved out. He was just trying to hold onto her deposit but I wasn't moving until I got it which I did as eventually he handed it over. A skanky mangy robbing ba ard landlord who wasn't satisfied to have a good tenant and get a decent rent but had to try an extra ripoff. Have to say I got great pleasure in telling a potential tenant who called to the door what type the landlord was and he took off very rapidly. Have you a large male friend who would accompany you while you talk to your landlord Once you get your deposit back report him to the prtb. Best of luck

Caroline_ie

maringo wrote: »

Have you a large male friend who would accompany you while you talk to your landlord Once you get your deposit back report him to the prtb. Best of luck

I do! And he's a very well spoken Irish man too who likes a good argument. He would have been with me tonight only he was at a meeting. I doubt he would have spoken to me in that tone if the bf had been there. He really spoke to me as if I was a bold 12 year old kid. Disrespectful.

apache

Years ago when i was renting my landlord was also a guard (very popular for them to do). He gave me a cheque as my deposit back and it bounced. I rang him up and arranged to meet him at the flat the next day. He said it was a silly thing he did. Looking back i was silly to accept a cheque.

Anyway i caught up with him when he was mowing his lawn on a hot summers day wearing nothing but tight shorts. He reached into his jocks and pulled the money out. Ugh but at least i got it back.

Remember guards used to be on good wages years ago so could afford to buy properties to rent. Now their wages are slashed and the gravy train is long gone. They are desperate for people to rent and would **** it if you reported him to revenue.

Threaten him and go to threshold. You will soon get your money back. Didn't think there was as much of this not declaring taxes nowadays as the consequences are too high if caught.

The_Conductor

Guys- the level of aggression, snide comments, unhelpful posts and general attitude problems being displayed by a not insignificant number of posters in this thread is staggering. If you have a problem with what another poster posts- refute the post, factually, without attacking the poster. If you do not want to do so (for whatever reason), use the 'Report Post' function button- and its immediately flagged and brought to the attention of moderators. This is not the wild wild west of yore, and its not difficult to remain civil towards one another- and indeed help one another out. If you want to have a rant though- take it elsewhere- this is not an appropriate venue.

the_syco

Caroline_ie wrote: »

When the agency made me visit, they all said the place was going to be further cleaned and repainted before anyone would move in.

Well, at least you know that you probably won't get your deposit off them when you move out, for the above reason.

=-=

Tell him you'll report him if he doesn't give you your full deposit. When you do get it, wait a week, and report him anyway :P

monkeypants

I thought that a deposit couldn't be withheld for cleaning, fairly sure that I read it on here.

BostonB

Not for normal wear and tear. But cleaning most definitely.

The_Conductor

monkeypants wrote: »

I thought that a deposit couldn't be withheld for cleaning, fairly sure that I read it on here.

A deposit can't be used for normal wear and tear of furniture or fixtures/fittings (or appliances etc). It can be used for abnormal wear and tear, damage above what might be expected, unpaid utility bills, cleaning (if the property is left in a worse state than it was let in) etc.

An inventory of contents, alongside photographs of the property, notes on when all items were purchased etc- would be kept by most landlords. If you leave the place like a pig sty they most certainly will deduct from the deposit for cleaning. Feel free to dispute it by all means (its very easy to start a PRTB case)- good luck though if the landlord has good records and can show cause for purloining the deposit.

Pkiernan

Caroline_ie wrote: »

It was clean, just not up to his standards. He expected me to scrub all the walls and ceiling and clean the skirting boards. ( which I ended up doing tonight). He wanted to show the flat as early as tomorrow. I am just out.

No I do not claim rent relief. He said he didn't want to pay taxes because 'it wasn't fair, the taxman taxes too big a chunk'. He told me that the day I moved in. I had nowhere else to go, I'm foreign, I said OK ...

Report this criminal Garda directly to the Revenue. Please.

The_Conductor

Pkiernan wrote: »

Report this criminal Garda directly to the Revenue. Please.

In a heartbeat.
Report anyone deliberately evading tax to the Revenue Commissioners.
That he is a Garda is particularly galling, given his oath to uphold the law, however any and all tax evaders should be reported to Revenue. Revenue has a Division dealing with professions which they colloquially term 'cash in hand professions' which has a specific section dealing with landlords. Report him- he will get his just desserts........

conorhal

smccarrick wrote: »

A deposit can't be used for normal wear and tear of furniture or fixtures/fittings (or appliances etc). It can be used for abnormal wear and tear, damage above what might be expected, unpaid utility bills, cleaning (if the property is left in a worse state than it was let in) etc.

