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Jon Tarrey

Retired

10926 Profile Views

About Me

Bit of a grumpy old man these days, with a special interest in property.

my expertise in the industry

Spent my formative years in the industry and dabbled with property investment when I was younger (unsuccessfully, I should add). Disillusioned with much of what estate agency stands for these days - so trying (in my own small way) to change that. Again, unsuccessfully.

Jon 's Recent Activity

"Nobody is forcing anybody to sign on the dotted line" Yeah, but I think that's the point. Many are forced to rent because they have no other choice but to rent. If they could afford to buy - which most people, especially in London, very definitely can't - the only option is to rent or live on the street. The very least they expect is decent accommodation. Clearly, in London and many other parts of the UK, that is not the case. And they're being charged a fortune for the privilege. And endless rent rises. And endless landlords whinging about a vindictive campaign against them. Solution to this issue - don't offer bad accommodation or take years to react to tenant problems and you won't have any complaints. Just look at the issues being raised here - they aren't minor and they aren't isolated. Surely landlords have to recognise that there is a problem within the industry - that rogue, greedy, unscrupulous landlords do exist. Yes, there are bad tenants and tenants who treat properties poorly - and landlords probably aren't protected enough in that regard - but do whine and moan and say it's all somebody's else's fault just won't cut the mustard. Renting, in this day and age, should be affordable and of a high quality. In many cases it isn't. Wonder why that is. And I wonder we so many stories on here if landlords being fined or jailed for failing in their duty of care to landlords. Don't see too many stories about nightmare tenants, do we?

From: Jon Tarrey 28 April 2016 15:32 PM

Does the truth hurt, Graham? Yes, this is a one-sided look at the tenant-landlord dynamic, but it's still a pretty damning one. It's not always the tenants' fault - in the vast majority of cases they have to put up with shoddy, substandard accommodation. They have a right to shout out about that, don't they? Truth is, there are more shoddy landlords than there are shoddy tenants. This campaign highlights that. Two wrongs don't make a right. You can't say "well, tenants are as bad as us", as if that's some kind of excuse.

From: Jon Tarrey 28 April 2016 15:26 PM

In your case, maybe. But what you've given us is an anecdote, not empirical evidence. "absolutely useless housing associations" How do you know this? Have you dealt with every single one of them? From what I've heard, most of them do a pretty fine job. That's the problem with anecdotal evidence, you see. You say housing associations are absolutely useless, another person says all private landlords are useless, and we never get any closer to the truth. I'm liking the Corbyn bandwagon. As an old geezer myself (relatively speaking), the way he's shaking up and scaring the establishment is quite refreshing. I don't agree with everything he says, but I do agree with a lot.

From: Jon Tarrey 07 August 2015 12:10 PM

"They're not rogues or villains with waxed moustaches that are trying to screw every last penny out of someone." But some of them are, which is kind of the point. In the case of Franc Coutinho - is he Philippe's dad by the way? - it would appear the tenant was taking massive liberties and was definitely in the wrong. However, this programme only shows three isolated incidents. I'm sure we could find three isolated incidents of tenants being treated badly by landlords. It's this tit for tat that we need to stop - landlords having a go at tenants, tenants having a go at landlords, and nothing being solved. This is why more controls being placed on landlords and more regulation within the PRS is no bad thing in my view. If it stops landlords moaning about unfair treatment and if it makes tenants feel more secure, we'd get less of these incidents. I don't think you should be making a living purely from being a landlord, but that's for another day.

From: Jon Tarrey 30 June 2015 14:39 PM

"standards will slip in an effort to make a quick buck" Isn't this already happening? Can standards slip any further?

From: Jon Tarrey 23 June 2015 15:17 PM

Yes, let's let all these pesky tenant starve because we're too tight to provide kitchen and cooking facilities. A basic requisite of any rental property should be the provision of a fridge, oven and hob. Is that really too much to ask? I'd rather have a nanny state than people going hungry because of penny-pinching landlords, Mr Muir. Your attempted defence is pretty ludicrous.

From: Jon Tarrey 17 June 2015 15:14 PM

This so-called property democracy that Cameron and his cronies want to create is utterly laughable when you see stories like this.

From: Jon Tarrey 12 June 2015 17:37 PM

Kelly likes defending the indefensible, John. She's very good at it. In her mind, there is a nationwide conspiracy against estate agents, landlords and anyone else in the property industry. They can do no wrong in her eyes and yet they still get criticised. She can't fathom this. That's why she gets so defensive against any criticism of her beloved profession.

From: Jon Tarrey 12 June 2015 11:29 AM

Where are all those "poor-me" landlords, complaining that they never make any money from their properties because they're too busy dealing with tenants from hell?

