The winter season can bring a host of tenant problems
During the past year our offices have dealt with some weird and wonderful situations that unsuspecting landlords would otherwise have had to sort out.
From tenants calling the helpline to complain about ‘ghost cats’, to those that turn up at the office in their pyjamas demanding that their light bulbs be changed, Belvoir franchise owners have seen it all.
My little pony…
Strange requests can even start at property viewings, as Vaughan Schofield, proprietor of Belvoir Wrexham explains:
“I once turned up at a property and met a man who wanted to bring his pony inside to accompany him on the viewing. I said this wasn’t allowed and he was most put out because the property allowed pets! I explained that these had to be domestic animals and he walked off with the pony strolling along beside him. Just another day at Belvoir Wrexham!”
Calm under pressure
Emergency help-lines can often receive some strange calls, as Peter Johnson, proprietor of Belvoir Skipton says:
“We deal with many strange requests. One tenant rang to complain that their washing line had broken and demanded we replace it immediately, as rain was forecast that afternoon! We’ve had tenants that called the fire brigade because the bedroom door had stuck and they couldn’t go to bed. We also had ones that asked us to change the light bulb in their cellar, as they were scared of the dark. You have to stay calm and keep a sense of humour when you deal with it, and there are not many days when we don’t get a smile at Belvoir Skipton.”
Emergency!
Wayne Mearns, proprietor of Belvoir Southend recently had an emergency call that made him smile too. He recalls: “One Saturday at 9am a family rang us with a ‘major emergency’. It turned out that they couldn’t get Cbeebies on the TV and their daughter was driving them crazy! However we did go out and acquire the connection they needed from an electrical shop to help restore calm in the household.”
Scent of trouble
Sarah Tapp, property manager at Belvoir Camberley says: “I received a call on our emergency telephone late one Sunday evening from a tenant who complained that one of her neighbours was burning a scented candle. She wanted me to go over, open the door and blow it out!”
Key to success
The demon drink can create some very odd situations…
“A young lad recently rang our emergency out of office helpline to complain that his keys weren’t working and he was locked out of his apartment,” says Harry Dhaliwal, proprietor of Belvoir Manchester. “One of our contractors went to attend and realised that not only was the lad pretty drunk, but he was trying to get into the wrong apartment. Luckily the contractor saw the funny side and didn’t charge him!”
Tenant safety
Landlords who intend to self-manage their properties can expect to receive calls and requests at all hours of the day and night.
Tenant safety is paramount and so it is important to respond quickly and efficiently. Commissioning a Belvoir lettings agent to professionally manage your rental property is a perfect solution.
