I have a tenant who looks like she may be a problem but I'm not sure how I can get rid of her because she pays her rent each month.
I had a repair guy stop by the other day and basically he told me she
is making a mess of the place and she doesn't have the gas cut on.
She is an inherited tenant from the previous owner and I saw her once in person after the sale. She lives their with her two daughters and
works a night shift job. I have a sneeking suspicion see might be on drugs. she looks like she's in her 40's but is toothless like an old lady
and her mouth has that dry burnt out look to it.
When does the rental agreement end? Or do you even have a written agreement? If there is none, or if she is on month-to-month just follow your local landlord tenant laws to not renew, making her a holdover tenant subject to the higher rate imposed by law if she does not vacate. Then start the eviction process.
If she has a long term lease, give the required notice for entry, perform an inspection, note any violations of the lease, then follow the requirements that apply for your jurisdiction, usually a ten day notice to cure or similar. Once the time period is up, watch for repeat offenses and evict per statutes.
You should have never allowed months to pass after the closing of the sale before thinking about taking action. Regardless of existing lease or not, you certainly should have obtained information on the tenant and all occupants, including background info and any rental agreement, and inspected the interior of the unit. Don't focus on the rent money...the damages and aggravation will cost you far more in the long run if you don't take charge of YOUR property.
2. Avoid talking about her personal characteristics publicly. It can be used against you if it came out in court. If she pays the bills on time and otherwise follows the rental agreement the number of teeth is not a valid reason to take action. Note that anything posted on the net will be around for decades (back ups) and can be requested by the court.
3. You are a landlord. You are not the neat police. People are allowed to live as they like if there is nothing in the contract against it and no laws are broken.
4. If you terminate the contract you have to do so legally. You would not be evicting if you provide notice and she leaves. As a landlord you really do need to know the laws for your state and any city specific ones that apply. Or hire a professional manager and let them deal with the legal details.
Avoid talking about her personal characteristics publicly. It can be used against you if it came out in court. If she pays the bills on time and otherwise follows the rental agreement the number of teeth is not a valid reason to take action. Note that anything posted on the net will be around for decades (back ups) and can be requested by the court.
I certainly don't see anything wrong with FinanceGuy telling us about his tenant. He didn't give her name and he is relatively anonymous with his FinanceGuy handle. In addition, all he did was tell the truth. If he is suspicious about drug abuse, the teeth might be an issue. A 40 year old person with rotten brown teeth can be a symptom of meth use. Combined with the suspicion of drug use and the tenant being a slob, that would be enough for me. I've seen it many times and I will not rent to people if I suspect they are on drugs. The good news is that most druggies are dumber than a stone and will have been caught in the past. It is very easy to check their criminal status. I would look her up on the local court website and get the facts.
In addition, stating the obvious is not a problem in court. If the lease has expired, he can certainly give her notice because he doesn't like her teeth or because she is a slob. Toothless people and slobs are not protected classes and it's legal to discriminate based on number of teeth, (although I wouldn't do it - I'm more concerned with the rent being paid).
Personally, the issue for me would be whether she is damaging the property or conducting illegal activity at the property. It is often difficult to ascertain this if the person is a slob and has a lot of clutter. I would inspect the property carefully and see what is going on. I would also talk to the neighbors and the police and see if they know anything about drug use at the property. My lease says that the tenant must keep the utilities connected at all times. I do evict tenants whose utilities are shut off. No heat = broken pipes in Ohio.
If the tenant IS on a month-to-month, or approaching the end of a longer term agreement, you JUST state that they will not be renewed. You are NOT (in most jurisdictions) REQUIRED to give a reason! Very often, if you " give in" to their insistence of wanting to know " why?" , you will give them ammunition for a fair housing claim, or you will have them begging for " one more chance" etc. Don't let it become personal- and don't " make-up" a reason such as renovation etc. The Answer is: You are not required by law to give a reason!
As per this conversation, I have appreciated all the users.
But, I liked REI's suggestions. But in third suggestion he wrote that
" You are a landlord. You are not the neat police. People are allowed to live as they like if there is nothing in the contract against it and no laws are broken."
I agree with REI that People are allowed to live as they like if there is nothing in the contract against it and no laws are broken. But, if landlord think there is something wrong done by his/her point of view in his/her house by tenant then he/she has the authority to terminate her by the low.
At last, the landlord is the owner of the house. No one become the owner of the owner.
financeguy1, as my point of view if you do not like anything related to her and her contract will be expired within short time then you do what you want. As there is no much than internal peace in your heart.
If you believe the above and act on it expect to be sued. Expect the government to fund the lawsuit.
Forget the simple view of being an owner.
Real estate is a bundle of rights. Air rights, mineral rights, right to occupy, right to let someone pass over your property (easement).
When you give up your right to occupy you have given that right to someone else. You have set out a contract with them if you have a rental agreement. As renting is important the state has set out some basic rights for the tenant and the landlord. The state list is assumed to be in force if your agreement does not say otherwise. Your agreement can even say that all maintenance is the tenants responsibility and state law will generally supersede any such agreement. A landlord can not transfer some responsibilities (heating, water, functional roof, doors and windows functioning, safe electrics).
So, if you have an agreement and the tenant is following it you pretty much have no leg to stand on if you feel something is wrong. You have to prove it. You can terminate for cause or you can terminate at the end of the rental period based on the laws in effect.
You can not terminate a paying tenant just because you feel they are a problem. If you try to do so you might get away with it. Or you might find that you are sued. If you lose the case you can be blocked from any eviction for X months (retaliation is assumed).
Your ownership does not provide you with full control once you have a tenant. If you wanted full control the court feels you should never have rented the place and accepted the tenant's money.
Being a landlord means you are running a business.
In which I have mentioned this point " as my point of view if you do not like anything related to her and her contract will be expired within short time then you do what you want." and
" if landlord think there is something wrong done by his/her point of view in his/her house by tenant then he/she has the authority to terminate her by the low"
In these both above point, I have clarified that if your contract will be expired within short time and by the low.
I have know that if we make a contract then we should follow that rules.
Oct 18 '07, 12:05 AM
