Poor views of landlords

J

jeff70

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I rented out my apartment in Dublin city centre a few weeks back, and I was taken aback by the universally bad press for landlords coming from the people who viewed my place:

"We've spent 3 months looking for the right place - this is the first decent place we've seen that we felt we could live in"
"there's always something wrong with places we've gone to see"
"landlord never allowed me to read the lease - insisted I sign it on the spot"
"landlord never fixed the broken dishwasher - I have been driven nuts with the number of times I contacted him"
"dirty places being advertised for crazy rent"
"I was never given any contract - landlord got annoyed when I asked for it"
"I am afraid of my landlord as he gets angry any time I ring"
"landlord went crazy when we said we wanted to leave - we are now advertising to get in another tenant for him even though it's not our problem as we are outside agreed lease period"
"basic things not even looked after for viewings - rubbish, dirt..."
"so many times the landlord/agent didn't turn up for viewings"
"I'm used to people not turning up"

I replied to people's requests for viewings within a few hours, and I got back emails saying they were delighted I replied so quickly! I had to re-arrange times for a few viewings and I got emails back saying how appreciative they were of being told I couldn't make the original agreed time! Basic common courtesy and this is being lauded as exceptional behaviour!!

If this was one or two comments then I'd put all of this down to the odd bad fish in the landlord community. But when every single person coming to view my place complained along those lines, I seriously begin to wonder what the hell is going on. How can landlords in the current climate still expect to get away with this nonsense? Before I get the flames, of course this doesn't apply to every landlord, and I'm sure only the interested ones are probably even reading askaboutmoney, but honestly guys is this even remotely an accurate snapshot of the state of the Irish rental market and what tenants are putting up with? It doesn't augur well.
 
Are you sure that you are not letting your place below market rates and hence the reason why everyone is kissing your a$$ so much?

I've rented and viewed quite a few places aroound the city centre and never really had a problem.

I'm sure there are a few bad apples but I wouldn't consider it the norm.
 
dubrov said:
Are you sure that you are not letting your place below market rates and hence the reason why everyone is kissing your a$$ so much?

I've rented and viewed quite a few places aroound the city centre and never really had a problem.

I'm sure there are a few bad apples but I wouldn't consider it the norm.
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:) to the a€€ kissing, but not the reason I'm afraid. I'm getting €1200pm for a spacious 1 bed. It is in very good nick but that's hardly below market rates. Unless of course an apartment which is clean and where everything works should be getting way above market rates. But that's depressing no matter which way I look at it.
 
Very strange so many comments then.

I haven't been looking to rent for about 2 years so maybe things have changed. I would've thought landlords would be much keener to entice tenants these days though.

Maybe others can share their experiences for a broader picture
 
dubrov said:
Very strange so many comments then.

I haven't been looking to rent for about 2 years so maybe things have changed. I would've thought landlords would be much keener to entice tenants these days though.

Maybe others can share their experiences for a broader picture
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Depressing. Not one landlord, and a select group on askaboutmoney at that, would care to say they are better than I have described. Depressing. Is it any wonder we are where we are. What has brought us to this depressing state where people offering services to others couldn't give a monkeys.
 
I find myself caught being a landlord.

I take pride in the apartment, and am in the process of refurbishing it. I would never let it unles it's in a condition I would be happy to live in, so it will be a couple of weeks more before I even advertise it. I keep appointments, and fix things as quick as possible. Maybe I'm not typical, but then again I'm not a professional landlord.

One thing I have noticed is that non-Irish nationals are often very appreciative of even getting a viewing. They seem to face a lot of prejudice.

However, I can see why some ladlords would treat tenants with contempt. The last tenants wrecked the place, damaging floors, kitchen cabinets, furniture etc so it's hard not to be cynical about the prospect of the same thing happening in the future.
 
jeff70 said:
Depressing. Not one landlord, and a select group on askaboutmoney at that, would care to say they are better than I have described. Depressing. Is it any wonder we are where we are. What has brought us to this depressing state where people offering services to others couldn't give a monkeys.
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A bit dramatic no? A kettle watched never boils. Its just not a busy forum.

Its not a very professional industry thus you get tenants and landlords with no idea of what they are doing. Theres the hard necked business man who squeezes every penny out of the business. Then theres the amateurs who don't treat it like a business but a hobby that they are forever fiddling with.
 
I am a landlady, both I am a landlady in my own right and jointly on other properties with my parents. Thankfully we have a waiting list for people wanting to rent out our 2 bed houses. We live in a small town with alot of properties up for rent. Rental property is a business and that is the way that we run it, everything above board. The present tenant in my house is now heading into her 5th year.

