The DIYfest Has Begun
We’ve been a bit quiet lately as we’re up to our eyeballs in paint at the moment. At the end of January our two rental properties were both returned to us within a few days of each other. Our bungalow had been rented to a wonderful fella for almost twelve years. He sadly passed away over Christmas and his family, despite their grief, returned the property to us looking the same as the day he moved in. Unfortunately, we weren’t so lucky with the other property.
We’d been thinking about selling the house we used to live in before we went travelling for some time, but changes to rental laws during the pandemic quite rightly prevented people from asking their tenants to leave. By April 2021, those laws had changed and after we saw how very unloved it was looking when we passed it one day, we decided that the time had finally come to sell it.
We had to give the tenants six months notice, instead of the usual two, but that wasn’t a problem as we planned our year to ensure we’d be at home when the house was due back to us in October. The tenants had other ideas though, and a couple of days before they were due to leave they told our letting agent that they wouldn’t be leaving. The only option available to us was to go to court to regain possession. I know this would have been a massively stressful time for the tenants, but I was surprised just how stressful it was for us. The main thing was not knowing what was happening, or what state our house would be in when we finally got it back. Due to COVID there’d been only one internal check in 2 years, and that was by a new agent who had little idea what condition the house was in at the start of the tenancy (very good condition), as our last one decided to close down. Tradesmen we’ve known for years, who went in to do the usual repairs and checks, diplomatically told us the place was in a poor state.
After three months of chasing paperwork (some of which went missing in the Christmas post) we were away in Whitby for a week, when the court finally confirmed that it was giving us possession from the following Tuesday. We’d made a break for the coast as it was all getting too much for me and I knew from experience that the black dog of depression and anxiety was closing in on me. That week away turned out to be perfect timing and we returned feeling refreshed enough to face whatever the tenants had done to our old home.
After several more sleepless nights, we drove over to the see house with feelings of trepidation. We’ve never watched those TV shows about the bad state landlords find their properties in when they get them back, but people had told us lots about them. The tenants had asked for an extra day so they could clear the garden, which we had given them, but I have no idea what they did with that day. Before we even got to the front door, the front garden which was overgrown and with piles of rubbish in it, set the scene. Going into the property we were hit by a stench of dog and stale cigarettes.
It took us over a week for three of us (massive thanks to Jay’s Dad for his help these past few weeks) to get the place to a basic level of cleanliness. During that time Jay collected a rubble sack’s worth of dog poo from the garden and decking (which had children’s toys scattered amongst it). We filled a 12 yard skip with all the rubbish that had been left and the decking which had been left to rot. We discovered that every room had been repainted, including flaking white emulsion on all the woodwork as well as painting all the kitchen cupboards, badly. Doors, a radiator cover, laminate flooring and the loo seat had been removed, and all the carpets were covered in unremovable stains (believe me we tried as they were expensive carpets). The lawns and flower beds were all wrecked, the driveway was now painted blue (a neighbour told us their car has blue spots too from the same incident) and the side hedge was making a game attempt to scrape the sky.
The smell of dog was coming from the front window where it had shredded the blinds, chewed the window ledge and left what we hope were muddy paw prints (although seeing the state of the garden we expect it wasn’t just mud) all over it. There were also several patches of urine on the landing carpet, which we assume were also the dog as they were around the doorframes and banister posts.
I managed to hold back the tears until after our letting agent had left, but it was awful to see our home, that we had loved and spent money to make it nice, treated so badly. Once we’d gotten over the shock of the state of the place, there was a very small feeling of relief. The place was back in our hands, and what happened now would be in our control not our tenants or the court. A project plan was drawn up, half of ScrewFix and Wickes procured, and after a week of scrubbing away the dirt (I’ve no idea how they were able to prepare food in that kitchen) we’ve started on the mammoth task of repainting everything, and removing paint from where it shouldn’t be.
