Today a builder knocked on the front door and explained that he will be renovating/repairing the house we are renting. He needed to do a quote. It is an insurance job due to the house being poorly built – foundations shifting, big cracks in wall etc.
They are going to take the plaster sheet off almost all the interior walls and the ceiling in one or two rooms. This includes ripping tiles off the ensuite and kitchen walls and then painting the whole house. So the house is going to be a mighty mess for a few weeks.
My concern is that until the builder knocked on the door we had heard nothing of this plan from our property agent or owner. We are currently on a month to month lease and as I work shifts (sometimes sleeping during the day) I am thinking that I might be ending the lease and moving on.
Only problem is I like living there as its a great location and a great house.
Like most people I am not feeling really excited, or looking forward to paying $445pw rent for a house that is half destroyed – with wires etc hanging from walls..
So my question is this – What do people out there think is reasonable compensation for a disruption of this kind? Is a months rent free reasonable? Or should we push for more – as we will likely have to find temporary accomodation elsewhere.
If we do move out it is going to cost the owner at least $2000 in lost rent and letting fees anyway. I am going to call the agent Monday and see what they have in mind.
What would you ask for? How far would you push it?
I’ll keep you posted.
Hi grreg
“A few Weeks” sound optimistic if he is going to do all the work he says. I would get a more accurate estimate of the timeframe. If the renos are going to leave a huge mess then while they are going on (assuming things like the toilet and kitchen remain functional) I would offer him half the rent until the work is finished. One thing is for sure if you do move out he will get nothing. He won’t and can’t rent unless it is liveable in. Do you relly love the place that much? I would almost gurantee the renos take twice as long as he suspectsalways do
And then what will the rent go up to?! Might put renting this place out of your price range.
Start looking elsewhere.
markk
Happy Hunting
http://www.kentscollections.comPersonally, I would have told the builder to go away. No-one has the right to enter your premises whether they send you a letter or not. The landlord certainly has no right to renovate while you are leasing the place. Tell him to wait until you move out and to leave you in peace. He has no recourse if you are paying your rent according to the lease.
The Mortgage Adviser
http://www.themortgageadviser.com.au
[email protected]
Essential LinksPerhaps you had better be proactive and start looking for a new place. The type of work you describe suggests it can be done quicker if the property is empty. It also sounds like a rent increase is possible after renovations. Your Landlord and his PM certainly don’t put you at the top of their “consideration” list, do they?
Originally posted by The Mortgage Adviser:Personally, I would have told the builder to go away. No-one has the right to enter your premises whether they send you a letter or not. The landlord certainly has no right to renovate while you are leasing the place. Tell him to wait until you move out and to leave you in peace. He has no recourse if you are paying your rent according to the lease.
Rob,
I am not sure that is the case. If you are given sufficient notice then the owner and/or his agent can enter the property to inspect or carry out repairs etc.
This is from the Fair Trading website:
Access and inspections
The landlord, agent or any person authorised by the landlord may enter the premises only in the following circumstances:
* to carry out a general inspection of the premises if the tenant is given at least seven days notice. There can be no more than four inspections in any twelve month period.
* to carry out necessary repairs if the tenant is given at least two days prior notice. The repairs must be necessary and must not simply be improvements or renovations. For urgent repairs no notice is necessary.Cheers,
Simon Macks
Finance Broker
[email protected]
0425 228 985Comments may not be relevant to individual circumstances. If you intend making any investment, financial or taxation decision you should consult a professional adviser.
Grreg,
Bummer that the landlord didn’t have the manners to inform you him or herself, without the builder telling you about it- no wonder landlords have a bad name [angry2] I would have thought the landlord might have spoken to you and made you an offer of reduced rent and a conciliatory discussion to empathise with your situation.
One thought is that the landlord may want you out and this is one way of doing it? If i were you, I’d get an agreement in writing about a reduction in rent until all repairs have been carried out (it may not be done in a month, so don’t specify a time in your agreement. I guess your local Council might be able to say the house is unliveable with all the repairs to be undertaken, so that might give you some negotiation leverage… but it all does sound messy.
Unless your landlord is gonna negotiate and be fair, I’d check out other local places to rent.
Landlords can be such #!@$%- I dunno why they would threaten such a relationship with a tenant- good tenants are gold.
kay henry
‘How far can a landlord push a tennant?’ About 4 feet if the tennant isn’t looking!
Grreg,
I feel sorry for your situation and unless I wanted to lose money, I would never do this to a tennant. I don’t know which state you are in but find out your rights from the local tennancy tribunal, etc. There is absolutely no way a landlord/tradesman (or really anyone for that matter) can just lob up at your door like that (that’s WHY we pay rent!). Also I agree with others that this might be a dodgy ploy to improve the place to up the rent unless you have requested for repairs which you obviously haven’t. Again, find out who to speak to re: your rights (which have already been abused as well) and what action you are entitled to take as a result of a really stupid landlord. Let us know how you go.
