Tenant Renewal Question
Hi guys!
I am new to the forum. I currently have a tenant whose lease is up at Aug 31. I reached out a couple of months ago if he was going to extend the lease another year. He sounded likely. I recently reached back out this week to see his plans again and offered a year lease extension with no rent increase. No response. I then again reached out yesterday asking again for his plans. No response. This was all over Text messages. I’m trying to decide the next steps.
If they are planning on moving out I need to know sooner rather than later. I just rented out the other side for $500 over my current units rent with 5 parties who wanted to sign a lease (for all September 1 move in).
Do I send them a email with the lease extension stating that they have a week to reply on the extension. If they do not sign in a week can I state that I will assume they will no renew and sent them a notice of non renewal? Thank you so much for reading and your advice!
#5 Multi-Family and Apartment Investing Contributor
- Investor
- Shelton, WA
- 6,795
- Votes |
- 6,525
- Posts
#5 Multi-Family and Apartment Investing Contributor
- Investor
- Shelton, WA
@Zack Dasbur Welcome to BP! I do not like being ghosted. I would send them a written notice of non renewal regular mail, certified mail and copy taped to their door. Some places require 30 days others 60. Let the tenant know who is boss-right now the tenant thinks they are the boss. Get a new appreciative tenant in there! All the best!
Hi, welcome to the forum. In your lease, do you specify how much notice they have to give for a renewal or termination? If not, I would be sure to include it in your next lease. I also include that they will allow access 2 weeks before expiration for showings if they choose to terminate.
I’ve found that many tenants don’t know if they going to extend until a couple months before so I usually ask for 60 days notice.
In this case, since it sounds like you are okay with them moving and if there is no time outlined for a notice, you may consider giving them a notice to terminate at the expiration of your lease allows. I’d let them know in the email that you are terminating because you haven’t heard from them.
#3 Managing Your Property Contributor
I'd send him a notice that he has until X day to let you know if he is renewing the lease, if not, the lease is not being renewed and he needs to move on Aug 31. the fact that he's not responding to you is not a good sign for a tenant.
Check Statutes in your state. They may require 60 days notice of non renewal. You may need to post the notice of nonrenewal on the door today.
@Zack Dasbur Texting it not the most ideal way to communicate something that should be a contractural matter. I would send the tenant a formal written notice of a renewal option and give him until X date to make a selection, sign, and return. It needs to include the option of renewing and another option to terminate. You can certainly text him that it's coming by email and/or snail mail. If you don't receive it back by the date you select, I would let him know the eviction process will begin. You need to let him know who is in charge and stick to it.
Quote from @Zack Dasbur:
Congratulations on your first post!
Any time you need a response from the Tenant, I recommend you request the information formally. I also recommend you establish a deadline and a penalty for failing to meet the deadline.
When I offer Tenant a renewal, I give them a written letter with their options. In my case, I offer something like this:
Dear Tenant, your lease is set to expire on 08/01/2022. We would like to offer you a renewal for one more year, but understand you may require some flexibility or want to terminate. Please review the following options and return your response no later than [DATE].
One year renewal: $1,250.00 per month
Month-to-month: $1,500.00 per month
Termination and vacate no later than 11:59PM on ___________________
If we do not receive your response by [DATE] then we will assume you intend to continue on a monthly basis at the rate stated above.
I get a response by the deadline about 99% of the time.
@Zack Dasbur Congrats on your first BP post! There's such a great community here, and I see you've gotten some good advice already, so I won't pile on, but if you're looking to meet some more landlords/RE investors in Denver, my team is hosting a meet up this Wednesday night at 6pm at Blake Street Tavern!