House needs repair - property agent pushing for answer!

Hi all,

I hope someone may be able to advise me on this situation if possible (wasn't sure if its the correct forum either,sorry?).

I have just got a tenant for my house in Liverpool (not an investor by the way, tried to sell but no interest so decided to rent it out for a while). Anyway, last Wednesday the agent I employed to manage the property called me to say the tenant, who just moved in a couple of weeks previously) had called as there was water 'streaming' in all the windows. The agent went out to inspect it and told me that whilst it was damp, the water was not 'streaming' in the windows. The damp was underneath the windows and there was no presence of mould etc. Also, the windows were only replaced about 4 years ago.

Now, I left the house in March and so therefore it has been empty since then and the heating has not been on since so I (naively perhaps) thought it had something to do with this but the agent just called me today to say she had two quotes from builders to repoint the brickwork, repair gutters and replace lead flashing on front of house. The quotes are in the region of £1k stg. However, when I said I wanted to see the quotes in writing along with the builders details she did get a bit snappy and then said the tenant had called again today threatening to leave the property. She faxed over the quotes and said she needed an answer today! I told her I would review the quotes and call first thing in the morning.

However, while the quotes detail the work to be done, there is no contact details for either builder! Not even a phone number that I can call to speak to them direct.

What I'm asking other AAM's is, would you think I am being unreasonable for wanting to speak to either builder before I give the go-ahead for the work? £1k stg is a lot of money that is not readily accessible. Obviously if the work needs doing that is not an issue, its the fact that it seems that I can't contact these people direct and also that the agent is pushing for a response first thing and the tenant is threatening to leave.

Any insights or advice much appreciated.

Kind regards

LL

Unreasonable is too strong a word; but I think you may be erring on the side of caution.

The fact that the agent is not keen to put the builder in touch with you could of course be sinister;

However, it is equally possible (more possible I think) that it may be perfectly reasonable. If I were a small builder and I had an established relationship with a reputable property managing agent, it is entirely possible that I would want one point of contact only - i.e. the agent - and that I would not want to have to deal with phone queries from individual property owners. Likewise, if I were a property agent and I had a couple of builders who regularly do jobs for me, I would be keen to ensure that they were not hassled directly by my clients, which might in turn make them less keen to do quick reliable work for me.

Given the (relatively) small sum involved, I would be inclined to just give the agent the go-ahead; I would probably check later to make sure the work had been done. If the work was not done, and if I had been charged for it, I would certainly go with the nuclear option, but I think repairs would need to be more than stg 1k for me to start second guessing the agent.

If the agent had hatched a plan to swindle you, it would not be beyond her wit to have a 'builder' who you could phone. Direct contact would give you the illusion of control, but it is only an illusion. Short of being on site, you really have to trust your agent.

Hi MOB,

Many thanks for your detailed response, I had not thought of it in that way. I think what really annoyed me was the fact I felt pushed into making a decision without seeing any written quotes and also that the agent never let me know that she had arranged for two builders to inspect it.

As you say, the sum involved is not huge so I will agree to it in the morning but will insist on a full invoice for my own records on completion. I will also ask for a guarantee with the work (I am assuming that this would be a normal request??).

Once again, thanks for the time you have taken to respond.

Kind regards

LL

OP when you lived in the house did you have any damp problems. It's hardly something that just happened. I wouldn't necessarily disbelieve the agent but you have not been long enough with them to know if they are trustworthy. I see no reason why you cannot talk directly to the builders if you are paying for the work. Is is possible for you to take a 'surprise' visit to Liverpool to have a look yourself and talk to the tenant. Or have you a relative in the UK who could take a look.

You learnt a painful lesson there! ALWAYS ensure heating is left on when you leave a house empty for any extended period of time.

None of the problems the builders have quoted to fix have anything to do with leaving the heating off.

BudaRich said:

You learnt a painful lesson there! ALWAYS ensure heating is left on when you leave a house empty for any extended period of time.

Click to expand...

I left the heating off on the advice of the gas engineer I got to service the boiler a couple of days before I left - granted though, we both assumed it would only be empty for a couple of months max!

Thanks for all the responses though, most appreciated.

Kind regards

LL

I don't know if this matter is now settled, but I carry out maintance for a few letting agents. It would not be unheard of to speak with the home owners to discuss problems. After all they own the place and will be the ones paying the bill in the end.

I hav similar prob with a new house I am living in - talked to a friend who has a degree in building science and he advised me to open windows or vents more often as air needs to be circulated to avoid vapours collecting and causing drops on windows and walls causing mould etc...

Tried this and it seems that the problem is solved....


I think that getting quotes is reasonable and talking to and questioning anyone who is going to do work for u is not unreasonable...... As u r in Ireland is the agent on the make...... €1,000 stg is a significant sum but not so large a sum for many people to give the go ahead without further investigation...

Best of luck