Extreme dirt, drugs, trafficking … It’s been almost a year that Henri has been entangled in the work because of tenants who have practically destroyed the building he was renting.
For the past ten years, Henri has been renting out a medieval-style building in the center of Flémalle. In this 180 m2 apartment lived a family of 6 children in appalling conditions, according to the photos. “I might never have imagined that of this family“, explained the owner following having contacted the editorial staff of RTL info via the orange button Alert us.
Everything changed in January 2021, when Henri received a phone call from an acquaintance in the police. A fight broke out among its tenants. Once there, Henri fell from the clouds when he noticed the extent of the damage: garbage and objects throughout his house.
It was filled with filth; heaps and heaps of filth
For their part, the tenants are embarked and evicted on the spot during a muscular intervention. “They didn’t want to go away“, explains Henri. 4 vans and 10 police officers were dispatched to the site. “It looked like a Hollywood movie“, insists the octogenarian.
Inside, however, Henri is not at the end of his surprises.
Grime to the ceiling
From the cellar to the bathroom, no room in the building is untouched by dirt. “I mightn’t even go home, it stank so much“, he confides. Henri made the accounts: regarding 150 bottles of alcohol were found in the rooms, while 30 m3 of waste were evacuated. Walls and ceilings are covered with various molds and residues The tenants used kerosene fireplaces for heat, which made the ceilings black with dirt.
Illicit trafficking
Butts and joints litter the floors of the bedrooms. Equipment for smoking cannabis was also found. More worryingly, gun wraps and pistol casings are present. But what will really surprise Henri is the very large quantity of bicycles amassed in the building. “Yes. Bikes. All disassembled. There were 150 “of them.
An investigation is currently underway, it probably concerns stolen bikes.
I feel very bad regarding this case. It takes me in the chest
A pensioner, the 80-year-old man is trying as best he can to clean the building which has since been rendered unsanitary. “I employed regarding ten men to try to clean from time to time“, says Henri. But the months pass, and the list of things to repair grows. According to an estimate, 300,000 euros would be necessary, “if only to make the building habitable“, he explains. The situation has consequences for his health:”I feel very bad regarding this case. It takes me in the chest “.
What legal remedies?
So what to do in this situation? Although an owner, Henri cannot hope to sell his property in this condition. After contacting a lawyer friend, he resigned himself to taking legal action. These tenants are insolvent, as one might imagine. “It is therefore impossible to ask tenants to cover the damage caused“explains Maître Vasilakis, lawyer specializing in real estate. “On the other hand, good preparation can help prevent this situation for the owner”.
To avoid this type of situation, three golden rules must be respected, according to him:
Establish a lease and have an entry and exit inventory made by an expert. No secrets here. An entry and exit inventory allows the owner and tenants to certify the condition of the accommodation at the start and end of the lease. In the event of work or litigation, this document is essential.
Do not give the keys until the rental guarantee has been established. The rental guarantee allows the owner to be compensated in the event of default on the part of the tenant. It is therefore important that this step be settled before the tenant moves in.
Request documents from tenants. In compliance with the law on privacy, the owner can ask for some documents in order to learn regarding the financial profile of the tenant. It is forbidden to request the employment contract, the lessor may nevertheless request:
- A means of communication (GSM, e-mail, etc.)
- A copy of the identity card
- Household composition
- The financial resources available to the tenant (guarantors, type of income, allowances, etc.)
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