A landlord has sparked fury after threatening to kick her tenant out over a ‘serious’ discovery she made during an inspection.
Property owner Janet sent renter Miguel an email raising a ‘serious concern’ about the number of houseplants he has scattered around every room.
‘When I visited this afternoon, I counted at least 30 in the living room alone. This is completely excessive and not what I would consider appropriate use of the property,’ she said.
However, Miguel didn’t take her complaint too seriously, responding: ‘They’re plants Janet, not squatters.’
But the landlord fired back, saying: ‘Do not be flippant. With that many pots, there is a very real risk of damp, mould, and damage to the flooring. The air in the room already smelled humid. You are turning my property into a greenhouse.’
The tenant explained that he waters his plants properly in trays so there was nothing to worry about.
‘No leaks, no mould. They make the place feel like home,’ Miguel explained.
Refusing to back down, Janet replied: ‘That is not your decision to make.’
A landlord has sparked fury after threatening to kick her tenant out over a ‘serious’ discovery she made during an inspection
‘This is my house, and I will not have it misused. The tenancy agreement clearly states no alterations without permission. Covering every surface with vegetation is an alteration in my view,’ she continued.
Confused, Miguel explained: ‘An alteration is knocking down walls, not putting a spider plant on a shelf.’
Furious, Janet hit back: ‘Don’t twist my words. If you do not remove the majority of those plants within fourteen days, I will be forced to begin possession proceedings.’
Taken aback by her threat, he responded: ‘You’d evict someone over ferns?’
The landlord said she ‘most certainly would’ kick him out because she didn’t want to ‘watch my property slowly rot because a tenant wants to live in a jungle’.
‘This is not up for debate. My property is not a forest. Get rid of them or prepare to leave,’ she demanded.
Appearing unfazed by her threat, Miguel replied: ‘Good luck explaining to a judge that monstera leaves are a breach of contract.’
However, Miguel didn’t take her complaint too seriously. He ended the conversation with a cheeky response
Property owner Janet sent renter Miguel an email raising a ‘serious concern’ about the number of houseplants he has scattered around every room (stock image)
It’s unclear what happened next between the tenant and landlord – but British property strategist Jack Rooke re-shared the pair’s heated text exchange.
‘Imagine losing your home over a spider plant… 30 plants and the landlord says, “This isn’t a forest”,’ Jack said.
‘She (landlord) hasn’t got anything to go on. He may be very excessive with plants but at the end of the day, it is his home. He is the tenant.’
His video has been viewed more than 72,400 times on Instagram, with many jumping to the tenant’s defence.
‘I would double down and get more plants,’ one said, laughing.
‘Most toxic landlord,’ another suggested.
‘I want to see the lawyers’ and judges’ faces when the landlord is fantasising about the “jungle”,’ one shared.
‘I had a landlord try and claim my plants caused damp issues in windows, not to do with the fact the windows are from post-WWII,’ another added.
