A Glasgow tenant "burst into tears" after moving into a two-bedroom flat to find it riddled with problems including a cockroach infestation and mould.
Jess Banks and her four-year-old toy poodle, Cooper, moved into the Castlemilk Road, Rutherglen, property on Friday June 30. Just three days later, the 30-year-old was forced out of the property and has since been sofa-surfing.
Jess paid AVJ Homes £1750 - which included a deposit and one months rent - for the first flat she was renting by herself. Her excitement soon turned to outrage at the condition the property was in. She claimed she was told beforehand that it would be deep cleaned and fixed up by the landlord before she received the keys.
She told Glasgow Live: "As soon as I got inside the property, I saw cockroaches all in the kitchen with mould all around the windows. The windows were cracked so water was getting in and contributing to the mould.
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"The property was in disrepair - the fixtures and fittings were all broken, the bath is cracked, the shower heads were caked in mould and broken, both toilet seats were broken, the kitchen cupboards were hanging off the hinges, the pipe to the washing machine cannot be turned on as it leaks, the kitchen sink leaks, and the carpets were covered in stains.
"I was so excited because it was the first time I had keys to a flat of my own. I literally burst into tears.
"I was so upset and didn’t want to stay there but felt like I had no choice but to try and attempt to make it clean and homely."
Jess says she spent six hours cleaning the flat, with help from her family, but it still didn't feel homely so she decided to leave and has been without a home since Monday, July 3.
She added: "I don’t have anywhere to stay so I am sleeping on a friend's sofa. It’s so stressful and I had to take a day off work with unpaid leave.
"The tenancy agreement said it had to be a safe and habitable environment with all the walls and windows sealed, which they weren't. It said it had to be clean and liveable but it wasn’t.
"I can’t get another property until they give me my money back because I need it to put a deposit on a new place. I don’t want this to happen to anyone else."
After Glasgow Live got in touch with the lettings agency, Jess was contacted to say the landlord has agreed to pay her rent and deposit back - and she handed her keys in on Thursday July 6.
AVJ Homes were approached for comment and said they were carrying out a full investigation into the issue.