Cheers,
Gatsby.“Sometimes the hardest thing to do in life is often the best thing to do.”
Wow Grreg, you seem to have elicited quite a bit of support. Rest assured – there won’t be any forthcoming from my side.
I believe there are two sides to every story, and being a Landlord myself, naturally I lean towards that side. I’d really be interested in hearing their side of the story. That will never happen of course.
Perhaps there are aspects to this situation you haven’t fully detailed. My first question is why are you on a month to month lease ? Is that what the Landlord wants – it’s certainly not what would be attractive to me. Perhaps he’s asked you to sign a long term lease for his stability and asset value and you have refused….perhaps.
Perhaps you haven’t been diligent in your rent payments, perhaps you aren’t looking after the place to his /her expectation…who knows – only you, the agent & the Landlord really know what is going on.
Perhaps s/he has tried to contact you 10 times by phone and you have refused to respond – this is very common with alot of tenants. Who knows – perhaps.
In direct answering to your questions, I wouldn’t ask for anything. And I wouldn’t “push it” at all. What do I think is reasonable compensation ?? How about living in a much nicer / cleaner / newer place for starters.
Howsa about lock in a long term lease with the Landlord, then put up with the slight inconvenience for a few weeks knowing that the “compensation” is living long term in a better place that you know you like the location of.
Bloomin’ whinging prima donna residential tenants, thank god we are scaling back having to deal with trumped up little lawyer wannabes.
Everyone who advised running to tribunals and “checking their rights” needs to have a good hard look at themselves. Talk about act like Americans. The LL is trying to improve the place for the tenant for goodness sake. Why not be pro-active and help out to get the improvements done quicker.
Instead of adversarially calling the PM and asking “what’s in it for me” – because you aren’t going to get all the answers you require off them anyway, why not be mature about the situation, and ask about having a meeting on site with the actual Landlord and reasonably talk through exactly what is going to be done, and at the same time offer to sign a long term lease. Now there’s a win / win.
You are currently heading down a lose / lose path.
Cheers,
Dazzling
“No point having a cake if you can’t eat it.”
Hi Grreg,
I am a tenant too and wouldn’t be too happy if I were in your situation. I guess you have to decide what you want… whether you really love this house or whether you would be happy to move.
I think it would be fair to ask for compensation from the landlord if there are to be major works. I don’t think it’s much fun living in a house with builders around. Maybe have a chat to the landlord about it and see if you can get a resolution that suits both of you. Maybe think about the situation from both sides… Otherwise, it may be much less stress just to move on. It sounds as if the landlord hasn’t made enough effort to contact you as they should send a letter if they can’t get hold of you on the phone but I’m not sure what your relationship is like in general so maybe that’s just a one off. I suppose you have to decide how much money would justify the inconvenience of the building work to you or whether you don’t want to be living with it at all. Maybe just be honest with the landlord and tell them that you are keen to stay long term (if that is the case and it may require you signing a longer lease) but explain that you want compensation for living in a building site until the work is finished.
Good luck with it anyway!
Kate
Years ago, when we were renting, half of the house burnt down due to old/faulty electric wiring.
The landlord made an offer of us paying half the weekly rent instead of losing her tenants all together.
We talked to the builder and arranged for him to work on just one room at the time, so I still could have some privacy as I was at home with a 7 month old baby at that time who, of course, needed to nap during the day.
It worked out fine, moving from room to room- we were very lucky to have such a considerate builder.We didn’t have hot water for weeks, but we had a great relationship with our elderly neighbours who didn’t mind us getting buckets of hot water to bath the baby, and using their shower. Awww bless them.
The renovation took about 2 months, and even though it was inconvenient, it was still managable.
But I do think you should expect a reduction in rent. After all, if you would decide to move out, the landlord would lose all the rental income.
It’s a two-way street.I hope things will work out for you.
Celivia
We don’t know the other side of story here ofcourse, but based on what you are saying, it appears that the landlord has not provided you with sufficient notice of the builders visit. I don’t believe that there is any excuse for not being courteous. As a landlord myself, if i (or the property manager) couldn’t get a hold of you by phone, what about a visit by the pm or a letter?? I mean, putting aside the legal aspect of this, if you view your tenant as a customer (which they are, aren’t they???) a little courtesy goes a long way. Gregg, if you really want to stay in the property, you should be able to. Now is the time to enlist your negotiation skills and work out an arrangement which suits you and the landlord. Pushing it (not sure what your intentions are here, presumably tribunal, going ape/agro etc..) will only make matters worse.
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