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Landlady, normal or not?


Annia

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Sorry if this is in the wrong section but I couldn't find a suitable section.

 

I have a question if this is normal or acceptable, as I never experienced such.

 

I will soon move and my landlady showed my apartment today to someone. She told me with several days in advance that someone would see my apartment. I left my house tidy (ok, I admit my wardrobe is full of stuff I didn't have time to put in place) and cleaned up the floors and the bathroom. I got out so that they could show the house without me on their way. When I come back she tells me that she came to my place before the interested person came up and tidy it up, changed some things to make it prettier and cleaned a bit and said that some parts needed a little cleaning.

 

Is it normal that she came to my apartment before and did that? I felt that my privacy was invaded. I knew that she would come with someone to see the house and that's perfectly fine... but be in my house before moving my things around and all that? Is this normal?

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Sorry if this is in the wrong section but I couldn't find a suitable section.

 

I have a question if this is normal or acceptable, as I never experienced such.

 

I will soon move and my landlady showed my apartment today to someone. She told me with several days in advance that someone would see my apartment. I left my house tidy (ok, I admit my wardrobe is full of stuff I didn't have time to put in place) and cleaned up the floors and the bathroom. I got out so that they could show the house without me on their way. When I come back she tells me that she came to my place before the interested person came up and tidy it up, changed some things to make it prettier and cleaned a bit and said that some parts needed a little cleaning.

 

Is it normal that she came to my apartment before and did that? I felt that my privacy was invaded. I knew that she would come with someone to see the house and that's perfectly fine... but be in my house before moving my things around and all that? Is this normal?

 

Nope, absolutely not. Not only not normal, but illegal. She may not touch your things, move anything around, etc, etc, etc. with sole exception of an emergency, like water pipe broke and they need to move your stuff to fix it because you aren't around to do it yourself.

 

Just want to clarify that showing the place for the next tenant is normal, however she may not touch anything of yours and must ensure that prospective tenant doesn't either.

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Nope, absolutely not. Not only not normal, but illegal. She may not touch your things, move anything around, etc, etc, etc. with sole exception of an emergency, like water pipe broke and they need to move your stuff to fix it because you aren't around to do it yourself.

 

Just want to clarify that showing the place for the next tenant is normal, however she may not touch anything of yours and must ensure that prospective tenant doesn't either.

 

Completely agree.

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Cleaning up is way out of line. Although she can show the place she can not touch your belongings. Reread your lease and arrange it so you are present when strangers are roaming around your place. Your insurance or the lease may not cover theft/damage, etc.

When I come back she tells me that she came to my place before the interested person came up and tidy it up, changed some things to make it prettier and cleaned a bit and said that some parts needed a little cleaning.
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Well, realtors do that sort of thing all of the time but we tell our seller in advance that we will be having the home "staged"and that means that we will be rearranging furniture to make the place look the biggest and the space used to it's best advantage to get the place sold. If mirrors or whatever need shining then that will take place as well.

 

I don't think it was right of her to not tell you before hand that she would be "staging" your place. You could contact the Landlord/Tenant Agency where you live and ask them if it was a breach of your lease or fineable for her to do that without notice. You say she did that before the expected showing date... did she give you 24 hours notice that she would be entering your unit? Is this a private home or an apartment building?

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It may be best to start boxing up stuff and especially valuables, personal items etc. Again, reread the lease.Yes in many jurisdiction landlords can show a place. But most need your permission to enter and give you advance written notice. Protect your privacy and belongings. You have to pack anyway. If you don't have to leave, don't. If things go missing/get damaged it will be on you. Before you move take photos of everything.

She told me with several days in advance that someone would see my apartment. I left my house tidy (ok, I admit my wardrobe is full of stuff I didn't have time to put in place) and cleaned up the floors and the bathroom. I got out so that they could show the house without me on their way.
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When i was renting i already decided i was intersted in the place based on location and price and seeing it just was me making sure the place wasn't falling apart, was well maintained (i didn't care if the tenant was dirty -- but were the windows drafty, was drywall flaking down? was the ceiling dripping?

 

It may be best to start boxing up stuff and especially valuables, personal items etc. Again, reread the lease.Yes in many jurisdiction landlords can show a place. But most need your permission to enter and give you advance written notice. Protect your privacy and belongings. You have to pack anyway. If you don't have to leave, don't. If things go missing/get damaged it will be on you. Before you move take photos of everything.

 

I agree with this. But i would tell the landlord per your lease, you would appreciate if she didn't touch your things

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Well, realtors do that sort of thing all of the time but we tell our seller in advance that we will be having the home "staged"and that means that we will be rearranging furniture to make the place look the biggest and the space used to it's best advantage to get the place sold. If mirrors or whatever need shining then that will take place as well.

 

I don't think it was right of her to not tell you before hand that she would be "staging" your place. You could contact the Landlord/Tenant Agency where you live and ask them if it was a breach of your lease or fineable for her to do that without notice. You say she did that before the expected showing date... did she give you 24 hours notice that she would be entering your unit? Is this a private home or an apartment building?

