A middle-aged landlord in Liverpool recently found himself at his wit’s end due to a rogue tenant. As reported by the Liverpool Echo, Steve Parry, a 55 years old surveyor ended up losing upwards of £9,500 because of a tenant in one of his properties. His ordeal is a great example of a landlord’s vulnerability.

Non-payment of rent and eviction

Steve served the tenant of his Wavertree property with a notice to quit the property after she went back multiple times on her promise to pay up the rent due to him. She had also breached the tenancy agreement by keeping a dog. He subsequently sent her two more notices and eventually had to go to the court and get an order for possession of his property. But Steve regained actual physical possession of his property only months later when he engaged court bailiffs.

Wreckage

It was only after the tenant left the property that Steve saw the damage inflicted upon it. There were heaps of junk in various parts of the house. The doors were broken while the cupboards had been pulled out. To top it all, the ceiling of the bathroom had come apart as a result of a flood in the bathroom.

Break – up of losses

Steve believes that he lost around £6,000 due to the damages and £2,000 as unpaid rent. He also spent £1,500 on court fees.

Impact on Steve

Steve who had looked forward to spending his retired life comfortably with the income from his two houses, is disheartened by the entire incident. He has decided to not give his properties on rent to tenants who pay rent through benefits, even though he knows that most of the tenants who depend on benefits are decent.

Takeaway(s)

The major takeaway from the whole episode is that there must be more stringent laws to prevent landlords from being taken for a ride. Landlords too are regular human beings doing business. There shouldn't be much delay in imparting justice to landlords when tenants act unfairly against them.

Also, tenants who live on benefits must realise that any bad behaviour from their part will affect many others who rely on benefits in the future.

Let’s hope that this event in Steve’s life serves as a wake-up call to the tenants and the authorities. Otherwise, the mental and financial health of many more landlords will be in jeopardy.