We’ve had a couple of estate agents round to value the place and have booked the carpet fitters for the end of this month to give ourselves a deadline. We’re already used to not having the rental income appearing in the bank as the tenants stopped paying a while back (another court adventure to come trying to get some of what they owe us back). But it might take a while to get used to the majority of our income being from share dividends or the sale of shares, as that’s what we are planning to do with them money from the house sale.
Once the house is finished, our attention will turn to the bungalow as Jay’s Dad has decided to move in there. He is selling his house, which will take a while, but we’re aiming to get the bungalow fully redecorated, the trees cut back, garage roof replaced and the rooms re-carpeted ready for him by the start of April. So, you probably won’t hear from us for a while, as we’re shattered by the time we get home from decorating, while both still following training plans for a marathon at the end of April. I have no idea how we managed when we had proper jobs!
Ju x
Oh my gosh, I am so sorry you had to go through all this mess. I know how hard it is because I’ve been there, too. It is heartbreaking and such a pain to deal with! With your hard work, you will get the house in tiptop shape and someone will come along and fall in love with it. I wish you the best of luck with the sale. This seems to be a good time for it, so I hope you get tons of money to make it all worth it.
Thanks Linda. Seeing your cracking photos of Greece is certainly helping! Jay
We feel your pain! We started eviction proceedings against our tenants when we returned from full-timing. Our tenants preferred to spend money on hot tubs, gin, holidays and Rolex watches instead of rent. We were fortunate that the house was left in an acceptable condition. We obtained a CCJ on them and met them in Court (a very enjoyable experience!). Their son paid up as they had run out of money … lol. The whole Court process was very easy, however the defendants can stall proceedings at many opportunities, as we found out. We have had numerous bailiffs at our doorstep over the last 3yrs. Our advice to you would be to have them removed off of the Electoral Roll for your address and also contact the DVLA too in case they owe various agencies unpaid parking fines etc etc. Good luck with Money Claims online – treat it as a hobby, because you are not guaranteed your monies back.
Yikes, that’s not a good situation to have to deal with. Hopefully you get a decent price for it and can forget about it. We currently have a house we haven’t lived in for nearly 3 years and I just can’t imagine ever being a landlord. Life is too short to deal with that.
Unfortunately we have been in the same boat! I have yet to find a reliable agent, so manage our 3 properties. Having been against going down the Airbnb route which is pretty lucrative where we live in Cornwall because of the housing shortage. More fool us as our neighbours let out a converted old converted garage accommodation at £90 a night fully booked for >5months! We have got to the point that the financial return on long term lets isn’t there (until you sell), the stress and time it takes to get resolve issues disputes (arbitration through DPS seems to favour the tenant, which is a view shared by the landlords assoc I belong to )the ever increasing costs associated with compliance with new regs, the more frequent maintenance bills plus feeling like a social worker on occasions , we are gradually selling the properties. The problem is where do you stick the money before inflation rate away at it?
“The problem is where do you stick the money before inflation rate away at it?”
Caveat: the rest of this comment is written by me, a total non-expert in finance, and should be treated as highly dubious!
We’re stepping back from renting out of old houses for the same reasons you’ve listed above Megan. Over the past eight years we’ve been gradually building up a portfolio of equities (shares/stocks). We don’t try and pick stocks or time the market, we just gradually buy passive index-tracking funds and accept the fact the value of these will plummet from time to time (as long as we don’t sell during a crash, we should be fine over the long term). The best book I’ve come across talking through this approach (not an affiliate link) is The Simple Path to Wealth (or you can read the bone of the book for free at the author’s blog here: jlcollinsnh.com/stock-series). Good luck with it all, cheers, Jay
Wow, you will be busy!
I am glad the tenants have finally vacated. I am looking at selling my BTL soon and worry how stressful that will be too. Especially after seeing yours and others comments. With the increase in landlord costs and regulations I cannot see how I can improve the house to meet them in the years to come so need to sell before they come into force.
My tenant is wanting to stay long term as rental properties in the area are limited. So not sure what difficulties I will encounter. I doubt they can afford to buy the property so will have no choice but to give notice and hopefully not end up with court proceedings to gain access to the property to sell or a trashed house.