 

She's not a realtor and it was just to rent. She's renting privately. She just told me a few days before that someone was going to visit the apartment and if that day and hour was ok for me. I said it was fine. So I cleaned a bit around beforehand and left everything presentable, though you could see that someone lived there (detergents on top of the washing machine, a towel drying on sight, you know the gist and not much more really. I don't have much furniture or decoration because I've always seen this apartment as temporary so it's not like it has the decoration of a magazine but it has everything necessary. So I get out of my house about 40 minutes before the person was supposed to come and find her outside and tell her "hello" and ask how she's going. Then I wish her good luck and get out. (not even there she told me she was going to enter my house and "stage").

 

2 hours later I get back home. She hears me coming (they live upstairs) and comes down to talk to me to tell me that she moved some things around to look better and that some parts of the house needed a bit cleaning. I was speechless because I had no idea that she was going to enter my house before showing to the interested person. I had no words and just said ok and entered my house. I come in and several things were moved and I'm almost certain that she remade my bed because I feel that I left it different when I got out (the duvet seemed to have been turned to the other side). Several things on my bathroom were visibly moved and some hidden inside the cupboard. Several things were also moved in my living room.

 

I felt like my privacy was violated because I had no idea she was going to do this. Had she told me before I left "do you mind if I come in before they come and move some things around to make it look better?", I could've even come in and help her do it myself. But she talked to me before this and not even there did she give me notice that she was going to do this.

 

I'll do as some of you said by taking pictures to everything in case I have problems with my deposit. I don't know how I feel... I know it's probably not a big deal, but I feel uncomfortable about this.

 

I don't have a landlord/tenant agency to contact I think.

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When i was renting i already decided i was intersted in the place based on location and price and seeing it just was me making sure the place wasn't falling apart, was well maintained (i didn't care if the tenant was dirty -- but were the windows drafty, was drywall flaking down? was the ceiling dripping?

 

 

 

I agree with this. But i would tell the landlord per your lease, you would appreciate if she didn't touch your things

 

My place is ok, anything flaking down or dripping and not much use because I'm barely home. It was not even dirty but I wouldn't mind being told in advance what she was intending to do and if something wasn't up to "her standard" I'd have gladly made it better or clean something that could have escaped my eyes.

 

If she's showing my house to more people in the future, I'll be home all the time and I'll tell her that I prefer if she doesn't touch my things without saying in advance.

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I felt like my privacy was violated because I had no idea she was going to do this. Had she told me before I left "do you mind if I come in before they come and move some things around to make it look better?", I could've even come in and help her do it myself. But she talked to me before this and not even there did she give me notice that she was going to do this.
I understand your feelings on this... It's is an invasion of your privacy. Probably because she is the owner of a private home and (its sounds like) you rent her basement apartment, she felt she could just go down and do whatever she wanted in her own home which is BS to the nth degree.

 

Did you tell her that you feel she overstepped and crossed landlord/tenant boundaries by doing that? If not, make sure you do before she shows anyone else the unit so she doesn't do it again.

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I understand your feelings on this... It's is an invasion of your privacy. Probably because she is the owner of a private home and (its sounds like) you rent her basement apartment, she felt she could just go down and do whatever she wanted in her own home which is BS to the nth degree.

 

Did you tell her that you feel she overstepped and crossed landlord/tenant boundaries by doing that? If not, make sure you do before she shows anyone else the unit so she doesn't do it again.

 

It's a basement apartment yes, but totally independent from hers. I have my own entry in the house. I barely see them on a daily basis despite them living upstairs. I was very shocked because there were times before that she sent me a message in good time saying they needed to enter to do something (switch filters and such) and asked if she could come in and she always seemed to respect my privacy except for this time. I also have this feeling that her respect for me has kind of changed now that I'm moving out. Before me telling her I was moving out, she always seemed nice and always asking if there was something in the apartment that needed to be improved.

 

The way she acted as if this was totally normal and ok to do makes me even fear that she could come in out of nowhere when I'm not home without my authorization. Not that I have anything to hide but people coming and touching my stuff makes me incredibly anxious. And the fact that I'm alone in a foreign country makes me feel vulnerable and not knowing really how to move legally in these types of situations.

 

I haven't told her anything yet because I didn't know what to say at the time but I think I should sit down and talk to her. At the same time talking to her is making me nervous now too.

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Well, just tell her that she can only show the place when you are home from now on as her coming in and touching your stuff has made you feel uncomfortable to allow viewings when you're not there. Period.

 

You can say it very nicely so that she doesn't go on the defensive and start being a beeotch before you leave. Or... you can just tell her, when she tells you that someone will be coming at a certain time that it is not convenient for you then and give her a time when you will be able to be there for sure.

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When I lived in an apt as a newlywed, it was corporately owned and the only time anyone was allowed in was a time when a plumber had to fix a leaky pipe while we were at work. We gave permission to the rental management. I thought it was risky. However, at the time, we didn't have anything valuable to steal. A thief could steal our beanbag chairs patched up with BandAids for all I care. :tongue: Granted, he left some greasy towels after wiping his hands but other than that, everything else in the apt was left unscathed.

