TV review: The Week the Landlords Moved In

The Week the Landlords Moved In.

Millions of people live miserable existences throughout the world thanks to money-grabbing landlords who don't give a toss about how their tenants are managing.

Pay your rent and shut up is generally the mantra.

Although The Week the Landlords Moved In on TV One is a British programme the situation is a global nightmare as well.

Case in point. Recently in Whanganui was a mum of six who contacted the Wanganui Chronicle out of sheer desperation after being served a 90-day termination of her tenancy by the letting agency. She'd been living in substandard conditions but no one had listened.

This poor woman and her kids had been living with black mould on the walls, broken windows, peeling wallpaper and gaps between the walls and the floor.

According to the letting agency the owner was in residential care and the family were dealing with his affairs.

I do hope his residential care is a sight more comfortable than the revolting house he charged this mum and her children $260 a week to live in.

This TV programme clearly illustrates how private landlords are soaking up the dosh getting rich from sorry, sordid situations.

Not only was there crap carpet loose on the stairs, the back gardens were filled with rubbish, rats and weeds, windows were rotting and black mould was rife.

Meanwhile the landlords were driving about in their latest Audis delighted they had worked hard for a living and had invested well in multiple rental properties.

In the programme the landlords move into one of their properties agreeing to live as their tenants do even down to the weekly budget ... rent, food, power etc.

At first their reactions were that the properties were okay ... what's all the fuss?

Actually what they're saying is "Beggars can't be choosers and who cares anyway.''

It made me smile when one landlord's face curled in horror when he realised as he stood in the corner shop that he couldn't afford the food he normally had.

"Sooner I get back to my life the better,'' he'd muttered.

And as for facing the renovations needed these landlords practically blamed their tenants for the broken, blown-out stuff they had to replace and when that didn't quite work the blame was heaped on to the letting agencies.

Endless excuses of ''they didn't notify me", "I had no idea", "they should have called me", the grizzling went on and on.

What wrapped it up neatly for me was one young tenant standing in the doorway after his landlord had departed saying; "We live in rubbish flats and it sure isn't going to change no matter what he [the landlord] just said. It's bollocks.''