An inventory of contents, alongside photographs of the property, notes on when all items were purchased etc- would be kept by most landlords. If you leave the place like a pig sty they most certainly will deduct from the deposit for cleaning. Feel free to dispute it by all means (its very easy to start a PRTB case)- good luck though if the landlord has good records and can show cause for purloining the deposit.

It can't be used to rectify normal wear and tear, but I'd have no problem witholding a deposit until the property was cleaned to a satisfactory state.

I helped my folks repaint the apartment they own over the summer, and I was disgusted (but not unsurprised) at the state of the place, in inch of burnt on grease in an oven that looked like it hadn't been cleaned in about 5 years, dirty carpets, cobwebs that made a ghost train ride look pristine in comparision, drawers and cupbords with grease and food stains spilled all over them and an attic full of broken junk.
I must have gone through 3 litre bottles of bleach cleaning the kitchen.

There are a lot of tennents out there that seem to think you're their mammy and that it's perfectly acceptable to leave a mess like that behind. I was furious with my dad, who is such a soft touch and hates confontation, and told him that he should never have returned a deposit to those people until they had left the apartment in the state of cleanliness that it had been in when they were handed the keys.

I also had him add a clause to the lease for the next tenents that required them to steam clean the carpets if they were there for more then a year. Some people might claim that's wear and tear but the landlord didn't walk that muck into the carpet or spill those beers. My policy would be, if it's your mess, you clean it up.

As for the OP's landlords 'tax exempt status'. Shop him by claiming the rent relief as other have said, revenue will soon catch up with him.

groovyg

Caroline_ie wrote: »

The landlord of the place I am moving from is being a condescending ass. I went back tonight to get my deposit back and he said the flat wasn't clean enough.

\rant

How come you didn't use your last months rent to cover your deposit? After 3 years living in a place your flat is not going to be exactly like the first day you moved in. How much rent was he charging you? I really think you should report him to the revenue - at least give them the name and address of where you were renting and they might look in to it.

BostonB

groovyg wrote: »

How come you didn't use your last months rent to cover your deposit? ...

Technically that's withholding rent which is illegal. Which suggests if there are any breakages or repairs or cleaning, above normal wear and tear you're going to stiff the LL of whatever that costs.

odds_on

ahnowbrowncow wrote: »

Report him for evading tax first and foremost.

And after three years living in the house, it's up to him to repair and maintain the interior of the property to the standard it was in at the start of the tenancy so that would include painting the walls every couple of years and it's most certainly not the op's responsibility to repair or maintain a carpet due to wear and tear

How many house owners paint the interior of their properties every couple of years. Certainly my parents did not paint even every five years. I certainly don't paint every five years, let alone every couple of years. I and my family have respect for my property, even with children in the house it is not necessary to do so. It seems that only landlords have to repaint the interiors every couple of years.

Dirt is dirt and is not normal wear and tear - if it can be cleaned, it is not normal wear and tear.

RATM

OP you don't necessarily need his PPS number to claim rent relief- Revenue can find this info out themselves using land registry records. All they need is his full name and the address of the property. Hs surname should be on the lease- send in a photocopy of this to back up your claim.

You are due a back payment from Revenue of 9% of the €20,000 rent paid to date- around €1,800. Revenue will send you a cheque for this amount or you can get it paid directly into your bank account.

As others have said I would be showing up with that rent relief form under the guise of cutting him a deal- either you get your deposit back in full or you post in the form AND also report him to the PRTB. Then when he pays the deposit back fill in the rent form regardless as it is the only way you'll get your hands on the €1,800 that is due to you.

Finally please realise that there is a certain breed of landlord in this country who operate in this manner, they like to act like bullies when it comes to paying deposits back. Not all landlords are like this but there is a significant minority who are. The mechanisms to report them and secure justice were not available to tenants for decades but now they are. Don't hesitate to use them, regardless of how slow the justice takes to arrive it will eventually arrive.

hognef

RATM wrote: »

You are due a back payment from Revenue of 9% of the €20,000 rent paid to date- around €1,800.

Where did you get those numbers from? They don't seem correct.

You can claim 20% of a capped amount of the rent. For 2012, the cap for a single person is €1200, meaning a max actual relief of €240. Higher caps were in place for previous years, but the overall amount will be nowhere near €1800. Details here:

www.citizensinformation.ie/en/housing/renting_a_home/tax_relief_for_tenants.html

RATM

hognef wrote: »

Where did you get those numbers from? They don't seem correct.

