UK Landlord Forum / Life

Good afternoon all,

I am new to this forum so please be kind! I have been rented out a property for close to 9 years now and not had a single tenant problem until now. i have always managed tje property myself, but decided to get the letting agency to oversee as I moved away from the area.

The current tenant has just vacated the property after 8 months tenancy. In which time he has paid the rent only once on time, and split up from his wife who was also on the tenancy, although this was never put in writing. When he hasn't paid, the agency have got on to his mother, the guarantor, and it has been sorted.

The deposit is held by the DPS, and the tenant refused to pay the last months rent saying that the deposit can be used. He and the guarantor were advised that the deposit is held to cover damage, etc.

I have received the checkout report today from the agency. Basically the house is dirty, carpets stained including paint stains, windows dirty, garden overgrown, and the house is missing the fridge freezer and phone and several pair of curtains . He has left a rotten mattress for me to get rid of, and several walls left in bizarre colours. All items were in the tenancy agreement for the tenant to abide by.

The Agency are saying their is nothing they can do, and it is up to me if I want to pursue against the tenant or guarantor and basically tough luck. The agency admit that they have never had any cases like this.

What can I do, the damage, untidiness and remedy is around £2500? Agency are saying accept it and move on.

Quote from: redrolo on July 28, 2014, 02:23:23 PMAgency are saying accept it and move on.

This is really distasteful when you hear it... but there might be some sense in it.

Of course, you could sue the ex-Tenant... and you would likely be successful... but it would also be drawn-out (one would expect) and there is always uncertainty. If you win, will you get the whole amount straight away as the ex-Tenant is flush, or will there be some stupid repayment plan where you get £10 per week until 2030, or will you just end up with the satisfaction of the ex-Tenant having a CCJ?

Who knows the answer to all this? No-one. That's why there might be some sense in moving on... the moving-on is for your own sanity more than anything else. Yes, the ex-Tenant knows exactly what they've done [to you] but they likely don't care and the only routes that might get you something are the following - keep on going for the Guarantor (being a Guarantor is quite a responsible thing to be, you can't just shrug it off - the Guarantor can be pressed for the monies owed) or you could try some kind of letter before action with the ex-Tenant if you know where they reside, see if they can see the light in coming to some agreement with you.

Personally, if the Guarantor has paid-up before... they should do so now... but you will likely need to be very clear on what you are after and why. The Guarantor might think it's all done and dusted (the mother may have been re-assured by the ex-Tenant that it's all sorted).

Although I would think the Agent should be able to assist you with seeking redress from the Guarantor, if they are refusing to then I would be dumping them - what's the point if they're not going to help you when you need it?

I bet the Agent has had many a case like this! Likely a reason that they don't want to get further involved.

Thanks for getting back to me. The tenant has his own business and has been evasive from day 1. He has ignored calls from the agent as well as putting the phone down on them. Should I be dealing straight with the guarantor as the tenant has no intention of paying up.

I agree with the Agent and the Hippo.

Accept it and move on.

Can you put some time to it and get the £2500 down to a more manageable level?

If you think about it, you are going to have to put time and effort into pursuing the tenant or guarantor, put that time to constructively getting to know your property again. Does that make sense?

And it will be all shiny and new to get a really good tenant in next time.

Think of it as a decorating "Holiday!"

Thanks for getting back to me Boboff.

I would love to get over there and do some work on it, but lost a parent suddenly recently and need a real break.

I am just upset that someone can treat my property with such contempt, literally laugh at myself about it and has the means but not the will to pay me. He has been all around the world in the last 12 months according to his business web page. I thought it would be worth sending a LBA to the guarantor so she understands the severity of the situation .

Well do it then.

But it won't get the property back to a rentable state any quicker. Time is of the essence my friend.

I am sorry to hear of your loss.

Chase the Guarantor - make it very clear that she is responsible. It doesn't sound like you'll get far with the ex-Tenant.

The estimate of £2,500 sounds a bit high for what is described? Unless it was some top brand fridge freezer or a Yankee one?