setquk (u/setquk) - Readit News

setquk commented on Tenants win right to physical keys over smart locks from landlords cnet.com/news/tenants-win... · Posted by u/walterbell

maxkwallace · 6 years ago

To anyone reading this: if this happens to you, please talk to a lawyer. Please do something to protect future tenants, get the landlord's info online. Don't seek retribution just for yourself.

setquk · 6 years ago

(if you want to burn all your money on a lawyer that is)

It's honestly best to cut your losses and walk away.

setquk commented on Tenants win right to physical keys over smart locks from landlords cnet.com/news/tenants-win... · Posted by u/walterbell

sjwright · 6 years ago

Only a long term benefit in hindsight. Could have gone any number of ways.

setquk · 6 years ago

Unlikely. There was some intelligence behind it. He was aware the locks had been changed as I explained his in an SMS so I did what he asked explicitly. Secondly I could apologise for the mistake of leaving the wrong keys inside the property. As for the marmite, some kid did a prank! Ooops. Based on the police's previous attitude, would they likely come out for a bit of marmite in a letterbox.

The put the keys through the letterbox thing was actually a masterpiece of idiocy on his part which I refrained from mentioning to him.

setquk commented on Tenants win right to physical keys over smart locks from landlords cnet.com/news/tenants-win... · Posted by u/walterbell

js2 · 6 years ago

If you ever get stuck with another terrible landlord, it might even give you some ideas. :)

setquk · 6 years ago

Hahaha that's never a good thing :)

setquk commented on Tenants win right to physical keys over smart locks from landlords cnet.com/news/tenants-win... · Posted by u/walterbell

quickben · 6 years ago

Doesn't have to be. That landlord move was so popular here in Toronto, that they outlawed it.

For example, $75k in fines:

https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2019/02/24/landlord-fined-7...

setquk · 6 years ago

Totally agree. Good to hear this level of enforcement is taking place.

setquk commented on Tenants win right to physical keys over smart locks from landlords cnet.com/news/tenants-win... · Posted by u/walterbell

js2 · 6 years ago

You might be interested in the not very good movie "Pacific Heights" about a psychopathic tenant, if you want to see a fictional telling of how bad it can get for a landlord.

setquk · 6 years ago

I certainly understand how bad it can get for landlords. I'm not excusing any bad tenants here for sure. I will at least read the synopsis for that film :)

setquk commented on Tenants win right to physical keys over smart locks from landlords cnet.com/news/tenants-win... · Posted by u/walterbell

arethuza · 6 years ago

"He was actually in my 2 year old daughter's bedroom"

I think I would have phoned the police at that point!

setquk · 6 years ago

I did. See one of my other comments.

setquk commented on Tenants win right to physical keys over smart locks from landlords cnet.com/news/tenants-win... · Posted by u/walterbell

sjwright · 6 years ago

How does smearing marmite make the unfair gain worthless? It might make you feel smug for a few hours, but if your enemy is vindictive, it could be used against you.

The best move is to avoid playing the game.

setquk · 6 years ago

I just asked my other half how she was feeling about it after 16 years and she laughed so clearly petty justice has a lasting effect.

I think the person in question would be in vastly larger amounts of trouble for even raising his head above the cesspool he floated in for a moment. It would be like a chase from the Benny Hill show with local housing enforcement, HMRC, the police and a trail of angry and abused tenants.

The best move is making the game worthless so there are no winners. Shit on the board. It's a stalemate then.

setquk commented on Tenants win right to physical keys over smart locks from landlords cnet.com/news/tenants-win... · Posted by u/walterbell

addicted · 6 years ago

I don’t know abounthe UK but I’m pretty sure I’ve had a lease agreement when I was a student that gave the landlord the right to enter at Will.

It could still have been illegal, but it was definitely in the lease.

setquk · 6 years ago

It's not quite that straightforward here in the UK. Well it is but the other way. The landlord has no right to enter a property outright. The property is for exclusive enjoyment by the tenant according to law. They can give 24 hours' notice and enter to do repairs etc but you can refuse that outright and they have no rights beyond that without taking you to court.

If they turn up unannounced this is actually harassment under UK law.

We had some rather unpleasant slum landlords between the 1950s and 1970s which caused a few laws to be introduced. Unfortunately the nature of being a landlord seems to attract certain people who find new and creative ways to be dicks. Not the majority of landlords I will say who are mostly pretty good, but enough to cause problems.

setquk commented on Tenants win right to physical keys over smart locks from landlords cnet.com/news/tenants-win... · Posted by u/walterbell

sjwright · 6 years ago

Nothing is gained by being an asshole to an asshole. All you've done is provided him with documentable proof for how terrible and vindictive he thinks you are. It doesn't matter if every other claim he's made about you was a lie.

setquk · 6 years ago

Sometimes it is not about personal gain but making sure that any unfair gains are worthless.