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Hey there,
I think I've run into a bit of an issue with my (soon no longer) letting agency. I've been with them for somewhat over a year and rented a place in Leith. There were issues from the very start, communication from their side was lousy at best and some issues were simply brushed off as trivial (Such as draughty windows, which took me several attempts before they finally decided to contact the landlady about this to have it fixed).
Now that the tenancy is coming to an end I'm facing a couple of issues and I'm not 100% sure how to proceed.
First off, they letting agency called me last week, asking me if I could bring them the keys to the property so that they could get another set done, since they don't own a spare set of keys for the property. They said "It's not there" and they haven't found it to date. Technically I am already in my new flat and I would be able to do this, but on another note, I still haven't got everything out of the old flat and therefore would have no access to this until they decided to give me the keys back. We are approaching Christmas, and given how slow they responded to issues I don't think I would actually see the keys before the new year, and the tenancy ends on the 2nd of January.
They also denied my request to reduce the tenancy time and refund me part of the last rent I have to pay, even though that would have meant they could have kept the keys afterwards since I have no business in that flat afterwards. While this is their good right, I don't think it's legal to ask me to give them the keys, leaving me without any access to the flat that I rent till the 2nd of January. Above that, with them losing the keys there is an insane security risk and I don't think this will be fixed by getting a new set of keys cut.
Secondly, the checkout list they provided me with stated that the windows have to be cleaned inside and outside. The flat is on the top floor of an old victorian-style house and has two roof windows and two sash windows that barely open enough for someone to climb through. Even with just leaning out you wouldn't be able to properly clean the windows from the outside, and not only is it highly dangerous to try and do so because of the risk of slipping and falling to death, there is also an extremely aggressive flock of seagulls nesting on the roof, which already attacked some handymen who attempted to fix a leak in the roof. Above that, the tenancy explicitely states that I am not allowed on the roof.
So I called in to ask them how I should do this, and their reply basically boiled down to that this will be deducted from the deposit. I am not sure if this is legal, because it essentially means that I have no choice but to have this paid from the deposit, or pay a professional cleaner myself which, in regards to the location of the flat and the inconvenience for the traffic below on the street this would cause seems disproportionate in terms of the result.
Ultimately I ended up looking up reviews for my letting agents, which - in all honesty - is something I should have done a year ago before moving in. They come in at a measle 3.5/5 stars, with literally every detailed review being about their cut-throat attitude, their unprofessionalism and about keeping exorbitant amounts of money for apparent "cleaning", even though no professional cleaning is done. They seem to hire third-party inspectors for the final inspections.
For a bit of context: The previous tenant of the flat left me a letter, asking me to call her so she could call over to grab all the mail that arrived for her after she moved out. When she did call over, she mentioned that she had been charged for window cleaning, but the windows were still dirty.
I am not sure how to proceed on my end. I did find out the landlady's telephone number via the BT telephone book, and I attempted to call her to ask if she is aware that the letting agents lost a set of keys to her flat and prefer cutting a set over replacing the lock. No reply, so I'll attempt again later.
However, what would you advise me to do? I don't think the letting agents are acting in an entirely legal way, are they?
Thanks a lot in advance!
- Hauke
Edit:
I also noticed in the inventory they gave me that the windows seem kind of hazy. So I'm not even sure I should be charged for window cleaning. Additionally, what is VERY curious is the fact that all of the pictures in the inventory are dated 1/11/2017, but on the pictures that show the windows you can see trees with green leaves on the outside. And these trees are not winter trees because as far as I could see, these trees are leafless now and were leafless a month ago. If at all the leaves should be red or orange. The inventory was also done by a third party and I fear that this might have been done in a way that does not correctly reflect what was there at the stated point in time or even worse - with outdated pictures that were edited to give the impression of current pictures.
Edit 2: They just sent me a text message that they've arranged a viewing for someone tomorrow between 12:00 and 12:30. I called in to ask if they found the keys and they said "No" and that they would cancel the appointment. I'm inclined to just keep the keys until the 2nd of January and then hand them over so they can do whatever things they want to do.
