What to expect from a HAP inspector report?

dancingqueen

icarus_67 wrote: »

Well what happens if the landlord can't afford these new regulations and has to kick the HAP tenant out and just get a private tenant? Have you ever thought about that? It's ridiculous.

Well like any profitable business, it is up to the landlord to ensure they can maintain the property they own so it is fit for renting. If I was a tenant in a property, I can report a landlord for not providing something within minimum regulations. You can't just kick out a HAP tenant either. I'm glad you're not my landlord.

lawrencesummers

Don’t look at a HAP report as a cost.


Look at it as peace of mind that your house has been professionally inspected and the tenants living there are safe.

A few latches on windows is well worth it to prevent a child falling out a window.
An electrical cert is worth it to know someone is t electrocuted.


Any costs associated with bringing it up to scratch are deductible from your tax bill. Think of it as a getting a free engineers inspection

dancingqueen

icarus_67 wrote: »

Is it just habitable rooms that need to be ventilated? Like bedrooms? Not every room?

Every room needs to be ventilated.

They will test the strength of the extractor in the bathroom, to make sure it takes out adequate steam from the shower. If it is 15 years old it probably isn't efficient enough. Extractor fan is required over the cooker. Drying facilities are required, whether in the form of outside space to dry clothes or a tumble dryer/combi washing machine drier. They will check for window restrictors on windows where the bottom of the window is 1.4m above ground. They will check for a fire extinguisher and evacuation plan in the event of a fire, gas boiler serviced within 1 year and carbon monoxide alarm. A microwave and kettle need to be provided. You can view all these things online, standard minimum regulations for tenants.

coolbeans

icarus_67 wrote: »

Well what happens if the landlord can't afford these new regulations and has to either substantially raise the rent or kick the HAP tenant out and just get a private tenant? Have you ever thought about that? It's ridiculous.

Well then the landlord should be asking themselves can they afford to be a landlord in the first instance? Throwing a thousand quid at a house should not be a big deal if you've managed income right to pay for maintenance etc. And yes, I'm a landlord.

lawrencesummers

icarus_67 wrote: »

Well I'm really worried about the costs involved. Especially the whole vent installation thing. I would need to install 4 vents in order to make sure the property complies with the regulations.

Any costs associated with repairs is deductible from your tax liability.

So you either pay to have the work done, or you pay more tax.

icarus_67

dancingqueen wrote: »

Well like any profitable business, it is up to the landlord to ensure they can maintain the property they own so it is fit for renting. If I was a tenant in a property, I can report a landlord for not providing something within minimum regulations. You can't just kick out a HAP tenant either. I'm glad you're not my landlord.

Well I certainly have no intention of kicking them out. I'm not a monster. But I'll most definitely will have to raise the rent to cover these costs.

So all of these silly regulations are going to affect the tenant more than anyone.

icarus_67

lawrencesummers wrote: »

Any costs associated with repairs is deductible from your tax liability.

So you either pay to have the work done, or you pay more tax.

So I'm actually not really losing any money in the end?

dancingqueen

icarus_67 wrote: »

Well I certainly have no intention of kicking them out. I'm not a monster. But I'll most definitely will have to raise the rent to cover these costs.

So all of these silly regulations are going to affect the tenant more than anyone.

Hate to break it to you but you can't do that either. The HAP crowd will have accepted the rent initially agreed before the inspection.

Regulations are to protect both tenant and landlord. Silly to you, not silly to most.

icarus_67

dancingqueen wrote: »

Hate to break it to you but you can't do that either. The HAP crowd will have accepted the rent initially agreed before the inspection.

Regulations are to protect both tenant and landlord. Silly to you, not silly to most.

What do you mean? I receive the full amount that's allowed from HAP and also a I receive a top-up from the tenant.

Isn't it at my discretion to increase the amount of top up I receive from the tenant? The HAP crowd have no involvement with the top-up that I receive.

mrslancaster

icarus_67 wrote: »

What do you mean? I receive the full amount that's allowed from HAP and also a I receive a top-up from the tenant.

Isn't it at my discretion to increase the amount of top up I receive from the tenant? The HAP crowd have no involvement with the top-up that I receive.

Is the house in a RPZ? You cant just raise the rent immediatley to cover your costs, there's regulations about how often rents can increase

icarus_67

mrslancaster wrote: »

Is the house in a RPZ? You cant just raise the rent immediatley to cover your costs, there's regulations about how often rents can increase

No, it's not in a RPZ. The last time I raised rent was a couple of years ago. I'm pretty sure enough time has passed so that I can raise it again although I'll have to look it up.

