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Information Corner
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Inventories: What is an inventory? An
inventory is the itemisation of goods and their condition.
Who
needs one? Why
? The
property is unfurnished - do I still need an inventory ? The
trouble is that many landlords believe that if their property
is unfurnished, then they do not need an inventory, because
there is very little that can be stolen, broken or damaged.
However, just think about your beautiful magnolia walls
being painted pink and purple ( I have nothing against pink
or purple - just not my cup of tea) and the tenant leaves
them in that state. You deduct monies from the tenants'
deposit and the tenant sues you for the money. Now prove
to a judge that you had an inventory prepared by an independent
third party and that the state of the property had been
noted prior to the tenant inhabiting the property. You can't,
the judge sides with the tenant and you not only have to
give the money back, but also have to pay costs as well
and for the tenant. Not only that you have to pay for the
redecoration of the property!
Every
property should have an inventory. All inventories should be prepared
by an inventory clerk. Inventory clerks are the independent persons
who will go through your property with a tooth comb and note everything,
Even for a 1 bed flat, the inventory can still run into many pages
surprisingly. If you prepare an inventory yourself and the tenant
disagrees with the inventory he /she may refuse to sign it. You
need an signature on the inventory to prove that it is valid.
A tenant is unlikely to disagree with an inventory clerk though,
because they are dealing with a professional person who is qualified
in that particular field. A
judge will not look favourably upon an inventory prepared by a
landlord, because they will see it as an amateur attempt to fulfil
a duty. Judges are notoriously favourable to tenants and they
will tend to find in their favour every step of the way unless
there is absolute solid evidence pointing the other way. Take
for example a case that happened to me back in 1990. We had a
professional inventory prepared and the time came for the check
out. The landlord rang and said that the inventory clerk was not
available and that he would pay for one of us to do it instead.
A big landlord with a lot of property with us, we were not going
to argue. So I duly went to the property had a chat with the tenants,
checked through the inventory and left. When we compared the check
in report with the check out report it was apparent that there
had been quite a lot of damage and that the property had not been
professionally cleaned as stated it should be in the tenancy agreement.
We deducted just over half the deposit. The tenant kicked up a
fuss and we pointed out that we were only comparing the inventories
and that was what we had based our judgements on. The tenant took
us to court and a year or so later we sat in front of a judge
who asked who had done the inventory report. When told I had he
asked me how long I had been doing inventories for and what qualified
me to do them. I duly answered that I do not usually do them but
had had little choice this time. As for qualifications and training
I pointed out that I had neither. When he asked me how I could
give impartial advice it mattered not what I said as he pointed
out that I was paid by the Landlord as his agent and therefore
could not possibly be impartial. The case failed against us and
we spent more money than we wished refunding the tenant. An
inventory clerk will make an inventory, give a check in report
and do a check out report. These are three vital documents that
a landlord should have for each property. Making the inventory
will normally only happen once, though I do suggest a new one
every 5 years. The inventory manual is then used for all check
ins and check outs. As
to the cost of an inventory, in our agreements, the landlord pays
for the make and check in report whilst the tenant pays for the
check out report. As the tenant has signed the agreement, they
are agreeing to pay for the check out report. If they refuse to
then you can take the monies out of the deposit. So,
in conclusion, always have an inventory made and checked by an
inventory clerk. If you can not get hold of one, ring a local
estate agent who does lettings and you should be able to get the
name and telephone number of one. it is vitally important to have
an inventory. Although another expense, it could actually save
you money in the long run.
Search for an inventory company: click here.
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Tenancy Agreements: |
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