UK Landlord Forum / Life

Hi
I rent out a really nice flat. It has good quality furniture in it as I used to live there. My problems are:
1 Tenant seems to think terms of the Tenancy are just something you sign and do not apply to him.
2 He tells lies.
3 The rent is often late in the last 4 months it had been late twice
4 He has done a fair bit of damage. The latest being a rip in a leather sofa (Laura Ashley) He has said he will pay for the damage.
My problem is the sofa is now 3 years old how do I work out how much to ask for if you consider 'wear and tear' although he signed the inventory to state the flat was in 'immaculate letting condition.'
Thank you for your help

Perhaps I am too harsh but this little word is popping into my head right now and its.......Out..............The tenant I mean and to do it the proper way ...........you have said enough for me....I just feel your Landlord Tenant relationship is going to get so very worse and worse - I can't comment on your sofa I'm afraid....

Please don't head for disaster

Best of Luck

Julie

Always be wary of advice from a forum
Do your own research

You have to work within the framework that doesn't allow betterment (new for old unless warranted).
It is a very subjective area.
Common remedies:
Replace it (only if damaged beyond use/economic repair)
Repair it
Clean it

In your case find out the cost repairing or re-upholstering ... If it can't be repaired then it needs to be replaced

Best of luck

Hi
it cannot be repaired without having a large piece of a different colour leather. I just cannot work out what % is fair

That's the problem...define  "fair"

This is just an opinion now...
1. Tenant seems like an @rse
2. You will likely end up evicting this person
3. In all likelihood your outstanding dues will be greater than the deposit (big statement as I have no idea what your deposit is)

Therefore seek possession and get him out
Tot up all the dues and deduct from the deposit
You might as well in this case go for new sofa but likely there isn't enough in the pot (deposit) for it anyway
You are unlikely to get more than the deposit
Therefore you worrying about what is fair is virtually a moot point

Concentrate on seeking possession for the property

Best of luck

If you want to get truly mathematical, then you can... but the simple fact I guess you're going for is that the sofa is now not usable as a sofa... and a sofa with a large rip in it will detract from the value of your rental property moving forward, future Tenants will be unimpressed with it.

You can look at the expected lifetime of a sofa (say 10 years?) and how old it is (say 4 years?) and then arrive at a number based on the purchase price (or replacement price) and six tenths (or 60%) is your answer - if you assume the sofa's usage potential has been utterly destroyed.

Likewise, if the sofa came with, say, 2 chairs and the whole package cost £1,000, then you wouldn't be able to claim £600 in that instance, because the chairs are still fine. What a shame... so in that case... 2 chairs and 1 sofa (maybe it's a 3-seater, so 3 out of 5 total seats are "out of use") and it's 4 years old and its expected lifetime is 10 years, then you'll be looking at three fifths of six tenths of £1,000... so, see what I did there - three fifths == six tenths?, so you're actually looking at 60% of 60% of the purchase or replacement price (on £1,000 that would obviously be £360)... it's all smoke-and-mirrors, really, and "going mathematical" is really a tactic to try and bamboozle your Tenant into not arguing back BASED ON THE FACTS! As if.

Your real challenge only really comes if you don't agree and the Tenant ends up requesting ADR from the deposit scheme (assuming you would leave it until the end of the tenancy, rather than having the Tenant pay now) and the person judging that case might come back and say "it's still a sofa, sofas are for sitting on and its purpose is still served how it is" therefore aware you nothing... or something much less. That's, of course, assuming you have fulfilled your obligations regarding any deposit taken?

All of this is going to end up in being a recommendation for letting unfurnished, of course. While you say that the stuff in the flat is nice... let's be honest, it's just your cast-offs that you didn't want to take with you when you left. If you'd thought it was that nice you'd've probably taken it with you... you decided not to. And, no, Laura Ashley stuff is not nice or good quality... but it can be expensive, weird, ey?

I've been there... I let out a city pad and it has to be furnished. It's a shame, really, as letting unfurnished makes life easier for everyone involved. The city pad is full of nice stuff as well - Arne Jacobsen Egg Chair, The Prisoner Ball Chair, Oak Beds, quality mattresses, fitted wardrobes (couldn't take them if I wanted to), bespoke one-of-a-kind wool rug - the list goes on... but it's still just 'stuff' that I decided to leave there (apart from the Bosch Athlet I bought specifically for it as the Tenants can be right dirty buggers).

Hi Hippograff
I think you are being a bit harsh. It is not my old tat. My own home and indeed our cottage and also our flat in Chelsea are all  furnished with similar furniture all from Laura Ashley. I do however take your point let unfurnished is the way to go.
I feel older and wiser now. I think the best bet is to make him pay for the sofa and then serve notice. That way I can ask for some of the rest of the damage from DPS as the deposit would not cover the sofa.
Thanks for your help Cass

Ah, well... I never used the phrase "old tat"...