When we are renovating a house, we refurbish it as if we are going to live in it ourselves. We put in solidfuel stoves with back boiler and oil burner so that the tenant can heat the house either way, we tile the downstairs floors and timber floors to upstairs, making everything easy to keep clean. I would not expect anyone to rent a house from me that I would not be happy to live in myself. Once a tenant moves into a house, i consider the house theirs and do not call unannounced, I would be very annoyed if a tenant had a problem with something and did'nt let me know so that I could fix it asap, all rent is either collected by direct debit or the tenant has a lodgment book which they use to lodge the rent. We always try to treat out tenant with respect as we like to be treated by them. At christmas we always drop in a small thank you present.

Yes, I have seen some of the places that people try to rent out. Old wallpaper just painted over, bad beds, dirty carpets, bathrooms with tiles falling off the walls. Disgraceful. Yes, I have also seen some places left in a terrible mess tenants.

Like everything else, Landlords should not be all tarred with the same brush... thats why some have places empty for so long, regular changes of tenants which all costs money when no rent coming in... but thats life.

Thankfully, so far, we have only had one tenant from hell...
 
This is just a general observation so please don't bite my head off but it seems to me (working for a company with several properties let) that there is a difference between landlords whose business it is versus people who have one apartment extra and rent it out.

For example, I used to rent (in Dublin) from a guy in Carlow and if I ever called about a problem, he made a big song and dance out of having to come to Dublin to sort it out. I decided to not renew the lease for a 3rd year - work reasons, he complained about having to find new tenants now (as if I'd change my mind based on that!) My point is, I had the distinct impression that this was just an inconvenience in his life.
 
purpeller said:
This is just a general observation so please don't bite my head off but it seems to me (working for a company with several properties let) that there is a difference between landlords whose business it is versus people who have one apartment extra and rent it out.
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I agree. We were a bit naive when we first started renting and learned the hard way. This time around we decided not only to view the house we were renting but vet the landlord properly. We now very happy renting at the moment as the landlord couldnt be more professional and hassle free. He is very respectful that while we are renting the house it is our home (some landlords just dont get this) and whenever we have a problem he gets back to us the same day. The house was repainted and cleaned before we moved in.

He manages 16 other proporties and treats it like his job. We live up to our obligations (pay rent, bills, respect the property etc.) and in return he provides an excellent service.
 
jeff70 said:
Depressing. Not one landlord, and a select group on askaboutmoney at that, would care to say they are better than I have described. Depressing. Is it any wonder we are where we are. What has brought us to this depressing state where people offering services to others couldn't give a monkeys.
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I'm a landlord and I agree with your first post. For the past few years we (me and family) have had a queue of non nationals (we have a preference for these, least favourite being Irish if you want to know) for whenever a tenant leaves as they have told us other accommodation is dreadful and some of these I've seen myself. All my current tenants are brillant. I care very much that they are in warm, clean housing. But I can give you the nightmare tenant's stories I have as well if you wish. I can't even count the number of prospective tenant's who don't show up at the agreed time, but one just accepts that's the way it is.
 
Dont worry OP.
They'll be running you down too, when speaking to their friends and next landlords too.

People just love to hate anyone who they have to give money to. The tax man, the landlord, the publican, the tv license, Bin charges, the local shop.

You'll never hear a good word said about them. But if one of them was present during the discussion they will be exempt from the roasting :)

Thats Ireland for you.

If you want to see the proof go and visit some other properties for rent in your area. I bet they are almost in as good a condition as your own.
 
I've also had tenants say that a lot of properties they have looked at prior to viewing mine were in terrible condition, dirty, damp in some cases and generally had shabby furnishings as well.

I wouldn't rent anything to a tenant that I wouldn't live in myself and that's why I always make sure the place is spotless, freshly painted with good, clean furnishings.

On particular tenant came to view the house last year with his wife and 3 kids. He commented on how clean and well furnished the house was, only seconds later to allow his 4 year-old daughter to jump on the sofa with her shoes on without batting an eyelid! :rolleyes:

Needless to say, I didn't choose them as tenants.
 
delgirl said:
, only seconds later to allow his 4 year-old daughter to jump on the sofa with her shoes on without batting an eyelid!

.
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My kids do this all the time,and on the beds too. That's what 4 year olds do? They particularly like making houses out of the cushions on the couch. Or walking along the top of them. They are banned from the living room and jumping on beds but this doesn't work. But I have managed to get them to remove their shoes before they get up to anything as this is beyond the pale.


I agree with Minion's post that their is a certain amount of negativity to landlords simply for the fact that the tenant's pays money to them, this has cropped up on AAM many times.
 
Read todays post from suimhneac under the heading "how much notice to landlord?"
No comment required.
 
round1 said:
Read todays post from suimhneac under the heading "how much notice to landlord?"
No comment required.
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Just read that.

Sounds like every landlord I have ever had (late 80s to mid 90s). I have had nothing but bad experiences with landlords - witholding deposits, leaks, damp, major H &S issues, turning off heating in the middle of winter... etc etc

AFAIK every one of them receiving undeclared rent too.

Contract? You're having a laugh....
 
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