However if I can cover these costs by deducting them in my tax bill I may not have to raise the rent. But I'm not entirely sure how that works.

Ace2007

icarus_67 wrote: »

What do you mean? I receive the full amount that's allowed from HAP and also a I receive a top-up from the tenant.

Isn't it at my discretion to increase the amount of top up I receive from the tenant? The HAP crowd have no involvement with the top-up that I receive.

Is the top up part from the tenant under the table or does the council know about it?

handlemaster

icarus_67 wrote: »

Not always no? The house I'm currently in and the house I grew up in never had vents in each room. It's total overkill.

Normally people would open a window when they need to to let fresh air in. A new vent in each room would cost 250 Euros each approximately. It's crazy.

approximately. It's crazy.[/quote]

Its the rules they go by. I had electrics to upgrade house electrics not exactly to the code of today. Vent to input. Locks, plaster work after work etc. Cost 4k approx

icarus_67

Ace2007 wrote: »

Is the top up part from the tenant under the table or does the council know about it?

The council is fully aware of it and it's a completely normal practice. It's very common for a tenant's rent to exceed the maximum amount that they can receive from HAP so that's where the "top-up" comes from.

mrslancaster

icarus_67 wrote: »

No, it's not in a RPZ. The last time I raised rent was a couple of years ago. I'm pretty sure enough time has passed so that I can raise it again although I'll have to look it up.

However if I can cover these costs by deducting them in my tax bill I may not have to raise the rent. But I'm not entirely sure how that works.

If you include the cost of certain repairs in your rental tax return it will reduce your taxable income.

dancingqueen

icarus_67 wrote: »

No, it's not in a RPZ. The last time I raised rent was a couple of years ago. I'm pretty sure enough time has passed so that I can raise it again although I'll have to look it up.

However if I can cover these costs by deducting them in my tax bill I may not have to raise the rent. But I'm not entirely sure how that works.

You can't just raise the rent. Outside an RPZ, rent cannot be raised for 24 months after the start of a new tenancy. I suggest you read up things, or you could get yourself into a bit of bother.

icarus_67

mrslancaster wrote: »

If you include the cost of certain repairs in your rental tax return it will reduce your taxable income.

Thanks for that information but I don't think this covers things that need to be installed in a property in order for it to meeting new building regulatory standards?

icarus_67

handlemaster wrote: »

Its the rules they go by. I had electrics to upgrade house electrics not exactly to the code of today. Vent to input. Locks, plaster work after work etc. Cost 4k approx

Woah. 4k? Were you able to deduct those costs on your tax returns in any way?

icarus_67

dancingqueen wrote: »

You can't just raise the rent. Outside an RPZ, rent cannot be raised for 24 months after the start of a new tenancy. I suggest you read up things, or you could get yourself into a bit of bother.

Well that's the thing. It's not a new tenancy. The tenant has been living there for years. The last time I raised rent was a year and a half ago. So does that mean I'm allowed to raise the rent in 6 months time?

dancingqueen

icarus_67 wrote: »

Well that's the thing. It's not a new tenancy. The tenant has been living there for years. The last time I raised rent was a year and a half ago. So does that mean I'm allowed to raise the rent in 6 months time?

No. Because the HAP agreement is a new tenancy, they are your new tenant, in effect. I would check this though with the PRTB. I believe that once they accept to pay the rent on behalf of the tenant that amount stands for the 24 months.

Tenants are also afforded part 6 tenancy rights, previously part 4.

icarus_67

Moonbeam wrote: »

Do not worry about it, once the house is in a good state and any legal requirements for renting are met. Then it is only little things like in my case the extractor fan needed new filters.

Did you have vents in each room though as per the regulations?

mrslancaster

dancingqueen wrote: »

No. Because the HAP agreement is a new tenancy, they are your new tenant, in effect.

How does that work? Its the same tenants who are there six years just that HAP are paying rent to the landlord on their behalf. The tenants are still private tenants and come under RTB regulations. HAP ie the council are not the tenants, thats a different scheme

icarus_67

dancingqueen wrote: »

No. Because the HAP agreement is a new tenancy, they are your new tenant, in effect. I would check this though with the PRTB. I believe that once they accept to pay the rent on behalf of the tenant that amount stands for the 24 months.

Tenants are also afforded part 6 tenancy rights, previously part 4.

I've read about what you mentioned:

"Tenancies commencing after the 24th December 2016
For tenancies that began after the 24th of December 2016, after the first 6 month probationary period of the tenancy, the tenant secures the right to remain in the property for a further five and a half years and the tenancy is referred to as a 'Part 4 tenancy.'"

