Would you have let them in?

We have butted heads a few times with our real estate. Here's a quick rundown.

1) it took 8 months of hassling them to get our garage door fixed. It would work with the remote whenever it wanted, and there was no button on the wall, so most of the time we were manually opening it from the button on the motor. They sent someone out to service it, and they said we were pressing the button the wrong way. Eventually they put a new motor in and wow, it works every time now.

2) The first inspection they did they came in and took photos without our permission. I had spent a few days cleaning the house, but on that actual day it was my mum's birthday, so we had all the grandkids around (10 in total) and the kitchen was a pigsty from presents and snack food and cake - and that was the exact time they decided to turn up at the door. So I let her in (she was quite snippy and rude) and then started to take pics. My sister called the real estate after they had left, and asked for copies of them which we have never received.

3) A few months ago (before DH finished his first semester of uni and was in exam week) they sent us a text message on the weekend and said that they had driven past our place and the front garden "Wasn't good enough" and we were to weed and mow the lawn asap. I think in the area we live in they should be grateful that we've paid rent every week because there are lots of people in this suburb that don't pay their rent... any hoo.....we told them DH was in exam week and he'll get to it after his exams. We aren't big on gardening any way (we admit it) but we think if the property isn't on the market and we have a year lease on it - whats the big deal really if we have a few weeds in our garden?

4) We asked if we could hang a boxing bag thing from the ceiling in the garage - obviously from a main structure point - and they refused on the basis that "given our financial status we wouldn't be able to afford to fix it if the ceiling caved in". :rolleyes:

So today - they rocked up at the door and said they were here to do an inspection. They didn't give us any notice, the house was of course, a pigsty like normal so DH didn't let them in. She cracked it, was really rude to him and said that she sent the notice 2 weeks ago. We never received it.

So - would you have let them in? DH can't stand them so wouldn't let her in.

Probably, but I can be a bit wussy in situations with 'authority' type figures though. I would have been mortified though.

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Probably, but I can be a bit wussy in situations with 'authority' type figures though. I would have been mortified though.

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haha yeah I'm glad I didn't open the door! DH is 6 foot 7 though so most people are pretty intimidated when they first meet him - especially if they are on the short side like I am!

no way! i wouldn't have let them in. i think your DH did the right thing! i would be leaving them ASAP though...!

You are well within your rights to refuse them. I do not let people come into my home without being given adequate notice.

However, if they were friendly agents I probably would have if I knew they would turn a blind eye to the mess (there's a big difference to an untidy home to a dirty home). Our home is often untidy but I know that it's "clean" underneath the washing, toys and school books!

With regards to the maintenance of the front garden, I think you'll find this on your lease. It is the responsibility of the tenant to maintain the upkeep of the property, ie, mowing the lawns and weeding the garden. Some tenancy agreements will cover additional items but, as I say, this should be on your lease. If you don't have a copy, you can request an additional one.

I probably would have let them in, but I can be a bit of a pushover. Good on your DH for not letting them in!

Given the way you've been treated in the past, no way!

They my well have sent a letter a fortnight ago but given you said you hadn't received it they should have accepted that and made an appointment for a few days time.



We had a letter from our RE not show up one time re an inspection. The house was in ok state so we let them in. But they have since sent our letters registered if coming to the house rather than PO box. For security for both of us.

Good on your DH for stopping them entering.

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With regards to the maintenance of the front garden, I think you'll find this on your lease. It is the responsibility of the tenant to maintain the upkeep of the property, ie, mowing the lawns and weeding the garden. Some tenancy agreements will cover additional items but, as I say, this should be on your lease. If you don't have a copy, you can request an additional one.

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Hmm I'll have to try and find it..... It probably says reasonable state or something, and my reasonable state is probably a lot different to their reasonable state LOL!!!!

They have to legally give you 24hrs notice so even if they did send a letter I would of suggested that they call rather than send a letter and if they would like to make another day and time.

