Tenants moving out - who needs to be realistic?

I recently read an article in the Guardian by Penny Anderson who blogs under the name rentergirl. The central point about her article was that she thinks that landlords expectations on the condition a rental property should be left in on 'check out' are unrealistic. She says:

"Some landlords expect tenants to treat their property like a museum. We mustn't actually use the furniture, and should probably hover over carpets so as not to wear them out, using an elaborate system of wires or magic flying boots. It is therefore inevitable that most disputes solved in arbitration by the Deposit Protection Service concern cleaning and damage."

'Fair wear & tear'

The issue of what constitutes 'fair wear and tear' is a difficult one and like valuing a property it sometimes can be more than an art than a science.

However, what many tenants don't appreciate that whilst after 6 months is over and they move on to another nice new shiny apartment which they can soil. The 'bombsite' left behind has to be painted, cleaned, ovens have to be degreased. Yes, ovens can be cleaned. This comes as a shock to many tenants!

Since the introduction of the Tenancy Deposit Scheme the whole subject of the 'check out' by the tenant has become more fraught for many landlords who now do not hold directly their tenants deposits. I'm sure much to the relief of Penny and the rest of the tenant class.

'Tug-of war'

Penny describes vacating a property as a 'tug-of-war' as landlord and tenant compete to impose their perspective of 'property reality'.

All we can say is that all this reinforces the need for both landlord and tenants to have a fully detailed inventory that they agree at the outset of the tenancy.

Property Hawk allows landlords to produce their own inventory in a couple of minutes.

So what are you waiting for....

Landlord insurance - direct