UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hello

Proceeding smoothly towards a new tenancy.  The tenants are being referenced, hopefully will not have major issues there.
I am renting through Openrent and they offer to draft a generic contract but I think I should add some clauses regarding issues I have had to deal with in the past tenancy and I really don't want to deal with again.
Openrent do not offer the option of writing extra clauses (their fee is minimal, I can see why) but they also advise not to add anything to their contract as it could be not "legally sound".

Now my question to you is : Have you ever added anything? How do you know it is legally sound? How do I make it enforceable and with consequences if breached?

To let you know, what I have in mind, the following items are bugging me and I want it very clearly stated and legally binding that :

- real fires are forbidden in all 4 open fire places (town smokeless zone anyway and chimneys not swept, the house could very well go up in flames)
- no permanent bedroom can be set up in the sitting room where there is a real flames gas fire. Previous tenants did just that and gas man refused passing the certificate, we had to disconnect fire and we just had it reconnected. So much hassle.... Live and learn....
- any dog fouling in the garden has to be cleaned within 48 hours (2 pugs will be on the property, animals are a new issue to me, I hope I will not regret it)
- wooden floors to be protected from furniture with either felt pads or rugs or mats. They are remote workers and I know what will happen with wheeled office chairs on varnished pine floorboards if no rug or mat is down underneath, we have just re-sanded and re-varnished 5 rooms because of the way the previous tenants were so careless)
- property to be professionally cleaned at the end of the tenancy (last tenants left it an absolute pig sty telling me it had been professionally cleaned, thanks god for the clerk we used, money well spent there as I kept some of the deposit for a cleaning)

Now, what do you suggest I do? And how?  Any guidance really appreciated.  Have a good day all of you!

The first point is you need to know what it is you are enforcing. My assumption is you will deduct funds from the deposit if any of these elements are breached. If the tenant agrees to the deductions you propose then all is well.  If they disagree then the most likely course is you will go through the deposit ADR.

In my experience the deposit adjudicator's don't overrule tenancy agreement terms. After that they will simply decide if the amount you deduct to be a fair and reasonable amount.

Getting a good inventory clerk is key and on checkout there is nothing wrong with you asking them to check particular items with care.

For your first tenancy it might be a good idea to spend a bit extra on a tenancy agreement draft with the terms you want added.  Then after that use the base and change the name and dates for future tenancies.

Legally binding is your problem.

This is the private rental sector... on occasions too numerous to mention we have heard of, and seen and experienced ourselves, situations where you realise you can write up whatever you want into an AST... but you're going to be depending on the people on both sides adhering to it, in spirit... legal aspects don't weigh that much here, not in truth. Sure, you can pursue someone through the Courts via a Section 8 for going against the terms of an agreement... but, generally, you'd find that is done for things like rent arrears. You aren't often going to see a Section 8 being filed because someone has left some dog mess in their garden.

And therein probably lies your biggest problem - and misunderstanding.

You are letting a property. That person then has - effectively - free run in that property. You cannot realistically impose the terms you want to impose. You can't force a Tenant to live their lives like you want them to live. All they are required to do is hand the property back to you in the same state it was given to them - minus fair wear and tear. And, if not, then Deposit deductions are justified and often agreed / granted. If the Tenant decides to leave the garden overflowing with shit while they've got exclusive possession of the property.. well, it's really got nothing at all to do with you... sure, it's not nice, it might be a health hazard, there could be a pong neighbours don't like... but it's not got anything to do with you. That's you dictating how someone lives. Landlords don't do that.

Now... "exclusive possession"... that is a legal term. And you'd do yourself a favour by getting your head around it properly.

None of this precludes you adding in clauses... I hope you see that too? I'm just saying don't pin your hopes on them being legally binding, as you want... and what are the consequences anyway? What you should be doing is talking this kind of thing through at viewing time... as you build your relationship... communicate... agree them up-front... be clear on what matters to you, and why, and find out if they're OK with it all.

For example... if you don't want real fires in the open fireplaces... block them up. As it stands right now.. those could be a feature of the property they really liked. If this is the first they've heard of your ban - I'd think they may be miffed. You're taking something away from them. After the deal has been agreed. You have to be careful about these things... just as I am being careful in making an assumption you've not had these chats, at least, with the prospective Tenants already.

You want the floors protecting - provide your own solutions. Some scratches on wooden flooring will be easy to consider fair wear and tear. That's what happens when hard things come into contact with other hard things. If you don't want that to happen... carpets are your answer.

You can't impose "professional cleaning"... think about it... what does that mean? Does it mean "by a professional (someone who is paid) but to any standard"... "or cleaned by anyone (paid or not) but to what you consider a professional standard"? I suspect I, we all, know what you mean... but always remember that there is - and never can be - any objective scale of cleanliness. It's an impossibility. Please come back to me if you don't understand this point. All you can really do is take your photos and compare how it was on day of Check-In to how it was on day of Check-Out.

I would certainly not be happy to rely on the tenants agreement re.the open fires.I would either have the chimney swept,or block them off.A fire risk is your responsibility at the end of the day. 

Sorry, I didn't actually answer the question...

I'd suggest you talk things through at Check-In (at least, or preferably before) and find out if you think there'll be any issues. If you suspect there will be, then you have time to prepare yourself emotionally for remediation. And relax... bask in the incoming money.

Quote from: heavykarma on February 02, 2021, 01:24:08 PMI would certainly not be happy to rely on the tenants agreement re.the open fires.I would either have the chimney swept,or block them off.A fire risk is your responsibility at the end of the day.

If it is a true safety risk... then maybe the OP has a legal responsibility to block them off? I'm no Fire Marshmallow but I'd think that might be covered somewhere other than depending on good behaviour?