From: Jon Tarrey 01 June 2015 15:46 PM

Question marks over something David Cameron has said? Never. He'd never follow through with anything unless it has been thoroughly road-tested, researched to within an inch of its life, and deemed ready for a nationwide roll-out. He wouldn't rush into something simply to show his authority. Not our esteemed Prime Minister, oh no!

From: Jon Tarrey 28 May 2015 14:14 PM

Works both ways, though. The NLA bang on about lies, damned lies and statistics, and then come out with a load of stats telling us how happy tenants really are. Which kind of contradicts their argument, doesn't it? "Our own research" - the NLA wouldn't be pushing its own agenda here, would it? The CAB were probably guilty of overblowing their findings, but so are the NLA. The truth, as always, is probably somewhere in the middle. Many tenants are happy, but a significant majority aren't and have, in some cases, been treated appallingly. The NLA burying their heads in the sand and refusing to recognise there is a valid problem doesn't exactly help matters. Yes, I know they have admitted that there is a problem among a small minority of landlords, but it seems like they were more determined to paint a very rosy picture of the PRS, refusing to accept that many aren't actually very happy at all.

From: Jon Tarrey 26 May 2015 12:15 PM

Yep, and in many cases it's clearly true. Read the article and weep. If you can't provide decent accommodation, don't become a landlord. Simples. No-one is saying that every single landlord is a millionaire, but by landlords having a portfolio of properties they are denying younger people/Generation Rent/first-time buyers the chance to purchase. If they then have to pay over-the-odds to live in cramped hovels, you can see how resentment breeds. Clearly, many landlords are not providing high enough standards. Not all, some. Why won't you admit that? Why get so defensive? Are you really saying the CAB have made all this up? Are you honestly saying in all these cases it's the tenants' fault? Yes, there are bad tenants. That gets reported on plenty. Wasn't there even a programme about them a few years ago? You only need to look at all the benefit-bashing programmes on C4 and C5 to see how the scrounger myth is perpetuated. Not saying scroungers don't exist, but they certainly don't exist to the extent you believe. So, I'm prepared to say some tenants aren't angels, in some cases they act in a reprehensible manner, are you prepared to say the same about landlords? Or would you prefer to stay in your cosy little bubble where every single landlord is beyond reproach?

From: Jon Tarrey 22 May 2015 17:03 PM

This will be difficult to spin in a positive way but I'm sure some people will try.

From: Jon Tarrey 22 May 2015 10:21 AM

Where's Stella Creasy when you need her?

From: Jon Tarrey 21 May 2015 17:20 PM

I agree, incidents like this aren't representative of landlords as a whole. I know a few myself and they're good sorts. And it's almost certainly true that there are many more good landlords than bad ones. But it would be sticking one's head in the sand to suggest that there isn't a major problem in this country with rogue landlords. A minority, perhaps, but a significant, active minority. Plus, the main crux of my comment was a dig at the posters on a similar article the other day who were trying to pin all of the world's troubles on the feckless tenants they'd apparently encountered.

From: Jon Tarrey 20 May 2015 15:07 PM

And another one. Where are all those holier-than-thou landlords who insist it's always the fault of the beer-swilling, fag-smoking, Sky-watching tenants? Care to defend this?

From: Jon Tarrey 20 May 2015 11:24 AM

@ m Goe - you're assuming that all these people were evicted because they couldn't pay their rent. That's a fairly big assumption to make, don't you think? There are other reasons for evictions, you know.

From: Jon Tarrey 19 May 2015 13:22 PM

Fair enough, and I agree with many of your points. I still think rent controls are not as devilish as they're being made out to be by some, but I also agree that Germany and Switzerland have much better housebuilding programmes. As a result, they don't have silly house and rent prices. Build to rent is a good idea in theory, but it makes me a little bit anxious. I fear more stock will be tied up with the uber wealthy and won't be going to those who need it most. I also share your pessimism at the ability of any of our politicians to deliver on their housing promises. The Tories have gone very quiet on the issue since they got back into power. Very strange. I like Lewis and think he can be a great asset, but it seems like housing is going to be on the backburner for the next five years. More's the pity.

From: Jon Tarrey 18 May 2015 17:45 PM

What's your expert opinion then? All very well having a go at her - at least she's trying to make a difference. You obviously think everything in the property industry is rosy. What about empty homes, what about demand massively outstripping supply, what about tenant evictions, what about rogue landlords, what about the increasingly crowded and overpriced PRS. This can't all be a leftie conspiracy, can it? And rent controls work perfectly well in other European countries. Obviously excessive red tape is not needed, but a sensible, mature approach to rental regulation shouldn't just be dismissed out of hand. Unless you can up with some viable alternatives? Free market doesn't mean a free-for-all where rich people screw over poor people.

From: Jon Tarrey 18 May 2015 13:55 PM

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