Landlord increasing rent AGAIN but ignores us when we ask him to fix black mould?

creepygreens

I moved into an apartment 14 months ago. There was a verbal agreement that we would not pay a deposit, and we were not provided with a lease, despite asking several times. Our landlord now wants to increase our rent by 100 euro. He did this last January as well. It's a 2 bed in Dun Laoghaire, nice and comfortable but the price is starting to get unmanageable.

He provided us with 28 days notice but did so via text message (apparently you need to serve proper written notice) and is claiming that the property is below market value. It's not. This is because he is claiming it is a 3 bedroom apartment even though it is not (2 bedrooms and a tiny extra room/study/laundry room attached to the living area).

We have asked him for a rent book (he hasn't given us one) and to register us with the PRTB (he has not) and he is now asking for a 1200 euro deposit in exchange for registering us.

Can he demand a deposit off us at this stage? He has not taken inventory, the apartment is already suffering from wear and tear and there is black mould which he hasn't addressed. We sent him several messages asking him to help us with it and he hasn't replied.

Any advice would be appreciated? I've read up about it on Threshold and the PRTB sites but I can't find anything about deposits and whether he can suddenly demand one.

Thanks!

Dave_The_Sheep

Is anything in writing about how much your rent is? Do you have any kind of written contract with the landlord at all?

creepygreens

@ Dave_The_Sheep

Unfortunately, no. My roommate was already in the apartment when I took a room there- there was an old lease for her and her ex-boyfriend but it was never updated when I moved in. We asked when I moved in, we asked when he increased the rent by 200 euro last January, and several times after. He initially send he would send us updated leases to sign and they never followed.

The cost of rent was agreed verbally and is reflected in bank statements as I set up a standing order to his account, but that's about it.

anonyanony

Give your notice and move out, no need dealing with a bad LL, pay your rent on time and he has no deposit to keep and as market rent has not gone up you can rent elsewhere at the current price with a good LL and not be out of pocket.

firestarter51

sounds like the start of a nightmare tenancy, is there anywhere else in the area to rent ?
we hear loads of stories about bad landlords and equally bad tenants, lack of rent book and black mould, i would be moving out asap

Toom3y7

I would also just move out. Looks like this guy is just out for what he can get, unfortunately without anything in writing ye are pretty vulnerable. Next house make sure everything is in writing, tenants have a lot of protection these days once you have the documentation.

Michael D Not Higgins

It's his obligation to register with the PRTB, deposit or no. I would say it could be a bargaining tool to exchange a deposit for a lease however.

Firstly, you shouldn't have agreed to the first rental increase, as you were only there a couple of months and he has to wait 12 months to review the rent. Secondly, if you disagree with the market rate, you need to go to the PRTB now and open a case with them. Thirdly, mould comes from moisture and could be contributed to by a number of factors including inadequate ventilation, drying clothes inside, or possibly (but less likely) a structural problem leaking water into the flat. This can be addressed differently depending on the source but if it's caused by the tenant's actions, it's not the landlord's issue to address.

Edit: just noticed you've moved in to a place already occupied so the first point doesn't apply. It appears you've been assigned onto the agreement.