I think I've run into a bit of an issue with my (soon no longer) letting agency. I've been with them for somewhat over a year and rented a place in Leith. There were issues from the very start, communication from their side was lousy at best and some issues were simply brushed off as trivial (Such as draughty windows, which took me several attempts before they finally decided to contact the landlady about this to have it fixed).
Now that the tenancy is coming to an end I'm facing a couple of issues and I'm not 100% sure how to proceed.
First off, they letting agency called me last week, asking me if I could bring them the keys to the property so that they could get another set done, since they don't own a spare set of keys for the property. They said "It's not there" and they haven't found it to date. Technically I am already in my new flat and I would be able to do this, but on another note, I still haven't got everything out of the old flat and therefore would have no access to this until they decided to give me the keys back. We are approaching Christmas, and given how slow they responded to issues I don't think I would actually see the keys before the new year, and the tenancy ends on the 2nd of January.
They also denied my request to reduce the tenancy time and refund me part of the last rent I have to pay, even though that would have meant they could have kept the keys afterwards since I have no business in that flat afterwards. While this is their good right, I don't think it's legal to ask me to give them the keys, leaving me without any access to the flat that I rent till the 2nd of January. Above that, with them losing the keys there is an insane security risk and I don't think this will be fixed by getting a new set of keys cut.
Secondly, the checkout list they provided me with stated that the windows have to be cleaned inside and outside. The flat is on the top floor of an old victorian-style house and has two roof windows and two sash windows that barely open enough for someone to climb through. Even with just leaning out you wouldn't be able to properly clean the windows from the outside, and not only is it highly dangerous to try and do so because of the risk of slipping and falling to death, there is also an extremely aggressive flock of seagulls nesting on the roof, which already attacked some handymen who attempted to fix a leak in the roof. Above that, the tenancy explicitely states that I am not allowed on the roof.
So I called in to ask them how I should do this, and their reply basically boiled down to that this will be deducted from the deposit. I am not sure if this is legal, because it essentially means that I have no choice but to have this paid from the deposit, or pay a professional cleaner myself which, in regards to the location of the flat and the inconvenience for the traffic below on the street this would cause seems disproportionate in terms of the result.
Ultimately I ended up looking up reviews for my letting agents, which - in all honesty - is something I should have done a year ago before moving in. They come in at a measle 3.5/5 stars, with literally every detailed review being about their cut-throat attitude, their unprofessionalism and about keeping exorbitant amounts of money for apparent "cleaning", even though no professional cleaning is done. They seem to hire third-party inspectors for the final inspections.
For a bit of context: The previous tenant of the flat left me a letter, asking me to call her so she could call over to grab all the mail that arrived for her after she moved out. When she did call over, she mentioned that she had been charged for window cleaning, but the windows were still dirty.
I am not sure how to proceed on my end. I did find out the landlady's telephone number via the BT telephone book, and I attempted to call her to ask if she is aware that the letting agents lost a set of keys to her flat and prefer cutting a set over replacing the lock. No reply, so I'll attempt again later.
However, what would you advise me to do? I don't think the letting agents are acting in an entirely legal way, are they?
Thanks a lot in advance!
- Hauke
Edit:
I also noticed in the inventory they gave me that the windows seem kind of hazy. So I'm not even sure I should be charged for window cleaning. Additionally, what is VERY curious is the fact that all of the pictures in the inventory are dated 1/11/2017, but on the pictures that show the windows you can see trees with green leaves on the outside. And these trees are not winter trees because as far as I could see, these trees are leafless now and were leafless a month ago. If at all the leaves should be red or orange. The inventory was also done by a third party and I fear that this might have been done in a way that does not correctly reflect what was there at the stated point in time or even worse - with outdated pictures that were edited to give the impression of current pictures.
Edit 2: They just sent me a text message that they've arranged a viewing for someone tomorrow between 12:00 and 12:30. I called in to ask if they found the keys and they said "No" and that they would cancel the appointment. I'm inclined to just keep the keys until the 2nd of January and then hand them over so they can do whatever things they want to do.
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