Another day, another horror story about a landlord. Deposits disappearing. Being whacked with a £200 bill for a broken toilet roll holder (oh no, it was an antique, look here's a picture of it on Antiques Roadshow, ok that's enough looking, no looking too closely). Illegally cramming too many people into one flat – I will never forget the horror of viewing a property in Soho that had put four bunk beds in a double room and was renting out each bed for £500 a month. It's enough to make you want to just stay home with your parents and face down that two hour commute head on. But there's another way, friends.
While landlords are, I think, that kind of magical being who *literally no one* seems to have had a perfect relationship with (seriously, if one of you has a landlord you think is BRILLIANT, I need to hear from you), there are ways to make things better. Certain safeguards to set up, and guidelines to follow, if you will, for optimised renting. Make the below your new renting bible, and you should manage to keep off Dazed's next article about landlords who won't allow baked beans in the house and insist on being paid in 50p coins only.
1. Photograph EVERYTHING
An obvious point but worth repeating. Photograph every stain, no matter how tiny and every scuffed wall, no matter how small, as soon as you move in. Then send it through to your landlord as an inventory – this should help prevent you from being charged £300 for a scuff mark you KNOW was there when you moved in.
2. Get repairs and mould treatment written into your contract
We've all heard horror stories, like tenants getting mould in their flat, developing chest infections and the like from the landlord's refusal to fix it, then the landlords painting over it quick-sharp when a court case is threatened. The best thing to do to prevent you being the star member of your mates' next pub story is to get it written in your contract that things like mould, disrepair and broken items are the landlord's responsibility to fix.
3. Make sure your deposit is protected in a scheme
First things first. You need to know that landlords are REQUIRED BY LAW to put your deposit in scheme like the Tenancy Deposit Scheme (TDS) or Deposit Protection Scheme (DPS). They're also required to let you know which scheme your deposit is in within 14 days of doing this. What does the scheme do? Simple: if there's a dispute over how much your landlord is deducting out of your deposit, the money gets taken by the scheme to be settled by them, an unbiased third party. So you can submit evidence, and be heard out fair and square. Make sure you ask about which scheme your deposit is with – if your landlord hasn’t protected it, they will have to return it in full, or risk court action against them.
4. Rent from a listed and approved landlord
Your university should have a list of preferred landlords and agents – check to find landlords and letting agencies that have been approved by them. Failing that, there should be a local accreditation scheme you can use to get reputable names.
5. Get legal advice
A lot of law firms do free 15-minute consultations – use those to bring up any issues you might have with your contract (after you've read it cover to cover!). You can also do this if you suspect your landlord is acting illegally. If they are, you can stop paying rent. The main things to remember though? Your contract shouldn't contain any unfair clauses. It can't state: "the landlord can change the terms of the agreement whenever s/he likes." And it definitely shouldn't say that you have to pay for, or arrange, structural repairs — these are the landlord's responsibility.
6. Document everything
Paper trails are a thing guys. Get. Those. Receipts. If you discuss anything important in person or over the phone with your landlord, follow it up with an email. If your landlord verbally agrees or promises anything, get it in writing. Make sure you keep or make a note of all payments and correspondences you have with your estate agent and landlord. Because then if they try to dispute your version of events, you've got the hard evidence, bitch.
7. Stand your ground
Don't ask don't get. If you walk into your flat and it's filthy, if your landlord tries to tell you it's *totally normal* for you to be the one to pay for mould treatment, or they announce they're going to be renovating the whole flat while you're still there, know that that's NOT OK. Get your parents involved to fight your corner and don't roll over and take it!