Once the BTL has gone the money will be used for maintenance on my own home and remainder invested for growth and income for the future as I still have 14 years before I can access pensions.
Good luck with the DIY and decorating and hope the sale is a smoother process.
Thanks and good luck. Most people are decent in our experience and will leave the house in good, clean and undamaged condition. Hopefully your tenant will be one of these, if not then just make sure you have all the paperwork ready before you start your Section 21 (we had to provide the last 5 year’s gas safety check certificates for example). Cheers, Jay
Thanks Jason.
I have a management agent, they have all that documentation and will complete the forms and deliver to the tenant.
I have started reading up on the process and the stages that it has to go through and that I will very likely need to use legal processes to remove the tenant.
Look forward to hearing the good news of a sale in future months.
Hi Jason and Julie,
I haven’t commented before, but just wanted to say I’m sorry that you found your home in such a state when you got it back. I enjoyed reading your Non-Trepreneurs which you kindly made available for free. I’m now reading your tour downloaded on my Kindle and enjoying it very much. Through you I’ve found Pete Matthew and have been slowly educating myself! In a couple of years I’m hoping to either rent out my home to fund van travels or downsize to a tiny home and go part time. Seeing your poor house though I’m inclined to go for the latter! Very best of luck with the sale and future plans and a huge thank you to you both. X
Thanks Louise, that’s really kind of you. We’re well into sorting the place out now and hopefully within a couple of weeks we’ll be able to start the sale process. I’d be tempted to go the downsizing route, far simpler and with less mental overhead, but on the other hand we’ve had a lot of success over 15 odd years of renting – this is our first really poor experience. Best of luck whichever option you go for. Cheers, thanks again for the kind words, Jay
Wow Ju and Jay,
What a mess to have to sort out!
Looks like your own version of Flip or Flop!
It’ll look great in a few weeks and you’ll be able to get away somewhere.
We thought about renting our house out and going full time in our van but your story has put the brakes on that idea. At least those tenants (if you can call them that) are finally gone. There are so many people out there who care nothing of others, let alone others’ possessions.
Be zen about it if you can. One thing at a time.
Best of luck
Thanks guys – we’re about 4 weeks into sorting it out now and are feeling much more positive – the skip’s gone, window cleaners have scraped off the rotting egg (!), plenty filler applied, umpteen tubs and tins of paint stood empty and the job’s list if growing pretty short now. Once we’ve had another crack at cleaning and the carpets are in we’ll get it onto the market and hand the keys to the estate agent to earn his fee! Cheers, take it easy, Jay
What a stressful time for you both, but hopefully after a lot of hard work it’ll be worth it. We had a similar experience with our house in Cornwall which was let out to various tenants over ten years. All were fine except the last one, who invited in all the local stray dogs to stay (we had to replace the downstairs wooden floor boards) and even left a car in the garage, which was surprisingly difficult to get rid of as it was still in her name. All a past memory now and it’ll be the same for you too, in time.
Best wishes to you both,
Paul
Hi Paul, makes our place sound sparkling! An entire car!! Having to replace the floor boards is pretty extreme too, sheesh. Yep, you’re dead right, apart from the fun of fighting over the deposit, followed by the small claims court for the rent they owe, it’s already starting to shift into the past. Cheers, Jay
Wow I can’t believe how people can behave like that with others property.
We have a student property and although our tenants move in every year, they do give us plenty of aggravation with flooded kitchens and rat infestation (because of food left in overflowing bins) etc to contain with.
We are also considering selling it at some point in the near future.
Good luck with the redecorating and selling it 😀
Thanks Gilda, we’re some way through the redecorating process now and the carpets are coming next week, so we’re almost there and hopefully it’ll sell fairly quickly, fingers crossed. Cheers, Jay
This is as a Landlord we pay the price for giving our houses to crazy people who do not value the service we provide the community. Why the Government do not see our valuable houses provide
To tenants give us protection which no MP talk on Landlords behalf. All the time I hear saying how landlords are making money. Media all the time talks about homelessness. We as private landlords should start university to educate people to live in the civilised society. If government wants EPC
Done on the properties in the same way we carry tenant EPC grading so we judge good tenants and discard bad tenants so we can save the planet and money and agony.