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my reasonable state is probably a lot different to their reasonable state LOL!!!!

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:rofl: i'm the same with our garden! hilarious

No way! My DH would have threatened to call the police if they didn't leave too. Good on your DH for not letting them in. After the experiences we've had with some not so friendly rental agents, my attitude is stuff em. Know your rights and stick to it. We had them turn up without notice once. Unfortunately we weren't home to not let them in. Not happy campers here. I tell anyone who asks never to rent through that agency (as tenant or landlord) if they can avoid it.

I'd also be rather concerned about the structural integrity of the house given the response in point 4. Unfortunately I think it is within their rights to say no to that one without giving a reason. The reason they gave is rather stupid IMO.

i wouldnt have let them in!

as far as the garden is concerned, we have rented our house out and I would hope the tenants are looking after the garden and lawn and doing the weeding. i know our property manager spoke to them about the state of the garden at their last inspection. it is part of the tenants responsibility to upkeep the gardens and lawns.

As a landlord I would expect the garden to be maintained in the state I rented the house in. My tenant's lease runs for a year and I don't expect it to be overgrown between inspections, if you know what I mean. I think to me, it shows a general lack of care towards my investment.

And I probably would have said no to a boxing thingo hanging from the roof as well. My tenants put up cafe blinds in the patio without my knowldege and I can't say that I'm pleased that once they leave, I'll have the holes left in the wood from where they attached the blinds. I have asked that they restore it to the way they found it once they vacate.

This is in part because, should they move on, I want to make sure the house is in a state that means I will find new tenants, or I will be able to sell it, while making as few repairs to it as possible. I think it's fair to say no to modifications to a house that you own. If it were something that made no material change to my house, I wouldn't have a problem. I have given them permission to have a dog, as I had one myself when I lived there, as long as they make sure that any damage to the gardens or outdoor area is fixed.

On the last issue, if they didn't call you, and you didn't get the notice for the inspection, they must reschedule. End of story. While the landlord has rights, so do you, and that's one of yours.

No, I wouldn't have let them in and I would have called the real estate agent's office and made a complaint to the Rentals Manager about the way they behaved.

[QUOTE=sushee;3194079]As a landlord I would expect the garden to be maintained in the state I rented the house in. My tenant's lease runs for a year and I don't expect it to be overgrown between inspections, if you know what I mean. I think to me, it shows a general lack of care towards my investment.
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And thats understandable. I didn't like their approach to it, like they did a drive by and then sent a nasty text message. Especially because of the time of year it was, I'm sorry, we have 4 young kids and they take up a lot of our time - we don't get a chance to garden much. We were planning on getting it done in DH's holidays - after his exam week. I guess it was the nasty text message that we didn't like so much, plus the thought that we are being spied on - we're trying to treat this as our "home" and who wants to think that they are being watched all the time in their home?

Quick question, but is doing a 'drive by' still classed as an inspection and therefore you need to have notice for it? A friend of mine, years ago, as a landlord actually got in trouble for doing that as it was classed as an inspection. Might be something worth chasing up on.

the text message wasn't the best way to go about it - i know if our we have inspection and next door neighbours yard is a bit scruffy, or vice verse (both through same agency), the RE will give a call and say they were in the neighbourhood and noticed it was a bit unkempt. it's not done in a nasty way, just as a reminder that it needs to be done. gentle and polite is always better. they may have simply driven past (i'm not sure how likely that is) and noticed as opposed to actually spying kwim?

we had an inspection four days after DH had his second cancer surgery, so we'd had weeks where neither of us was able to mow the lawns - there was a comment on the inspection that the lawns had some length in them, but were generally well kept - which i seen as a polite butt kicking cos the lawns weren't done. i'm just thankful it was raining so she didn't venture into the back yard and see the really badly overgrown vegie patch lol

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As a landlord I would expect the garden to be maintained in the state I rented the house in. My tenant's lease runs for a year and I don't expect it to be overgrown between inspections, if you know what I mean. I think to me, it shows a general lack of care towards my investment.