 

Your landlady was dishonest because she took it upon herself to tidy up your personal, private space without your permission which is disrespectful, incredibly presumptuous and rude. No, it's not normal. Yes, your privacy was invaded. There was a definite breach of protocol and breaking the rules of a tenant-landlord rental relationship. I hope this incident doesn't happen again. I hope someday you can reside in a place where you don't have to worry about an invasion of your privacy anymore and have a landlord who has integrity.

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I don't think I can add much more to what has been said ....I have rented for the past 15 years , no written letter is needed but you have to be given notice , my landlady cannot take it upon herself to turn up , she has to go through the agent , who then tells me and there is a notice time they have to give ...( so they can't call and say they are coming tomorrow ) ...

A rent increase though requires a paper trail with it .

They are not allowed to touch your stuff at all ...there isn't an excuse that can cover that .

This is of course the UK and my contract so I can't sepak for everyone and everywhere , but I believe the one thing that is universal is that they cannot touch , move or arrange your belongings .

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It's not normal, but can she come in weekly? Does she do windows?

 

Let it go. She's trying to stage the place for optimum visualization.

 

Yep, I'm with this. Life is tough enough without working myself up over personalizing stuff that's transactional. I'd start packing and cleaning since I'll need to do it anyway, and throw my personal or expensive stuff into a locked suitcase on days when she's showing. I'd think of it a 'hotel' living, where people do normally come in while I'm out, until I'm out of there, and call it a day.

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It's not normal, but can she come in weekly? Does she do windows?

 

Let it go. She's trying to stage the place for optimum visualization.

 

Yep, I'm with this. Life is tough enough without working myself up over personalizing stuff that's transactional. I'd start packing and cleaning since I'll need to do it anyway, and throw my personal or expensive stuff into a locked suitcase on days when she's showing. I'd think of it a 'hotel' living, where people do normally come in while I'm out, until I'm out of there, and call it a day.

 

She can't nor comes unless she says beforehand and I approve and I think she never comes in when I'm not here. But yes, I'll be moving in two months and that's what I should be focusing on. Everything that's inside this apartment is mine, so I should also be focusing in selling it all since I'm not taking anything with me and do as you say, put my personal belongings in a safe place, since apparently they're not off limits to her.

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She can't nor comes unless she says beforehand and I approve and I think she never comes in when I'm not here. But yes, I'll be moving in two months and that's what I should be focusing on. Everything that's inside this apartment is mine, so I should also be focusing in selling it all since I'm not taking anything with me and do as you say, put my personal belongings in a safe place, since apparently they're not off limits to her.

 

Ah! Well, if you're selling your stuff, why not view this woman through the lens of an ally instead of an adversary? Ask the woman if she'd mind letting all prospects know that your stuff is for sale, and give her some cards with your contact info. You can label the stuff you're selling with an asking price.

 

I once sold everything I wanted to shed this way to the woman who would rent my place, so nobody needed to move any furniture or my fridge or air conditioner or ceiling fan. She bought everything!

 

Turn annoyance into opportunity, and everyone wins.

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Ah! Well, if you're selling your stuff, why not view this woman through the lens of an ally instead of an adversary? Ask the woman if she'd mind letting all prospects know that your stuff is for sale, and give her some cards with your contact info. You can label the stuff you're selling with an asking price.

 

I once sold everything I wanted to shed this way to the woman who would rent my place, so nobody needed to move any furniture or my fridge or air conditioner or ceiling fan. She bought everything!

 

Turn annoyance into opportunity, and everyone wins.

 

She told the person who visited the apartment that I wanted to sell everything and she's interested in buying my furniture so I'll send all the info, pics and prices to my landlady. It's a huge relief for me if she wants everything because I really don't want to take anything with me. I'll be moving to the opposite side of the country, very far away from here and my new landlords seem great and let me begin moving my stuff before the agreed moving date, so I think everything will be fine. I was just upset with her touching my personal belongings, towels and stuff, but I shouldn't let this cloud this new opportunity presented in front of me. Let's hope that this person gets the apartment and all my stuff so I can focus on other things.

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She told the person who visited the apartment that I wanted to sell everything and she's interested in buying my furniture so I'll send all the info, pics and prices to my landlady. It's a huge relief for me if she wants everything because I really don't want to take anything with me. I'll be moving to the opposite side of the country, very far away from here and my new landlords seem great and let me begin moving my stuff before the agreed moving date, so I think everything will be fine. I was just upset with her touching my personal belongings, towels and stuff, but I shouldn't let this cloud this new opportunity presented in front of me. Let's hope that this person gets the apartment and all my stuff so I can focus on other things.

 

Don't leave managing any 'interest' up to landlady, ask if she'll obtain permission for you to contact the potential renter if landlady decides that this is someone she wants in her place. Then you can invite the person for another walk-thru with you to discuss pricing on your belongings. Meanwhile, the stuff is still up for grabs, so continue marketing via Crag's list, local eBay, or wherever you intend to post.

 

This is a wonderful development for you, Annia. I remember you weren't all that thrilled or comfortable with your current job location, so I hope you'll thrive and enjoy this change!

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