Terrible Sewage back up--how to handle with tenant?

Terrible Sewage back up--how to handle with tenant?

Member since 2022 · 32 posts · 17 votes

Hi all! So I have a tenant living in a single family house. Apparently there is a terrible sewage back up in the basement and it's going to cost $4k to remedy. She never reported it to me or my management company but the smell was so bad that her neighbors finally reported it to the management company and to the city! She hasn't paid her rent yet this month and her lease says she's responsible for sewer issues. I sort of suspect she did't report it since she hadn't paid her rent. She's a nice older lady, definitely low income and I've been super lenient with her about her rent previously but I'm not happy about paying $4k to fix this problem that she clearly let go. Any suggestions on how to handle this? Would you bill it back to her? Evict her? Just eat it? I'm kind of clueless here. I'd hate to charge her $4k but I'm also quite sure if this had been brought to management's attention much earlier we could have avoided this massive clean up. Any advice would be appreciated and thank you in advance!

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Nathan GesnerBusiness Member
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Real Estate Broker · Cody, WY · Member since 2010 · 28k+ posts · 41k+ votes
3y
Quote from @Jordan Sachs:

This is what happens when you make tenants financially responsible for maintenance. They can't afford it - or don't want to pay for it - so they refuse to report it. Now you have a $400 problem that turned into a $4,000 problem.

Yes, you should get rid of the Tenant. You should also change your lease so it complies with general Landlord-Tenant law and makes you responsible for ordinary maintenance. The tenant should only be responsible if they abuse or neglect, or if they fail to report a maintenance issue that then causes additional problems that could have been prevented by timely reporting.

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  • Theresa HarrisPro Member
    Member since 2019 · 15k+ posts · 11k+ votes
    3y

    The fact that the neighbours complained about the smell and the tenant said nothing is not a good sign especially if the sewer backed up in the basement.  I'd focus on getting it cleaned first and talking to your tenant to explain that what should have been a quick and easy fix is now a $4K fix because she didn't report it. I would charge her some of the costs for the cleaning because she didn't report it and it was worse because of that.

  • Appraiser · Rosemary Beach, FL · Member since 2009 · 30 posts · 28 votes
    3y

    Well I for one have had covid and can't smell  s(hit),  so it is possible she didn't smell it.   

  • Member since 2019 · 7k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    3y

    as long as no-one does the actual due diligence (sewer camera testing), the actual problem is not solved. If this thing goes to court it would be fun to watch, I bet the tenant is not guilty lol.

  • Member since 2022 · 32 posts · 17 votes
    3y

    Well it certainly does say in her lease that she is responsible for reporting issues right away and clearly that didn't happen. However, I don't know yet if it was her fault or just a plumbing or sewer issue that's not her fault at all. This is an elderly tenant who I inherited who has lived there for at least 3 years and has always paid her rent (although once a bit late before). My insurance doesn't cover this and if if they end up finding excessive wipes or something else in the pipes which absolutely not allowed according to her rent then it is her fault and I will have to figure out what to do with her at that point. Honestly, if she hadn't paid her rent and this issue didn't arise I wouldn't even be that concerned. I realize she's late on rent and it's definitely not a charity but she has been a good tenant since I bought the place almost 2 years ago. She's generally quiet and keeps the place pretty well maintained and I can't say for sure if she smelled it or how long this was going on. I am going to have a conversation with her and assess from there and of course, see what they find when they put the camera up the line. One lesson I have definitely learned is that I do not want to rent to low-income people. I had to evict a woman and her 5 kids (inherited tenant) and it felt like garbage but she hadn't paid and was a terrible tenant. I don't care to make money off of poor people and I understand as someone said earlier that things can happen but of course there is a limit. Thanks for the advice.

  • Austin, TX · Member since 2019 · 5k+ posts · 5k+ votes
    3y

    Paragraphs are your friend.

  • Rental Property Investor · Colorado Springs, CO · Member since 2020 · 433 posts · 284 votes
    3y

    We had a similar issue, but good insurance paid for itself. The business policy covered the rehab and also covered loss of income! Check with your agent and educate yourself on the options.

    Best of luck going forward

  • Member since 2022 · 32 posts · 17 votes
    3y

    Thanks @Matt Ziegler! It sounds like your situation was a lot worse than mine but glad it was covered! The sewage backup on my property was determined to be the tenant responsibility because they found a bunch of personal products in the drain and she's lived there for 5 year. Unfortunately (for her) she will be paying for it but we are working on a payment plan and hopefully she'll be more careful moving forward.

  • Rental Property Investor · Colorado Springs, CO · Member since 2020 · 433 posts · 284 votes
    3y

    Jordan,

    We had a tenant early on during the pandemic flushing baby wipes, as you can imagine, the plumbers loved us!

    People do the damnest things!

    That being said, I encourage you to check with your homeowners insurance folks, and see about sewage/water damage coverage.

    Cheers!

  • Member since 2022 · 32 posts · 17 votes
    3y

    Thanks Matt! I did check and they don't cover sewage issues. Glad yours did though!

  • Real Estate Consultant · Cleveland · Member since 2020 · 6k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    3y

    fix the issue and move on, before the tenant reports you to the city. I understand the tenant may have caused this issue, but the city could care less, Fix it then try and collect 

  • Member since 2022 · 32 posts · 17 votes
    3y

    I fixed it right away. Obviously I wasn't going to let that go.

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