So does that mean that a tenant can remain in a rented property for 5 years without being evicted? I don't understand?

What if they just stop paying rent? Are they still protected from being evicted in this case?

Ace2007

icarus_67 wrote: »

The council is fully aware of it and it's a completely normal practice. It's very common for a tenant's rent to exceed the maximum amount that they can receive from HAP so that's where the "top-up" comes from.

What's normal practice and what's allowed under law may not be the same. For instance what if you put up the "top up" rate and the tenant can't pay it - are you going to give them notice ? Are you allow to give them notice for that reason?

ztoical

icarus_67 wrote: »

Well what happens if the landlord can't afford these new regulations and has to either substantially raise the rent or kick the HAP tenant out and just get a private tenant? Have you ever thought about that? It's ridiculous.

You would still need to meet regulations with a private tenant, these aren't HAP specific. I was renting my house until recently to private tenant. Had inspection and had to pay around 300euro - Gas cert, electrical cert, added a fire blanket, fix a crack on one of the hallway sockets and one of the outside lights wasn't working (I wasn't aware of either issue and would have had them fixed had I known) House is about 15 years old with vents in every room so no issue there. Wasn't asked to put child-locks in.

icarus_67

Ace2007 wrote: »

What's normal practice and what's allowed under law may not be the same. For instance what if you put up the "top up" rate and the tenant can't pay it - are you going to give them notice ? Are you allow to give them notice for that reason?

Well the tenant and I openly discussed the top up with the council during their HAP application and this was considered normal by them. I also discussed this kind of thing with someone in the local authority and it was totally normal.
There's very few apartments to rent in Ireland whereby the maximum HAP payment would cover the entirety of the rent. Do you know of many rented homes etc whereby the rent is under 400 Euros a month? Especially in cities etc?

Apologies, what do you mean by "give them notice"? Give them notice that I will evict them if they don't pay?

icarus_67

ztoical wrote: »

You would still need to meet regulations with a private tenant, these aren't HAP specific. I was renting my house until recently to private tenant. Had inspection and had to pay around 300euro - Gas cert, electrical cert, added a fire blanket, fix a crack on one of the hallway sockets and one of the outside lights wasn't working (I wasn't aware of either issue and would have had them fixed had I known) House is about 15 years old with vents in every room so no issue there. Wasn't asked to put child-locks in.

That's really interesting that you didn't have to put child locks in. That would mean there was some discretion involved.

I don't understand....who inspected your house in the first place if the tenant wasn't on HAP?

mrslancaster

icarus_67 wrote: »

I've read about what you mentioned:

"Tenancies commencing after the 24th December 2016
For tenancies that began after the 24th of December 2016, after the first 6 month probationary period of the tenancy, the tenant secures the right to remain in the property for a further five and a half years and the tenancy is referred to as a 'Part 4 tenancy.'"

So does that mean that a tenant can remain in a rented property for 5 years without being evicted? I don't understand?

What if they just stop paying rent? Are they still protected from being evicted in this case?

Part4 rights gives tenants security to remain in the property and there are limited reasons that the tenancy can be terminated, eg if owner is selling or needs it for personal use plus some other reasons. If tenants stop paying rent, a landlord can file a dispute with the RTB but from posts I read on boards that can cause all kinds of grief for landlords as the process is very slow.

Edit: restraints are usually on new windows.

Ace2007

icarus_67 wrote: »

Well the tenant and I openly discussed the top up with the council during their HAP application and this was considered normal by them. I also discussed this kind of thing with someone in the local authority and it was totally normal.
There's very few apartments to rent in Ireland whereby the maximum HAP payment would cover the entirety of the rent. Do you know of many rented homes etc whereby the rent is under 400 Euros a month? Especially in cities etc?

Apologies, what do you mean by "give them notice"? Give them notice that I will evict them if they don't pay?

I am aware of the practice, i just don't know if that's grounds for giving an individual notice if they can't pay any more.

HAP payments differ from county to county and from families to couples to individuals.

icarus_67

Ace2007 wrote: »

I am aware of the practice, i just don't know if that's grounds for giving an individual notice if they can't pay any more.

HAP payments differ from county to county and from families to couples to individuals.

Sure how else can a landlord increase the rent in this situation?

It is up to me to increase the rent if it is within the open market rate of rent in the area. The tenant pays the current rent through a combination of their own income and what they get via HAP.

If I want to increase the rent and the tenant is unable to pay I would imagine I have grounds to tell them to leave? They can't just stay there indefinitely?