Tenant let abruptly and has destroyed property

[B.Georg]

Hi ,

Things have progressed since last time. The tenant was previously asking me to issue section 21 so that the council could help her find a property as she stated she could no longer afford it due to health issues. We paid up 880 £ fees to solicitor and started the process which was long- winded. Last week on 7/6 , received a mail from the tenant stating that she had left property and will post the keys and asking me to close the tenancy.
The next day i went to check the property , she has clearly violated it. The house had garbage bags and rubbish in and outside the house. She has kept a dog against what stated at contract and the house had dog mess on the stairs and was a mess. It was actually smelling . The garden had overgrown and found 2 foxes in there. The patio had more rubbish and she had thrown her furniture .
It is disheartening as we had refurbished and she stated it was the first house which was up to a good standard. I have hence contacted her as she has her personal effects dumped in the house and also had never cleaned the house she stated she is not interested in getting the deposit back. How do I claim back the deposits. I have arranged a check out inventory and have a check in inventory done by us with all the photos of the property and the tenant’s signature . Do I

just send all this to my deposit? I don’t think there is much help for landlord who follow all the rules . Advice appreciated .

[tatemono]

how long was the tenancy and how frequently during this time did you personally inspect the property?

[B.Georg]

tenancy for 3 years ! would visit once every 6 months although she always made excuses , house was untidy but without letting us know she got a dog last year and this has been the worst with dog mess inside property and carpets

[Karl11]

If this is registered under your own My Deposits account, then log into it to start the claim / repayment process.

[tatemono]

@B.Georg

tenancy for 3 years ! would visit once every 6 months although she always made excuses , house was untidy but without letting us know she got a dog last year and this has been the worst with dog mess inside property and carpets

So, you would have been aware of the state of the property long before it came to this. You said she “never cleaned the house”. That would have been apparent on the first 3-month visit and very apparent at your first 6-month visit. I would advise that you do quarterly inspections in future and take action immediately you notice any issues. Otherwise, there’s no point in refurbing a property if you’re not going to keep tenants on top of it or take action to evict if you see them abusing the property. HOpefully, lesson learned.