You can claim 20% of a capped amount of the rent. For 2012, the cap for a single person is €1200, meaning a max actual relief of €240. Higher caps were in place for previous years, but the overall amount will be nowhere near €1800. Details here:

www.citizensinformation.ie/en/housing/renting_a_home/tax_relief_for_tenants.html

Sorry my bad, didn't realise the Revenue had changed the rules since the last time I claimed it which was sometime around 2008/9. Back then it was 9% of the full amount, they've obviouly had major cutbacks of rent relief since then.

So to clarify the OP would be due €240 for 2012, €320 for 2011 and I am not sure what for 2010 as that link doesn't say (it might be 9% of the years rent so assuming €7k then 9% = €630 ) So an approx total refund of €1190 is due. Revenue will adjust the figuers as the OP hasn't lived there for all of 2012 and has lived there for some of 2009 so it may be a little higher than €1200. Revenue always seem to take a 10% slice for themselves in these things too- I don't ever remember getting a full full refund but a 90% one is better than nothing.

hognef

RATM wrote: »

hognef wrote: »

Where did you get those numbers from? They don't seem correct.

You can claim 20% of a capped amount of the rent. For 2012, the cap for a single person is €1200, meaning a max actual relief of €240. Higher caps were in place for previous years, but the overall amount will be nowhere near €1800. Details here:

www.citizensinformation.ie/en/housing/renting_a_home/tax_relief_for_tenants.html

Sorry my bad, didn't realise the Revenue had changed the rules since the last time I claimed it which was sometime around 2008/9. Back then it was 9% of the full amount, they've obviouly had major cutbacks of rent relief since then.

So to clarify the OP would be due €240 for 2012, €320 for 2011 and I am not sure what for 2010 as that link doesn't say (it might be 9% of the years rent so assuming €7k then 9% = €630 ) So an approx total refund of €1190 is due. Revenue will adjust the figuers as the OP hasn't lived there for all of 2012 and has lived there for some of 2009 so it may be a little higher than €1200. Revenue always seem to take a 10% slice for themselves in these things too- I don't ever remember getting a full full refund but a 90% one is better than nothing.

It has been 20% of a capped amount at least since 2007 (2007: €1800, 2008-10: €2000):

http://www.google.ie/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CCkQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.revenue.ie%2Fen%2Ftax%2Fit%2Fforms%2Frent1.pdf&ei=nYtJUKThGMHS0QWS7IA4&usg=AFQjCNGyoRazCeoFu1ww-Hs_YCziz7h7uw

So for 2010 the OP would be die €400. Same for 2009, assuming she was in the flat for long enough to have paid at least €2000 in rent, and assuming she hasn't already claimed for that year against another rental.

Sum total might be 240+320+400+400=1360.

EricPraline

odds_on wrote: »

How many house owners paint the interior of their properties every couple of years. Certainly my parents did not paint even every five years. I certainly don't paint every five years, let alone every couple of years. I and my family have respect for my property, even with children in the house it is not necessary to do so. It seems that only landlords have to repaint the interiors every couple of years.

You have to naturally expect that renting will cause wear and tear above and beyond what you would get in an own-occupied property. Some tenants will naturally be less careful than others, no matter how closely you vet them.

Making comparisons to a owner-occupiers is a little flawed anyway. A landlord is running a business. Therefore, making a property attractive to prospective tenants by routinely spending a small amount of money to paint or do other minor redecoration seems like a sensible step.

If your parents were renting students bedsits, that's (perhaps) understandable. However, renting to professionals and leaving it more than 4 years to do a quick repaint of the interior is pushing it imho.

BostonB

I think the point is what is it that tenants do that causes so much wear and tear and damage and dirt. They are often in excess of what even toddlers would create. If it was students you might have some excuse. But mormal adults?

In one place the tenants took every knob, handle and wheel off every bed, locker and drawer in the house? another damaged almost every price of furniture in about 6 month when the previous tenant broke nothing in 5yrs. Just baffling to be honest.

Andy!!

Caroline_ie wrote: »

He told me that the day I moved in. I had nowhere else to go, I'm foreign, I said OK ...

There's lots of foreigners living in Ireland, not sure finding accomodation for yourself was akin to the Virgin Mary finding a barn to sleep in :pac:

You should have kept the place clean, but no, I do not think you should need to shampoo carpets. He is clearly taking the **** with not returning the deposit.

borderlinemeath

BostonB wrote: »

I think the point is what is it that tenants do that causes so much wear and tear and damage and dirt. They are often in excess of what even toddlers would create. If it was students you might have some excuse. But mormal adults?