And I probably would have said no to a boxing thingo hanging from the roof as well. My tenants put up cafe blinds in the patio without my knowldege and I can't say that I'm pleased that once they leave, I'll have the holes left in the wood from where they attached the blinds. I have asked that they restore it to the way they found it once they vacate.

This is in part because, should they move on, I want to make sure the house is in a state that means I will find new tenants, or I will be able to sell it, while making as few repairs to it as possible. I think it's fair to say no to modifications to a house that you own. If it were something that made no material change to my house, I wouldn't have a problem. I have given them permission to have a dog, as I had one myself when I lived there, as long as they make sure that any damage to the gardens or outdoor area is fixed.

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Have to agree with what Sushee has said especially in relation to the garden. Regardless of whether it is in between inspection or not, your husband had exams or not, if the lease agreement states that the garden must be kept neat and reasonable at all times then that is what it should be.

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I'm sorry, we have 4 young kids and they take up a lot of our time - we don't get a chance to garden much.

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I don't mean to sound harsh but it is going to come across that way BUT bad luck...everyone has excuses and if that is the agreement then so be it regardless of circumstance. At the end of the day the RE is only doing their job and protecting their landlord's property.

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I don't mean to sound harsh but it is going to come across that way BUT bad luck...everyone has excuses and if that is the agreement then so be it regardless of circumstance. At the end of the day the RE is only doing their job and protecting their landlord's property.

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Ahhh but if they hadn't of been doing a drive by they wouldn't have seen it.

Look, we're not perfect and we admit it. We do however pay our rent every week - and if I was a landlord I know which kind of tenant I would prefer.

This post wasn't about whether or not we have to do the gardens, we KNOW we do. This post was about letting the real estate do an inspection when not notified. The reasons I gave why we didn't let them in was to give a bit of background as to why DH didn't let them in.

I think your DH did the right thing!
This thread is the exact reason I have and never will rent! Way to nasty and hard work!

And I hope you never have to rent, Jakabella. But most people I know have rented at some point or another - and not because it's what they absolutely wanted to do.

Last rental we had (we hadn't wanted to rent but had no other options at that point), we had really lovely estate agents who not only gave notice, but trusted us. If they'd turned up, even if I was in the middle of baking and hadn't vacuumed yet, I would have been OK with them coming in, because they looked at the state of the building and not the day-to-day living. And they didn't inspect the place too much once they realised we kept it in decent nick. Before that was when we were students but I can't recall many, if any, inspections.

With your agents, no, wouldn't have let them in. They don't sound trustworthy, so I wouldn't trust them.

You are right Mrs NB, I digressed, sorry :)

In answer to your original question, then yes you were within your rights to refuse them and your husband did the right thing.

Our first landlords would do the driveby, I suspect they were actually coming into the backyard while we were at work as well. I don't think that's classed as 'reasonable enjoyment of the property' if you're worried about being spied on! Now that we're landlords, we look after the lawn mowing with a regular contractor. It's a very large block, which would be a hassle for the tenant, and that way I can guarantee its going to be done. Frankly, given there's no garden and it gets inspected every 3 months, I don't care how they leave the yard, as long as its acceptable at inspection time.

We've got an inspection on Friday and I'm dreading it :(. DP is going to be here and he's never met the realtors (I moved in with my now ex-DP) and I just know they're going to hate each other on sight :(

I get an email from the agents suggesting a date then when I confirm it I get a letter so I always know when they're going to come. Last time she *****ed at me for the dust in the back bedroom (we back into a building site) and a cobweb in the garage :( "Didn't you read the letter, it said the property had to be immaculate"!!

I'd never, ever rent from them again and if I didn't love the house so much I'd move.

