Miss King Posted January 14, 2013 Report Share Posted January 14, 2013 Please would someone advise me of my legal position with regards to the following: I have several issues with my landlord: Carpets are 40 years old, infested with carpet beetle, held together with gaffer tape, broken plasterwork on chimney breast in bedroom, informed landlord of this 5 years ago and now there's a big hole exposing the open chimney, front door so swollen it requires hard force to close it, the children cannot shut it from the outside at all. internal decoration, leaking porch, roof needs proper repair, general delapidation, mouldy grouting in tiny bathroom where pipework has not been enclosed so it's freezing in there, was promised a thermostatic shower when we first moved in as the water pressure makes it alternate between scalding hot and cold, too dangerous for children to have a shower so water bills are high, wallpaper peeling off the walls, tv aerial broken, landlord promised new bathroom and carpets 6 years ago and says he will attend to problems but never does. My rent is cheap considering the size (2 floor maisonette) but the flat is in very poor decorative order and was filthy when I moved in in Oct 2005. I have three children we have all fallen down the stairs at some point due to the carpets. I have never had a written tenancy agreement. I am repaying rent arrears at £90 per month for the next 6 months. Landlord always threatens to give me notice so he can get the 'market value' in rent but he would have to spend thousands to bring it up to date. The flat is above landlord's bakery and repairmen etc use the spare key to enter my property to gain access to refrigeration units with no notice - on occasions I've not been dressed and this is an infringment on our privacy. The porch developed a severe leak. Landlord only phoned just before entering the flat to fix it - at 10.30 on a Sunday morning. He affected a temporary repair and said he'd be back the next day (Christmas Eve) and would send aerial repairman. Still nothing. Gas Safety Cert not done since 2011 and previous to that was 2008. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grampa Posted January 14, 2013 Report Share Posted January 14, 2013 Call your local council and ask to speak to the environmental health officer. Explain the situation and ask them to come out and inspect the property because there is a danger to your children. They can then speak to your landlord. There is alway a small risk your landlord may give you notice though but it is a risk you have to take if you want anything changed. Let us know how you get on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mortitia Posted January 14, 2013 Report Share Posted January 14, 2013 Seems you are paying a cheap rent for a property not in tip top condition but you have been there 5 years. Legally landlord should get a gas safety certificate - remind him. Better still go and see your local authority housing department and see if they can find you better accommodation for you and your children. The fact that you are paying off arrears suggests that some form of court action may have already happened - has it? No tenancy agreement means you could leave at any time more or less so why stay - if landlord improves then he will want more rent - seems reasonable and logical to me. Aerial = that is up to the tenant in my books. Sounds like what you are asking for is a property in good condition at a cheap rent where you can run up arrears. I won't say the obvious................. Mortitia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melboy Posted January 14, 2013 Report Share Posted January 14, 2013 I would be very concerned about the fact that your gas certificate is not current. It is a timely reminder that Landlords MUST keep all their old certificates copies going back for 5 years to show continuity of gas inspections. Your landlord falls very short of the requirements of being a good and responsible landlord and it is landlords like this that drags the rest of us down in the eyes of tenants. He needs sorting out but only you can initiate that action by putting your concerns in writing to your landlord and keep a copy of that letter for future reference. He cannot evict you easily and it would not be in his interest to do so immedietly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grampa Posted January 15, 2013 Report Share Posted January 15, 2013 No tenancy agreement means you could leave at any time more or less so why stay - Thats not correct it just means you have a verbal (parol) tenancy and should give one month notice in the same manner as any other periodic tenancy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mortitia Posted January 15, 2013 Report Share Posted January 15, 2013 Yes Grampa but bearing in mind lack of GSC and other problems would LL b wise in chasing tenant for 4 weeks rent? Mortitia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grampa Posted January 15, 2013 Report Share Posted January 15, 2013 I agree it wouldnt be clever to do so but you can never tell with this type of landlord. I have yet to hear of anyone being "done" for not getting a gas cert if no one has been injured. I guess there is a case or two out there but are likely to be connected to cases with lots of other issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKL Posted January 18, 2013 Report Share Posted January 18, 2013 Mortitia, 'not in tip top condition' seems to me to be a slight understatement. Whilst expecting additional rent in exchange for large-scale repair works is indeed 'reasonable', allowing your tenants to live in squalor - with the threat of rent hikes that current arrears payments suggests they cannot afford - to keep them complacent, is not. The Landlord is in breach of several legal obligations here; rights to a quiet tenancy, maintenance of the water supply (re: frozen pipes), tenant's rights to live in a property that is safe and in a good state of repair. Sounds like what you are asking for is a property in good condition ...something all tenants have the right to. at a cheap rent ... I'm sure the OP would agree that, were the property in good condition, a market rent would be fair (but of course it isn't). where you can run up arrears Tenants can fall into arrears for any number of reasons, and the OP stated that she is repaying her own. This is more than can be said for some; I've heard of any number of tenants withholding rent for far less. As