In one place the tenants took every knob, handle and wheel off every bed, locker and drawer in the house? another damaged almost every price of furniture in about 6 month when the previous tenant broke nothing in 5yrs. Just baffling to be honest.

But then you do get the landlords that after getting stung once, will always hold a grudge and try and do every tenant thereafter.

TBH, a cobweb or two wouldn't bother me, I wouldn't penalise a tenant for regular housekeeping type cleaning. What I would have an issue with is a layer of grease in a kitchen because they won't turn on a fan or open a window. Same goes for mold in a bathroom due to refusal to open a window EVER.

What is it with tenants and windows?

BostonB

Andy!! wrote: »

...You should have kept the place clean, but no, I do not think you should need to shampoo carpets. He is clearly taking the **** with not returning the deposit....

That would depend if they just need a general clean, or if theres something thats damaged them.

BostonB

borderlinemeath wrote: »

But then you do get the landlords that after getting stung once, will always hold a grudge and try and do every tenant thereafter.

TBH, a cobweb or two wouldn't bother me, I wouldn't penalise a tenant for regular housekeeping type cleaning. What I would have an issue with is a layer of grease in a kitchen because they won't turn on a fan or open a window. Same goes for mold in a bathroom due to refusal to open a window EVER.

What is it with tenants and windows?

The odd cobweb is one thing. not doing any cleaning for 6 months is another. You know some swears blind they've scrubbed the place for days, and you put you hand on any surface and comes away black once you manage to free your hand from the surface suction.

borderlinemeath

BostonB wrote: »

The odd cobweb is one thing. not doing any cleaning for 6 months is another. You know some swears blind they've scrubbed the place for days, and you put you hand on any surface and comes away black once you manage to free your hand from the surface suction.

Agreed. What I would consider housekeeping would be a week or two, a light layer of dust etc.

Feck sack there's a spider living in the wing mirror of my car, every day I brush away the cobweb and every night he builds another!

hognef

borderlinemeath wrote: »

Same goes for mold in a bathroom due to refusal to open a window EVER.

What is it with tenants and windows?

Strictly speaking, a properly ventilated bathroom doesn't need windows (I've lived in several apartments with windowless bathrooms in which no dampness or mold has ever appeared). If a window needs to be opened regularly in order to avoid dampness, then this is due to a poorly implemented ventilation system.

But even accounting for poor building regulations and poor adherence to poor building regulations: Landlords regularly look for references from employers before the rental can commence, i.e. they're aware that the tenants will be at work most of the day.

If an alarm is used during the day (or the tenants are simply concerned about people climbing in the window), then most likely the window can't be open. So: When would you expect the tenants to open the window, assuming they mainly use the bathroom in the morning before leaving for work?

Dyr

hognef wrote: »

Assuming the walls and ceiling were scrubbed before you moved in, I'd say it would be reasonable to expect you to do the same. Spider's webs certainly shouldn't be present in a "clean" flat.

AFAIK its not reasonable or legal to withhold a deposit for cleaning or normal wear and tear over the course of a tenancy.

hognef

Bambi wrote: »

AFAIK its not reasonable or legal to withhold a deposit for cleaning or normal wear and tear over the course of a tenancy.

As BostonB has already stated, it is certainly legal to withhold parts of the deposit for unsatisfactory cleaning.

BostonB

hognef wrote: »

Strictly speaking, a properly ventilated bathroom doesn't need windows (I've lived in several apartments with windowless bathrooms in which no dampness or mold has ever appeared). If a window needs to be opened regularly in order to avoid dampness, then this is due to a poorly implemented ventilation system.

But even accounting for poor building regulations and poor adherence to poor building regulations: Landlords regularly look for references from employers before the rental can commence, i.e. they're aware that the tenants will be at work most of the day.

If an alarm is used during the day (or the tenants are simply concerned about people climbing in the window), then most likely the window can't be open. So: When would you expect the tenants to open the window, assuming they mainly use the bathroom in the morning before leaving for work?

Don't rent somewhere where you can't ventilate the room, and/or the window can't be locked in an open position. In my experience a lot of the windowless bathrooms do not have adequate ventilation. I've had to upgrade my own fan and ventilation for that reason. I think a lot of places were designed when baths were the norm, not marathon showers by numerous people, like a rented place with a number of people all going out in the morning.