Time-Wasting Tenants Are A Distraction For Landlords
One-in-four landlords say they have been plagued by time-wasting tenants with nonsensical complaints, including the changing of a light bulb, research reveals.
The findings from The Mortgage Lender highlights some of the difficulties facing residential landlords today.
The top issues that landlords say they experience with their tenants place property damage in first place for 39%.
In second place is nonsensical complaints for 26%, followed by tenants who have racked up arrears of up to three months for 23%.
Landlords have dealt with furniture damage and theft
Also, 20% of landlords say they have dealt with furniture damage and theft, while 19% of landlords say they have tenants with arrears of more than three months and 19% say tenants have left unpaid utility and other bills.
When landlords were asked what type of tenants are responsible for their issues, half said a single family, while 40% said a single person had been responsible.
Just one in eight of landlords who responded said their issue was with benefit recipients.
The deputy chief executive of The Mortgage Lender, Peter Beaumont, said: "The research suggests that becoming a landlord is not for the faint-hearted and finding tenants who look after a property and pay rent as well as being able to change a light bulb does not appear to be easy."
Warning issued over Manchester's proposed rent controls
Meanwhile, the Residential Landlords' Association (RLA) says that a plan to introduce rent controls in Manchester would reduce drastically the number of homes to rent in the city.
They say this will then make a tenant's life more difficult in finding somewhere to live.
The RLA's response followed the publication of a report for the government to grant powers to the area's Combined Authority to control high rents by introducing 'rent pressure zones'.
The RLA's policy manager, John Stewart said: "On the face of it, rent controls are attractive but it is a populist and simplistic approach to the increasing cost of housing.
‘They will make the tenant's situation worse’
"In reality, they will make the tenant's situation worse and the evidence from where they have been introduced shows they reduce supply and also push up housing costs."
Now the RLA is urging the Mayor of Greater Manchester to work with landlords in the private rental sector in a bid to boost rented home supply that will meet the growing demand from tenants.
The RLA also points to a similar proposal that has been made to the Mayor of London, warning that strict rent controls will divide tenants into 'winners and losers'.
