Letting agents obligations to landlord

[princess roxy]

My daughter is working abroad for a short while and has put her house in the hands of a letting agent ,who i think are ripping her off.

 

She paid all the fees up front , and if any maintenece etc needed to be done they had to contact her ,or myself to gain permission. Which they agreed no problem . They had a tenant waiting for my daughters house who the letting agent knew personally,.

 

The first month, a bill was issued for cleaning the house pre occupation . The letting agent said the house was filthy, after WE had scrubbedit from top to bottom . WITHOUT permission they had sent cleaners in to , wipe the outside window sills and clean the oven, cost £125 . we complained and got bill reduced by 50%.

 

Letting agent then said the tenents were complaining about ants in the house , you need to sort this . My husband went to the house to see, the ants were by the back door which the tenent had had open, during the summer , no more than 10 ants.Had to buy her ant spray.I found out that the letting agent got intouch with daughter again , saying that a couple of jobs needed doing . Bit of sealant on the work top needed replacing , cupboard door not shutting right, unused open fire needed boarding up. Daughter agreed as she didnt want the hassle ,she was c harged £60.

 

I began to think that the letting agent was helping the tenent ,and ripping off my daughter . The last incident was the convincer. In late October daughter had a letter saying that a Legionnaires Risk assessment was needed and that they would sort it. However a very good fiend of ours owns a plumbing business and said thet he would do this assessment for her, my husband got intouch with the letting agent to say no thank you WE will sort this.

 

The letting agent then sent my daughter a bill for £250 and a copy of the assessment.I rang the assessment company and they told us that the assessment had been done 3 MONTHS EARLIER in AUGUST , as requested by the letting agent, but again WITHOUT permission. They apologised and waivered the fee.

 

NOW , after recently signing a new lease the tenent has given one months notice to leave ,saying that she doesnt get on with neighbours. No doubt the letting agent has found her friend a new house to rent.

 

Where does my daughter stand, shouldnt the letting agent have obligations to my daughter who is paying them fees .

 

THANK YOU . Roxy

Edited December 8, 2015 by honeybee13
Paras.

[honeybee13]

Hello there.

 

I've moved your thread to the lettings forum and left you a link to follow from the other forum. And I've popped in a few paragraphs to make it easier for the forum guys to read. They should be along later.

 

HB

[Steve__M]

My advice is to check the contract with the agent now - you may need to give notice - and consider getting a new agent.

 

It sounds like the tenant is a bit of a fussy complainer. Combined with the letting agent being a little too used to hands-off landlords who simply want the agent to sort problems, you end up with a stream of small bills for minor tasks.

 

The legionnaires assessment requirements relates to new requirements. All properties must have one but most residential properties can be dealt with by the landlord simply going through a check-list that can easily be found on the web.

 

A new industry has been set up to persuade letting agents to persuade their landlords that the assessment needs to be done professionally.

 

I'm surprised that you didn't also get charged for a carbon monoxide alarm at the same time (my partner's agent wrote to say that Legionnaires assessments and CO alarms would be required under new laws, but the latter are only required for properties with solid fuel appliances).

[andydd]

Not sure what your point is ?

 

It doesnt sound like you are owed anjy money, as most of the charges/fees were reduced/waived when you complained.

 

They sound like crap letting agent, go elsewhere.

 

Worth noting Letting Agents must belong to a Redress Scheme, might be worth complaining to them .

 

See here > https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/lettings-agents-and-property-managers-redress-schemes

[princess roxy]

Thank you for your replies, so grateful ,and really helpful . Was informed by an ex landlord that everything a letting agent does ,should be in the best interest of the landlord paying their fees ,and that they shouldnt be advising or helping the tenant . The present tenant is in the second month of her 6 month lease , she has given 1 months notice to leave to the letting agent, not agreed with my daughter, should the rest of the lease be paid up or not. Thank you . Roxy

[Steve__M]

You are correct that the agent should act in the landlord's interest.

 

The agent can act on behalf of the landlord. If the agent has accepted the tenant's notice already, it is too late. Otherwise, the landlord can insist that the tenant is held to her contract.

 

Often tenants are allowed to leave mid-contract if they pay reasonable fees to cover the cost of re-letting and empty periods.

 

Being devil's advocate the agent may have recognised that the tenant is a pain in the backside in terms of being fussy and complaining about minor things, so there may be a benefit to the landlord to get rid of her.

[princess roxy]

Actually my daughter insisted that the tenant give 2 months notice to leave, however for some reason the letting agent let the tenant give one month notice. can i ask ,can a tenant reduce her notice if the house is deemed "uninhabitable" the tenant has had problems with a neighbour, and the letting agent seems to be using this excuse to help her friend out. Absolutely nothing to do with the property.

[Steve__M]

Having problems with a neighbour is not a valid reason to cut a tenancy short.

 

Did the letting agent declare that s/he knew the tenant socially before the agreement was made? There is clearly risk of a conflict of interest.

[princess roxy]

The letting agent told my daughter that she has got a lovely tenant waiting to rent her house , a lady who had used the agent a few times before, and was very trustworthy. She didnt say however that she knew her socially. The tenant actually told my daughter that she loved the house but was worried that she may sell the house in the near future , my daughter reassured her that ,that would not happen. Apparently the fall out was with the next door neighbour who she said was noisy, the letting agent cut short the two month notice to one month syaing the house was "uninhabitable" . Any idea where my daughter stands legally with this situation . Thank you again . Roxy

[andydd]

I think you need to be a bit clearer, what is the outcome you want ?. Do you believe you are actually owned any amount ? Has the LA caused you a loss ?

 

Proving the letting agent was wrong/poorly behaved isnt going to achieve much.