UK Landlord Forum / Life

Against most peoples advice ( although, not all, and I can genuinely see the sense in this route to a new day...) I have "persuaded" my nightmare tenant to leave with a cash offer..

3 months rent unpaid, a trashed house, overgrown garden, broken window frames and doors missing.. and my solicitor was only " confident" of a result by April if the tenant played it out.. and she would have done... so I've offered her £500 to move out and another £500 when I have the place ready for the market.. I've lost the will to continue with two houses rented out and will try to sell up and reduce my exposure to the shifting sands of the Landlords lot.. I bet I'm not the last one to run out of patience with the law and it's almost sure to get worse next year in my humble...

So, you might think I'm chilling out and looking forward to collecting the keys..

Well,no, not really.. I drove past the property tonight and saw what used to be the kitchen and some internal doors smashed up and lying in the front garden.. I think the interior is going to be worse than I imagined.. and I imagined it being bad..

My insurance is paid up but I don't know what the procedure would be..do you think I would  need to inform the Police as it could be a matter of criminal damage..?
Do the insurance companies chase the tenant for losses or do they throw me the job..

If anyone has any experience of this please advise..

It's a verbal agreement to move out, as is the amount of incentive on the table.. I've always lived by my word so I feel obliged to honour my promise, but this evening throws a new light on the deal..

I think my solicitor might hate me too.... and it's only Monday..!

I think £1,000 and a hefty repair bill is still better than April (and a hefty repair bill and possibly more to your Solicitor?).

It's November, right? You have seen some damage... it scares you... but the longer the Tenant is in there, the more damage can be done, you'd expect.

You could pay the £500 as the person is leaving, and as you have a Locksmith providing you and only you the ability to enter (excepting the new windows, I suppose, some rats can get in anywhere!) and then contemplate about your honour position for the follow-on £500... I mean... you want to stand by your agreements. Of course you do. I would. I would advise you do too. But, I'm just saying, you could demonstrate that good faith with the £500 as you're booting them out of the door... giving them confidence you'll follow-up... but then... not.

I think it might be the case that if you showed up tonight with 25 x £20 notes their eyes might glaze over and they'd be putty in your hands. It's the bird-in-the-hand mentality these people at the lowest end of society often (are forced) to live by.

I think - having read the story - I would crack on and try to get things moving... as for Insurance, it'll all be in your policy statement of fact etc. - the least you can do is make a claim! It'll be handled or rejected, for reasons. Don't pre-empt.

Welcome words again H,

I'll stick by mine, as you probably already know I will  and do a nice repair job on the place ready for some happy homeowners,who'll never know the anxiety the house has caused..

I might even sell it and buy myself somewhere smaller to live and let out my own house.. sort of upgrading the tenant market and downgrading my own place in one stupefying move.. things are in the air here and will be for a few months..

More when the gruesome details are clearer.. I'll keep the news coming in as it happens..

Any other comments are welcome, especially from anyone who's already bought the T shirt..

For £1000 you can hire people on the dark web to assist with your problem in other ways... such as maybe repairing the kitchen etc...
I'm on your side of the fence here... I'd want the place back too and April is more lost rent and cost away...