Problems with Property Manager/rental property

naseemat

I have kind of an unusual question that I was hoping someone out there might have some advice on.

My parents own a furnished home in Dublin that they rent out as we live in the US. My mom travels home every so often to visit family, check on the house, etc. They were using a property manager on a recommendation from a close friend, whose brother and sister also used him (they've since fired him as he was not being honest, was unresponsive to emails and calls, doing a generally bad job, etc.). The last family who rented the house apparently had some furniture of their own, so he told my mom he was going to put the unneeded furniture and appliances, dishes, silverware, etc from the house in storage until the lease was up. She went home in August and moved into the house (as she does every time she is home since she tried to time these visits for when the house is unoccupied so she can do repairs, refresh the paint, etc.) and asked the property manager to have the stored belongings returned. He kept putting her off, week after week, and finally told her he disposed of all those items. She believes he probably sold the stuff, at least the furniture, but either way, he had no right to get rid of or sell her stuff. He has proven his dishonesty in the past, invoicing my parents for repairs on the house that were never completed, and just pocketing that money. Does she have any recourse in this situation? My dad believes because he had permission to store the stuff, we can't do anything. I suggested she go to the garda station and ask if there's anything at all she could do, but she hasn't yet (she doesn't believe it would serve any purpose, I just couldn't think of any options). As far as I'm concerned, he stole from my parents multiple times (the tangible stuff and the billing for things he never did) and they should do something about it. Now my mom is on the hook to replace all the stuff he removed from the house and for paying for the repairs he charged her for but didn't do, along with a whole other ton of stuff she is now having to repair that he never took care of or mentioned. I should mention that whether justified or not, she is a bit scared of this guy, she seems to be under the impression that he's a bit of a thug.

Anyway, sorry for the length, but I would greatly appreciate any advice or feedback.

tinz18

It sounds like he's a bit of a scam artist- taking money for work not done is fraud, there's scams down the country on older folk like this and its taken pretty seriously. Have you pictures of the work not done and email evidence that money was paid etc? Your mother really should go to the gardai, they may or may not help but its possible he's doing this to more than just ye, pretty sure claiming your stuff was in storage and then selling it or getting rid of it isn't legal- you asked him to put it into storage to be returned upon the family moving out- he didn't do this so the fault is on him not your family.

Ciara22

Can you check if this guy was registered with the PSRA / SCSI / RICS etc, any regulatory body? All agents must be licensed with the PSRA at the very least.

If so, you can notify them of his incompetence.

Michael D Not Higgins

Ring the Gardaí, make a complaint through the regulatory body (PRSA), see a solicitor and press charges to recoup money owed. Oh and fire him.

naseemat

Thanks everyone for your responses, everyone she asked at home seemed of the opinion that she should just drop it and move on, but she's just had to spend so much money to repair other issues (leaks that required the floor be pulled up only to find the subfloor was dry rotted) that aren't covered by her homeowner's policy, that it would be great if she could recoup some of what he took. I've just facetimed her and told her of your advice, it makes all the difference coming from other Irish folks who actually are familiar with how things work, instead of the American daughter, I guess!

tinz-she communicated with him primarily through email, so she would have records of their agreements and payments.

Ciara-will check into this now, thanks for the info.

Michael-she's headed back here in two weeks time, so wasn't sure if it was practical to do so in that time frame. any ideas?

I found a thread from August discussing property management firms that others were satisfied with, and will look into that as well. Thanks again and if anyone thinks of anything else, please let me know!

foggy_lad

Have your parents been paying tax on the rental income from the property? was the agent supposed to withhold 20% of the rent to be paid to revenue? your parents should be looking into that.

As for the furniture they may need to sue the agent through the courts to get the value of the goods back but if the person can show they have no money they wont have to repay anything.

Definitely report the agent to the PSRA

Victor

Arrange a solicitor ASAP. Get the locks changed and fire agent at same time. Have photos taken of entire property. If the property is vacant, have someone move in for a few weeks. Take control of all the utility bills, etc. on the basis of being a new resident.

naseemat

foggy_lad-just double checked with my dad, they do pay the taxes, not sure exactly how they go about doing it, I've just moved back to the US after being in the peace corps in the south pacific for two years so this is the first time I'm hearing of all this.

victor-my mom is living there now til she returns home at the end of the month, and has had the utilities switched and everything, will advise her about changing the locks.

naseemat

Can we still complain through the PRSA if he isn't licensed? I checked their website under current and expired licenses and he is not listed under either. It is a requirement if he lets property, is that correct? I found that he has a partner and a nice looking website, says they care for over 160 properties.

Michael D Not Higgins

naseemat wrote: »

Can we still complain through the PRSA if he isn't licensed? I checked their website under current and expired licenses and he is not listed under either. It is a requirement if he lets property, is that correct? I found that he has a partner and a nice looking website, says they care for over 160 properties.

They're liable to a fine or imprisonment up to 12 months for being unlicenced. Make the complaint.