Any builders

[svenrico]

' I want to get someone who knows what they are talking about to walk round this house with me and tell me what is needed to legally bring it up to standard.' Wouldn't that be the department of the local council that deals with minimum standards in rented accommodation? If it was me I would contact the local council and ask to be put through to that department and ask if they can arrange a meeting on site with the landlord ,somebody from their department and yourself to go round the house ,carry out an inspection and list the items that are not up to minimum standards. It would then be up to the landlord to appoint somebody to prepare a scheme ,depending on the extent of work required, with drawings and specification for submission for building regulations approval as necessary. When approved it would be up to the landlord to appoint a builder to carry out the work. I don't see that it is up to you or your responsibilty as the tenant to plan and organise the work unless the landlord wants you to do that.
ps 'but it would be useful to have proper advice to enable me to put together a schedule of work.' The proper advice should be the technical information shown on the approved Building Regulations drawings and construction specification.

[garynortheast]

Just to save everyone any more effort, the situation has moved on past this now. I will need to move out at least for the duration of the refurb, and shall be working very hard to ensure that I get the new tenancy when the work is complete.

Thanks for everyone’s input though.

[Dave20046]

Originally Posted by garynortheast

Just to save everyone any more effort, the situation has moved on past this now. I will need to move out at least for the duration of the refurb, and shall be working very hard to ensure that I get the new tenancy when the work is complete.

Thanks for everyone’s input though.

Sounds promising Gary
Or atleast better. Can you get them to guarantee a duration of refurb?

[maviczap]

Fingers crossed for you Gary

[svenrico]

Originally Posted by garynortheast

Just to save everyone any more effort, the situation has moved on past this now. I will need to move out at least for the duration of the refurb, and shall be working very hard to ensure that I get the new tenancy when the work is complete.

Thanks for everyone’s input though.

That was quick. They must have heard the forum was on the case.

[garynortheast]

It’s partly my own decision, made after a period of reflection. Originally I was going to offer to arrange/do the work myself and with suitably skilled friends (at least, the work not requiring a qualified person) but the scale of the work is such that the idea is not really feasible.
I will be contacting both the local trustees and the Church Moderator, and politely pointing out the wrongness of ejecting a tenant of 25 years, who has always paid the rent on time, without guaranteeing my first refusal on the new tenancy. Several friends are also writing similar letters, including a friend who is herself a Methodist minister locally.

Next job is to find somewhere to rent locally for the duration of the work.

[svenrico]

Originally Posted by garynortheast

It’s partly my own decision, made after a period of reflection. Originally I was going to offer to arrange/do the work myself and with suitably skilled friends (at least, the work not requiring a qualified person) but the scale of the work is such that the idea is not really feasible.
I will be contacting both the local trustees and the Church Moderator, and politely pointing out the wrongness of ejecting a tenant of 25 years, who has always paid the rent on time, without guaranteeing my first refusal on the new tenancy. Several friends are also writing similar letters, including a friend who is herself a Methodist minister locally.

Next job is to find somewhere to rent locally for the duration of the work.

I don't want to drag this out but it all seems a bit unfair if you are being thrown out after 25 years ,it isn't your fault the property is in need of refurbishment. I would want to check the legal situation.
Good luck anyway.

[garynortheast]

I have, it’s the first thing I did. I have been issued a section 21 notice under the 1988 housing act, which allows a landlord to repossess a house normally with just two months notice, (Covid19 has meant they have had to give me 6 months) and with no obligation to tell the tenant why. It was brought in in this form by bloody Thatcher and co (and no, I will not be turning this into a political rant as I don’t have the energy). The landlord is on firm legal ground with this.

That is no substitute though for a sense of ethical behaviour or moral obligation.

[Dave20046]

It's peculiar given the circumstances. Have they err mentioned a rent hike when the work is done?

[garynortheast]

Originally Posted by Dave20046

It's peculiar given the circumstances. Have they err mentioned a rent hike when the work is done?

Yep. The phrase was “to be re-let at a market value rent which would reflect the money spent on refurbishment”. The rent currently is a real 1970s rent, like many of the chapel houses, so with falling congregations the church needs to find some way of financing the work needed on these properties to bring them up to a current legal standard. If they put the rent up too high though, it will just be counter productive as nobody will be able to afford it. The village is well out of the way with no proper transport links and no work locally without driving for it. I intend to remind them of this, and the fact that one long term tenant (me!) makes more economic sense than a series of short term tenants.