Melboy said: Your landlord falls very short of the requirements of being a good and responsible landlord and it is landlords like this that drags the rest of us down in the eyes of tenants. He needs sorting out but only you can initiate that action by putting your concerns in writing to your landlord and keep a copy of that letter for future reference. I agree with both of the above points whole-heartedly. Miss King, you must take the initiative, which may mean being prepared to move home after seven years. Advise your landlord formally, in writing, of each of the grievances you have listed and keep a copy of all correspondence. I know it must be easier to speak to him directly, but this counts for very little in terms of evidence. At the same time, apply to go on your local authority's waiting list for social housing; as someone who lives in "unsanitary ... or otherwise unsatisfactory conditions" you should be given priority just below those legally classed as homeless. As Grampa suggested, request that your EHO inspects the property. Best of luck A Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grampa Posted January 18, 2013 Report Share Posted January 18, 2013 The bottom line is some landlords cannot afford to be landlords or have the same mentality as landlords did in the 50's and havent moved with the times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss King Posted January 18, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2013 Thank you all so much for your helpful replies. I admit I really don't want to rock the boat as my children and I love this house and its benefits are that I am in the neighbourhood I grew up in with all that comes with that. It's 2 floors, 4 bedrooms and 3 receptions so it's fantastic for £715 a month. One downside is the bathroom has been created on the first landing and is tiny - it's mayhem in the mornings and if I have guests it's even worse. But, I haven't wanted to risk LL giving me notice. With regards the arrears I have fallen behind on a number of occasions over the past three years but I have always been upfornt about it and honest about my situation with LL. It came to a head last August when the stress of trying to play catch up (it veered variably from 4 weeks to 7) was too much (I have other financial and health issues). I proposed the current repayment plan which he accepted. Regarding the tenancy 'agreement' he said "Do as you please, as long as you pay the rent" - so, this is where I'm obviously on the backfoot. Should this matter in his legal obligations to maintain the properyty? It has been suggested that I could withhold rent in lieu of works needing to be done. I have lived with the situation for so long. I didn't put up pictures etc for a long time because I kept expecting works to be done. At my own expense and time I decorated the bedrooms upstairs. The house was always upside down and I only opened some boxes last year because I realised nothing would change. LL always complained about mess when he turned up unexpectedly but I have 3 kids, a lot of stuff (100s of books), a busy household and I keep the place as clean as I can. It just looks so bad because it's careworn. I couldn't move in for the first week of the tenancy because the place was disgusting. The kitchen was so bad LL was shamed by the plumber into replacing it entirely. It's a large Victorian maisonette with high ceilings and sash windows. Until October last year there was no loft insulation, LL kept saying he'd do it but it didn't happen so I got a grant to get that done. The gaps between the window sashes were big enough to fit my hand in and were completely rotten. My fuel bill for last year's six week winter was £900 because the heating had to be kept on continuously. I'm currently £1200 in arrears to the energy supplier. In July last year LL finally replaced the windows. For this I'm grateful. There is a long history with this flat. Once it was severly damaged by an arson attack by a previous emloyee of LL (says it all) and that has been just painted over as the scorch scars are clearly visible. It has been let like this for at least 20 years - the tenancy going from friend to friend. It was a complete party house until I moved in. Previous tenants have done a lot of damage to the original features - self-tapping screws in the plaster, using a staple gun to attach curtains etc. I paid the rent in cash over the bakery counter for the first 4 years. I don't understand why he wouldn't want to upkeep the property - surely there must be some tax breaks he could take advantage of? I would be perfectly happy to restore this place if LL would provide the materials but he won't even consider that. I have replaced the toilet seat 5 times and resealed the bath annually - until last year when I got so fed up with this never ending saga. LL would need to spend many thousands to bring this place up to date - one tiny bathroom isn't enough for its size. The toilet has been installed so close to the wall it is impossible to sit squarely on it and the stress breaks the fixings. I'm stuck because I am in dire financial straits and not in a position to move voluntarily and get somewhere nice - and that would be to a different area in a much smaller house which would be a huge upheaval for my children (15,12 & 10). Shall I just put up with it? If you were my LL would you do the works then kick me out? LL has had £60,000 from this tenancy, am I asking too much? I apologise for this essay but it's so good to know I'm not alone in this and there are some good landlords out there. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss King Posted January 18, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 18, 2013 My children don't bring their friends for tea because they're embarrassed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoooRooo Posted January 22, 2013 Report Share Posted January 22, 2013 I wish you were my tenant. Mine want me to change lightbulbs for them so there's no way they'd be resealing the bath! I don't know where you stand legally, sorry. But I can tell you from the other side of the coin that it is not easy to evict tenants and it sounds like your LL is all about an easy life so it's unlikely he would anyway. My advice would be to speak to the Citizen's Advice Bureau - they can be really helpful in situations like this. I hope you get it all sorted out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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