Tenant left with my washer ,dryer and stove...
Hello BP Community,
I just had one of my tenants move out of one of my properties and he left with the washer , the dryer and the stove, that did not belong to him.
This was a tenant I had acquired with the property and his lease clearly indicated that these appliances were included with his lease (and the pictures from the purchase also show the appliances existing in the unit)
The security deposit barely covers all the other damages that the tenant left behind ,no chance to pay for major appliances.
Did anyone have such a case before ? What recourse do you think I can have against this tenant ?
Thanks
wow sorry to hear that.
#2 General Landlording & Rental Properties Contributor
- 10,077
- Votes |
- 13,311
- Posts
#2 General Landlording & Rental Properties Contributor
Contact him and give in 72 hours to return them and tell him if they are not returned, you will contact the police and take him to court.
Then start looking for gently used appliances for sale.
The tenant didn't leave with your washer, dryer and stove--he STOLE your washer, dryer and stove.
Have you called the Police and report it, then maybe he can go sit in Jail with the rest of the thieves.
He will update his Drivers License, or be pulled over for a traffic stop at some point--and bingo (open warrant).
I had this exact situation happen on my first duplex.
I kept them in there while I renovated the other unit. Gave them a 3 month lease at the same low rent (I knew they couldn’t afford an increase), but I wanted things to be as painless as possible for the term and while I got them out.
Quickly found out that a family of 4 was living in a one bedroom.
When the lease ended, it took about an extra two weeks to get them out. But I was as cordial as possible because I knew they were waiting for a reason to take advantage. Eventually they left, but took the washer and dryer with them (which I inherited with the purchase as personal property). I asked them if they could bring them back, and the response was “they are mine”.
I basically just said “ok” and moved on. Wasn’t worth the headache. They were gone, there was no way I’d get them back, and if I did I could almost guarantee they’d be broken. I always pick my battles wisely, sometimes it’s worth it and most of the time it’s not.
#1 Tenant Screening Contributor
- Property Manager
- Honolulu, HI
Unfortunately, too many landlords do not document their transactions properly. I have had many owners that once an appliance died, they gave the tenant an "opportunity" to purchase something they would really like, rather than a used or low end appliance the LL would spring for. They do so, but there is no documentation to amend the rental agreement or even acknowledge what happened. This is why it is so important when acquiring a property to inspect each unit and confirm with the tenant who owns what, who pays for what, what the terms and deposit are, etc. An Estoppel certificate alone can confirm terms, but if the "trade" was done a couple years ago, neither seller or tenant even think about it. You have to ask questions on both sides.
#3 BRRRR - Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat Contributor
- Investor
- Austin, TX
- 5,506
- Votes |
- 9,861
- Posts
#3 BRRRR - Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat Contributor
- Investor
- Austin, TX
All you can do is file a lien against them and take them to small claims court
I would file a police report and then go to small claims court. I would keep my expectations low, but it would still be worth my time to do it.
Pretty simple - take your evidence down to the police station and swear out a criminal complaint. If you've got photographic stamped evidence that the appliances were there, and leases that state the appliances are yours, then they have committed theft just as if they stole your toilets and sinks.
I've had tenants take appliances before, also bathroom vanity/sink/faucet, and so forth. I don't waste a lot of time with these types of issues. One scenario is that they had moving help and the truck was loaded with these items because the movers assumed they belonged to the tenant. This probably wasn't the case but... There's a lot of crap that happens with tenants and some things aren't worth losing sleep over. Replace the missing items and move on with your business plan.
Quote from @Scott Mac:
The tenant didn't leave with your washer, dryer and stove--he STOLE your washer, dryer and stove.
Have you called the Police and report it, then maybe he can go sit in Jail with the rest of the thieves.
He will update his Drivers License, or be pulled over for a traffic stop at some point--and bingo (open warrant).
That's right. Stolen! And you know who did it. File a police report. Look at those pics and figure the value. I think over $1500 is a felony.
Quote from @Richard F.:
Aloha,
Unfortunately, too many landlords do not document their transactions properly. I have had many owners that once an appliance died, they gave the tenant an "opportunity" to purchase something they would really like, rather than a used or low end appliance the LL would spring for. They do so, but there is no documentation to amend the rental agreement or even acknowledge what happened. This is why it is so important when acquiring a property to inspect each unit and confirm with the tenant who owns what, who pays for what, what the terms and deposit are, etc. An Estoppel certificate alone can confirm terms, but if the "trade" was done a couple years ago, neither seller or tenant even think about it. You have to ask questions on both sides.
Thanks a lot for all the replies ! I called up the tenant and his story is that he had an agreement with the old landlord to replace at his own cost the appliances a few years ago in return for some form of rent concessions he got at the time, just like the scenario that @Richard F.described. Ofcourse nothing was documented...why make it simple and legit ? :)
I negotiated with the tenant the return of the stove and he keeps the rest of the appliances .Time to move on with my business plan as @John Teachout rightly put it!
Another layer of protection for next time on a occupied acquisition is an estoppel agreement. Mine has the tenant list who owns which appliances, among lots of other useful things. That could have been exhibit A for your small claims case, or for your criminal complaint. (Although, in my parts, the standard answer from the police is "this is a civil matter" on just about everything but violent crime.)
Contact the tenant and give them 48 hours to return. If they fail/refuse, report it to the police as stolen property.
File stolen items with the cops, but they probably won't do much. Understaffed and they probably have 100 other cases just like it. Could go to small claims court as well since you have the tenants info, but that will drag out and they probably won't ever show up. Really these people are going to be more trouble than they are worth and this is a character building moment in your RE journey. Will be a great story to tell other investors when you are rich and sipping drinks on the beach. Buy used appliances to replace them and get a new tenant in there right away to start paying rent. These people aren't worth your time, the money is a drop in the bucket.