Deposit Return Deductions

TippCashel

Hi all

I'd just like to ask a question about getting deposit returned.

We finished up in our accommodation 24th May and returned keys that day - No issues there.

11 days later I emailed the agency about the house deposit return (in my name and bank account) and they emailed back to say there were a few issues with the state of the house that they were chatting with the LL about and they'd get back to me.

Today the agency rang me saying the house would need a deep clean and the back garden would need tidying (ie a trimming on the outskirts of it as the main part of the grass was fine). There were a few other things like loose hinges etc that they mentioned but it's mainly things like bathroom grime and the garden they were talking about.

He mentioned we could sort things if we wanted but specified it would need a deep clean (something I'm a little bugged about, because what is a 'deep' clean) - Yes there's still a bit of tidying up on the edges per se that could've been done but I dunno

Similar with the back garden - We actually liked it the way we had it (and left it). Unfortunately as the landlord knew, the garden did become a bog in rain which made it a disaster to take care of.

Mainly my questioning would be - For a €950 deposit, the agency were estimating the deduction would be around €400.

Annoyed me because 3.5 years there - No issues.
Rent price was going up to €1150 or so and will be that for next tenants anyway.
House will need another cleaning before new tenants in all likelihood too.
Garden would've needed to be trimmed probably numerous times again before next tenants.

I dunno really - But I'm just annoyed

Browney7

Outline to the agency that you are dissatisfied with what they are proposing and disagree. Open an RTB dispute if you're not happy with the proposal and the agency doesn't relent. Presumably you are in a new property now but may need a reference in future so be careful on that front.

TippCashel

Thanks for the response.

I am unsure how to go about raising a dispute but like you said - I'll give one more proposal to the agency to explain things and then if there's any issues I will check out a dispute.

The timing of moving out worked out quite well - Self employed and moved into empty home house, so no worries about references etc.

Dav010

TippCashel wrote: »

He mentioned we could sort things if we wanted but specified it would need a deep clean (something I'm a little bugged about, because what is a 'deep' clean) - Yes there's still a bit of tidying up on the edges per se that could've been done but I dunno

Similar with the back garden - We actually liked it the way we had it (and left it). Unfortunately as the landlord knew, the garden did become a bog in rain which made it a disaster to take care of.

Sounds like you are agreeing with the Letting Agent, May was the driest in 170 years.

dennyk

You're responsible for leaving the property in the same state in which you received it, minus ordinary wear and tear. Loose hinges and such would generally be wear and tear, unless the damage is clearly caused by abuse or negligence. Cleaning the property and caring for the garden, though, would have been your responsibility, assuming you took possession of the property in a clean state (and if you didn't, hopefully you have lots of pictures showing the original condition). If you left it with "bathroom grime" and untrimmed weeds growing up on the edges of the garden, it's reasonable for the owner to bill you for cleaning and mowing, if they pay a third party to do it (they can't charge you for their own time if they decide to tackle the job themselves, only for their material costs). €400 sounds like a reasonable estimate for a deep clean of the whole property and some hours of landscaping work.

TippCashel

Appreciate the feedback.

I agree with the LL in the sense that the garden becomes a bog and was hard to take care of but I think we did a fair job with it. It’s not that it’s unsightly currently etc.

In regards to anything in the house - There’s nothing that’s beyond wear-and-tear eg negligence causing broken hinges etc

Same with bits of grime - We did a good clean of the house when leaving and I don’t believe it warrants what would be considered a deep clean at all.

Leaving the house the way we got it wouldn’t be fully possible (4 years) but we believe it’s left in a fair manner for that length of time stay.

MacDanger

How was the house when ye moved in? If it was spotless as it might be after a "deep clean" then it's fair enough to hand it back in that state, if it was clean as it would be after a normal clean then I'd raise a case with the RTB against them. If it's something in between, then maybe offer to pay for 50% of the cleaning

Same with the garden, how much different is it now to how it was when ye moved in?

If you do accept a deposit reduction, you should look for receipts for any work completed

JJJackal

I think if you left obvious dirt ie grime in the bathroom and the garden is a bit overgrown at the edges the landlord has a good shout.

If its only a small job (as you suggest) why not just go and pull the weeds, give the bathroom a wash, the house a hoover and tighten the hinges with a screw driver?