Estate Agent causing damage?
Discussion
Hi all,
I need some advice about the estate agent that i am using and if anyone (that's a landlord) has come across a similar situation and what i can do.
To give you some history, my house was rented out for the last 6 months to a pleasant lady, that i actually knew, and she was friends of my neighbors; all in all a sound character.
She moved out of the house on the 29th Sep and handed the keys back into the estate agent, which i'm not going to name and shame, but they like to MOVE YOUR stuff.
Later on that day I also went to the house to make sure that everything was ok and to see if the house needed cleaning before the next tenant, but safe to say she left the house spotless (actually even better than when i put the house on the market for the first time in April); so all was well.
Fast forward to this week and i have received the damage report from the estate agent and there are things on there which were both a surprise to both me an the tenant, such as door handle broken on the kitchen cupboard door (you can see where a flathead screw driver has actually been wedged under the handle to snap it off - muddy footprints in the house, rubber surround to the conservatory to name a few!!
Now given that i went to the house the night that she (the tenant) moved out and it was in a perfect condition and that the estate agent is the only other owners to the keys to my house - could one lay into them and then claim for damages? Has anyone else come across this or is this a known scam?
I went to the house today and i've taken pictures which are time stamped and i've now put right what has been damaged.
Below are some picture of the damage.
broken handle (the screw has been snapped off)
Close up of the damaged door handle and on the door panel
Muddy floors in the kitchen
This is the garage door, which was glossed in May 2009 and was not damaged in April 2010
Muddy footprint on the stairs
Rubber strip from conservatory
I need some advice about the estate agent that i am using and if anyone (that's a landlord) has come across a similar situation and what i can do.
To give you some history, my house was rented out for the last 6 months to a pleasant lady, that i actually knew, and she was friends of my neighbors; all in all a sound character.
She moved out of the house on the 29th Sep and handed the keys back into the estate agent, which i'm not going to name and shame, but they like to MOVE YOUR stuff.
Later on that day I also went to the house to make sure that everything was ok and to see if the house needed cleaning before the next tenant, but safe to say she left the house spotless (actually even better than when i put the house on the market for the first time in April); so all was well.
Fast forward to this week and i have received the damage report from the estate agent and there are things on there which were both a surprise to both me an the tenant, such as door handle broken on the kitchen cupboard door (you can see where a flathead screw driver has actually been wedged under the handle to snap it off - muddy footprints in the house, rubber surround to the conservatory to name a few!!
Now given that i went to the house the night that she (the tenant) moved out and it was in a perfect condition and that the estate agent is the only other owners to the keys to my house - could one lay into them and then claim for damages? Has anyone else come across this or is this a known scam?
I went to the house today and i've taken pictures which are time stamped and i've now put right what has been damaged.
Below are some picture of the damage.
broken handle (the screw has been snapped off)
Close up of the damaged door handle and on the door panel
Muddy floors in the kitchen
This is the garage door, which was glossed in May 2009 and was not damaged in April 2010
Muddy footprint on the stairs
Rubber strip from conservatory
Edited by _Deano on Sunday 10th October 17:40
Have had that but was the tenant accused of the damage. Needless to say we didn't cause the damage (had photos of the place we took on the last day because of previous experience with Wide Country lettings) and it took a few "discussions" before the letting agent gave us the deposit back. Never did find out who caused the damage....
-Fix the handle or replace (B & Q)
- Mop the muddy foot print and get them off the carpet (poundshop cleaner)
- Put the rubber seal back in
End of story and then find another agent.
Devils Advocate : Are you 100% definite that you checked these very things when you went round? If you went round in the evening it could be likely that you did not spot these as you was so impressed with the general state of the property... just a thought...
- Mop the muddy foot print and get them off the carpet (poundshop cleaner)
- Put the rubber seal back in
End of story and then find another agent.
Devils Advocate : Are you 100% definite that you checked these very things when you went round? If you went round in the evening it could be likely that you did not spot these as you was so impressed with the general state of the property... just a thought...
mattdaniels you have a point, but then how would you explain the broken door handle and the rubber pulled from the roof, paint missing from the garage door etc.
I am going to have a word with them tomorrow and pout across my disgust and disappointment that they have done this, if anything though, i want to know why.
I am going to have a word with them tomorrow and pout across my disgust and disappointment that they have done this, if anything though, i want to know why.
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