help for new landlords

[Deanna Skelcy]

My husband and I purchased 2 SFH in the last year. One was rented out 3 weeks after we took possession and one we just finished rehabbing with a renter due to move in next week. Our renters bought a home 6 months into their lease and we graciously let them out of their lease. The new teanants just moved in last week and are the brother and sister in law of former tenants. They each helped the other move out, then move in. 2 days after getting the keys the new tenants informed us they did not have hot water. The switch on the pilot has been broken, the plumber said it looked like something was dropped on it. HERE IS WHERE THE PROBLEM COMES IN. Who bears responsibility for this? I feel like this should not be our responsibility to pay for. I still have the security deposit from the former tenants. The house was very clean when old tenants moved out. There were 2 paint chips and the leaves had been raked into big piles in the back yard and not picked up.

Being new landlords we were not prepared for this, how do we do a final inspection so that nothing gets missed?  Should we include an early lease termination fee for future?  Any advice is appreciated!

[Long Dang]

I agree with @Patrick M. here. Unless you somehow documented the break while the old tenants moved out it's going to be difficult to prove fault. Security deposit laws are very specific and generally tenant favored so definitely to get familiar with as you continue to engage with rentals.

Did you do a walk through inspection with the old tenant during move out? I know Michigan Law requires the landlord to have an itemized list of damages(sometimes called an inventory list) within 30 days of returning a security deposit (link to MI law). If you took this step prior to the next tenants moving in, you would have some leverage on holding the security deposit. Otherwise, it might be difficult to prove in case court comes into the equation. 

Now that you have new tenants, make sure they fill out a statement of condition for the apartment/inventory list (essentially to document the status of the apartment before living in it). This way, you and the tenant have some "proof" of how the apartment conditions before they live in it.