A landlord who says he has been left almost £30,000 out of pocket in unpaid rent found his tenants had left a revolting mess behind them.
When David Wright was finally able to enter his property after being granted a possession order, he found it coated in grime and mould.
Rooms in the Warrington home were filled with rubbish, the carpets were ruined beyond repair and the shower appeared to have not been cleaned for ages.
The four-bedroom house had been home to a family-of-three but was left to decay.
Mr Wright discovered the kitchen was littered with containers of half-eaten food, pet food and medication, while the bathroom was encrusted with filth.
Many of the fixtures and fittings meanwhile, have been damaged beyond repair.
Mr Wright has had to spend £2,000 clearing the property of rubbish and waste, and faces a bill totalling thousands of pounds to repair the damage.
He has also been left with rent arrears of around £29,000 which he is unlikely to recoup.
LegalforLandlords, which helped Mr Wright gain possession of his property, has now released stomach-churning photos of the mess, to highlight the damage caused by problem tenants.
Mr Wright said: “The house has been left in a terrible state - I allowed her to rent the property because I felt a bit sorry for her.
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"I knew that her rent was in arrears, but I didn’t realise how much money was outstanding.
"In hindsight, I wish I hadn’t waited too long to do something about it - I won’t be renting again after this, once the repairs are completed, I’ll be selling it.”
Sim Sekhon, managing director of LegalforLandlords, added: “These images are shocking, but it’s unfortunately not unusual.
"This case really illustrates the importance of having a robust legal mechanism to protect landlords’ rights, and to reach a resolution in a timely manner.
"We regularly see cases where landlords have failed to act quickly enough when rent arrears start to mount, but it’s a huge red flag and may not be the only thing to be concerned about.
“It’s very sad that this has been the outcome, but I’m pleased that we have been able to help David to regain control of the property and begin to remedy the damage.”
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