Hi Vijaya – my guess is it’s politically astute to target landlords – there are relatively few landlords (around 2.5 million private landlords in the UK) versus renters (13 million). It’s a complicated area though and I make no claim to have studied it or understand much about social housing, for example. We’ve done pretty well from renting our old houses out for the past decade, so I’m not bashing being a landlord, we just happened to get tenants who went bad – probably inevitable over that kind of timeframe. Best of luck, thanks for writing, Jay
Hi both , a tale of woe , did you use solicitor for court action on eviction ? Did your letting agent obtain satisfactory references prior to letting ? Some tenants are real “ sh….” , Any prospect of recovering outstanding rent / recovery of costs of damage ? Small claims court ? Did you hang on to Tenants deposit ? Have great sympathy , it’s a bit of a lottery with Tenants , some are great others are a disaster !!
Hi Stuart – no, our agent did the Section 21 notice and the court request as part of our fee to them. The end-to-end process was so long due to a combination of COVID legislation and paperwork being delayed in the post/then going missing at the court. The agent we used to start the let has since closed down and transferred all their properties to another, but as far as we can tell the references were fine. The deposit is held in a legally-required scheme and we’re part-way through the process of requesting it back/arguing over damage at the moment. Yep, it does seem something of a lottery! Cheers, Jay
Crikey, what a mess. However, at least you managed to get possession without having to get the bailiffs in. It’s absolutely soul destroying when someone else doesn’t leave your property in the state you provided it to them. I took back possession of my rental property 6 months ago as the numbers no longer justified the existing tenancy.
One agent visit in 2 years is bordering on incompetence on their part – I’m sure they continued to collect their fees though.
Hi David – you’re right, we were very relieved we didn’t have to go back to court again for bailiffs. To be fair to the agents, they couldn’t legally visit the property much more than they did due to the pandemic. Cheers, Jay
Very sorry to hear of your problems with one of your rental properties and of course it isn’t the way that tenants should behave, but there are other aspects which this discussion doesn’t cover such as most landlords surely don’t go into BTR business with their eyes closed or are totally naive.
Human beings come in all shapes, sizes and types, we all know that, plus the good and the bad, why shouldn’t tenants be the same, variable.
My guess is not every contributor to this discussion has treated a rental car with exactly the same care as they have for their own car, it’s human nature to not always worry too much about anything anyone rents.
Having been in retail most of my working life the lesson had to be learnt early on that some people are not up to scratch, and that has to be priced in to dealing with random members of the public you do business with, whatever business you are in, I don’t see renting houses any different, you sadly got unlucky with one client.
At least you are honest enough (as usual) to admit you have done well over the years and most of your renters were ok. You’ve put it down to a lesson learnt, that business is just like that, good and bad. The trick is to have more good than bad…
We’ve missed your travel blogs, hope you get everything sorted including settling your dad so you can get back out on the road again, good luck Jay and Ju.
Lenin of Los Angeles
Ayup Lenin! Hope you’re both well and travel plans are again afoot?
Taken on board all your points above, but I’m still p****d off with these guys nevertheless!
Following the analogy of the rental car. If someone returned a rented car having failed to pay for the lease, left it stinking of dog urine, with badly stained upholstry, the seats chewed, a cack-handed crack at a DIY pink paint job (having decided they didn’t like the original colour of the car) and having rubbed up against the odd concrete post, and then angrily demanded the rental company return their deposit, I imagine they’d get short shrift?
Just a thought. Cheers, Jay
Good morning from here.
Of course you’re right Jason, the rental company would throw the book at the renter as you should do too. My point badly put is not to be too surprised when it happens, as it happens with rental cars too.
I would want to know how this could happen over years when you are paying an agent to look after your interests, although writing that there may well be small print that covers them for neglect.
Yes, in the middle of a slightly surreal adventure at the moment, Covid travelling is a bit different to before.
VL