99.87% of Louth PRS properties fail local authority inspections

G

Greenbook

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Article from the Irish Independent is here

An absolutely shocking statistic, practically a 100% failure rate, until you realise that it is practically impossible to pass these inspections.

As I've posted previously I've failed over a weedy garden, a weed growing in a gutter, a cracked tile in a bathroom and other minor issues. Other issues I've experienced are just strange, a carbon filter in an extractor fan had to be replaced with a charcoal one for some reason.

Other people I know failed because a never used fire place hadn't been boarded up, small patches of mould which the tenant should have wiped off, no fire escape leaflet in a small block of apartments with one exit, a missing microwave etc.

Honestly, who'd be a landlord and these are Council inspections whose own houses are often in a deplorable state.
 
DannyBoyD said:
I "failed" an inspection when an all electric property didn't have a carbon monoxide alarm.
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But there you were, down as yet another substandard property.
DannyBoyD said:
Didnt bother arguing, bought one in screwfix & velcroed it to the ceiling.
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My weed in the gutter had died in the warm dry weather by the time the inspector returned, so the house passed, with 'removal' of the weed duly noted and jotted down. The weather then got a cooler and wetter, it resurrected itself and continued to grow unbeknownst to the inspector and not impacting on the tenants' enjoyment of the property one way or another. It is crazy stuff.
 
DannyBoyD said:
I "failed" an inspection when an all electric property didn't have a carbon monoxide alarm.

Didnt bother arguing, bought one in screwfix & velcroed it to the ceiling.
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That's brilliant. I told my sibling to do the same with a vent, tenant and sibling don't want a vent. I said just put up a fake one. Also told them to keep one thing always 'wrong' so that the inspectors can justify their 'fail' with something easy to fix. In my case I didn't put up the fire evactuation map.

Now one of the tenants is refusing the inspections as he's sick of them coming constantly and he doesn't want to be bothered ......... There are at least 4 organisations involved in these inspection contracts. I wish SF would ask in the Dail how much all this costs. The actual "inspectors" themselves wouldn't know a nail from a screw.
 
Is there anything in particular that triggers these inspections, or is it just random? We have been lucky over the past 10 years to have never had one in any of our properties.
 
Wavelly said:
Is there anything in particular that triggers these inspections, or is it just random? We have been lucky over the past 10 years to have never had one in any of our properties.
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We had no inspections for at least 20+ years in 2 different counties. Now where my rental is there are constant inspections. It's a whole new industry, I think it's triggered by HAP tenants initially, I had 2 Hap and one non hap and it was the HAP got inspected. My sibling on the same street is getting constant inspections. I reckon it's a scam, the more inspections they more money they get, so they are designed so you fail, like Greenbook over weeds.
 
Bronte said:
Now one of the tenants is refusing the inspections as he's sick of them coming constantly and he doesn't want to be bothered .........
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I had the same complaint from tenants myself. They are given a time 9am to 2pm and are expected to take a morning off work and sit around waiting for hte inspector to turn up.
Bronte said:
I wish SF would ask in the Dail how much all this costs. The actual "inspectors" themselves wouldn't know a nail from a screw.
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It costs €11m per year. Now the inspectors seem to be pleasant but rather clueless young people, often Brazilian or Indian, who come across as having done a two week training course with the mission - find something wrong

Wavelly said:
Is there anything in particular that triggers these inspections, or is it just random? We have been lucky over the past 10 years to have never had one in any of our properties.
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Seems to be random, but the goal is to inspect every PRS property every 4 years.

It is 100% that you'll fail on something entirely new and different the second time round, light bulb insufficiently strong in the living room, not enough shelves in the fridge etc.
 
Wavelly said:
Is there anything in particular that triggers these inspections, or is it just random?
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I don't know but have been inspected twice in 14 months. There were minor things which were rectified.
Some were concerning the common area where the guidance of the CC actually exceeded the legislation.
For the last inspection, we provided boiler service paperwork as required. 3 months later, we received communication as if a new inspection had taken (while it was just about a remark on the service paper work). Once again, the "new inspection" failed for a remark that when explained after contacting our plumber was a no issue.
 
patfert1 said:
Is the inspection checklist publicly available?
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From memory, it is about 100 pages long and goes into minute details, windows must be of a certain size proportionate to the room, no dings allowed in architraves and skirting boards etc. etc. etc. It also cross references to various other technical documents which must also be followed to the letter.
 
What about a little pushback.

Its a number of years ago now but I wrote a rather abrupt letter asking the legal basis of an inspectors findings. It wasn’t just off the top of my head, I had read the legislation carefully and suggested that there was no legal grounds for their opinion.

Councils are complete wimps. I never heard from them again.

On another occasion I received a bill from the council for services provided to a tenant. I haughtily asked what was the legal basis for charging me. The poor woman on the phone had no idea so I suggested she find out and let me know. Of course she didn’t. But I noted her name and the date. Two years later I got a solicitors letter. Then I really let rip ‘how dare you’ etc. I finished by saying ‘never contact me on this matter again. Close your file or send me a summons’. In reality I was probably liable but neither the council nor their solicitors were able to show that.

Nowadays AI will compare the councils letter with the legislation and write the letter for you.
 
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