We've also had a business card stuck in the front screen door saying LAWNS on it in big red letters cause the postie had driven over the lawn and chewed up the grass with his moped :(

If they turn up without giving notice, no, of course, I wouldn't have let them in if a) it was inconvenient or b) the house was messy.

However, it sounds like the first time they did give notice, it's just that the party coincided with that date. If that had been me, I would either have rearranged the inspection or rearranged the party. Having said that, taking photos without permission (I'm not sure they needed permission) is TOTALLY not on.

I agree with the others about the garden (and this is from someone who owned their own place and had a tip of a garden -yes, it's a pain in the butt but an agreement is an agreement).

As for the garage door - if it worked, albeit not perfectly and you had to push a manual button, well, as a landlord I wouldn't have treated that as a priority either.

It totally sucks when you feel like the landlord/agent are driving past and making assumptions about what sort of tenant you are from a look at the garden but I guess you have a choice a) do the garden to keep on their good side b) neglect the garden and worry about it or b) reach some agreement with the agency whereby you pay a bit more rent to get a gardener in now and again.

I was under the impression that the point of an inspection was to check on the property (damage, if I have concerns about anything etc) not your housekeeping skills?? Our real estate agent told me that lol.will stop whingeing about them quick smart lol! But yup I reckon your DH definitely did the right thing!!

Nope. They have to legally give 7 days notice in writing for ANY inspections, allowing time for post on top of that 7 days. Its the same in NSW to WA, so I assume it would be the same around Aus.

Pretty sure that minimum time allowed between inspections is 3 months too.

I have been asked the lawn to be mowed at one property I was in. It was untidy, I was 6 months pregnant, ex was working away & we didn't own a mower. We paid someone to do it. I was sent a letter in writing though, not a text.

No, I wouldn 't have let them in, particularly since you didn't receive the notice. They sound unprofessional, particularly in their dealings with you. I'm not sure about the drive by - they may have been in the area and noticed the garden was unkempt, however they could have called you for a chat about it & given you the benefit of the doubt. If it became a regular occurence then they could have cause for concern.

I have never rented and don't own a rental property, however I would expect the gardens to be tidy/maintained, if it was in the agreement.

I understand with kids or not that a place can be messy & I would assume (or hope) that that is not part of the inspection - I'd be more concered about holes in walls, marked carpets etc....

I live alot differently to some of my friends and family - what I deem as tidy and even clean is probably not to some of my friends & certainly not to my sister (she is a clean freak!) and vice cersa, Some of my friends only clean their skirting boards once a month or even less, whereas I do mine weekly to fortnightly......

I'd check the agreement and find out what actually needs to be done/adhered to for renting the property and for inspections going forward so there is no misunderstanding for next time and also what your rights are as a tenant to let them in to inspect.

Sounds like a lot of RE agents are coping flack from vendors about the state of properties.

Whilst I agree that a paying tenant is probably preferred, I'd be mortified if the property was left in disarray and I had to fix the property so it could be tenanted again. This happened to my old boss - they had well paying tenants but when they vacated there were holes in the walls, doors taken off the hinges and it cost him a bucket load to repair, which wasn't covered by the bond.

Knowing where your house is, I'd have been really cranky that they had commented that they had 'driven past'! It's not exactly a high traffic area! It's not really a traffic area at all... They'd really have to work at finding a reason to drive that way if it wasn't to specifically look at the house!

Would *I* have let them in? Yes, because I'm a total pushover. Shel wouldn't have though. No notice, no entry. That's your right. In the past some RE agents have sent notices 2-4 weeks in advance (the one with are with now sends 4 weeks in advance!) actually followed up with a phone call about 10 days before the inspection to make sure we got it and if the time was conveniant. I would ask them to add it to your file that you request a follow-up phone call at least 7 days in advance to check if you received the notice because you have had issues with receiving their notices in the mail, and it's your right to refuse entry if you don't have notice.