Investor · Lehigh Acres, FL · Member since 2013 · 94 posts · 11 votes
I closed on my first duplex this past week and inherited tenants. Based on the lease and review from the former PM, tenant A is still owing pet deposit since Start of lease and is currently past due by 1.5 month. Tenant B is a model tenant, pays on time, via online and no complaints. I did an introduction letter and set out to meet tenants/deliver letter yesterday. Tenant B was home, everything went well. Tenant A, the person answering door states not home, trash was thrown in front, sure signs that I might have an early eviction on hand. I will make another attempt to contact tenant and then file my 3 day notice for non payment of rent.
Definitely get in front of this one. When you meet with them let them know in no uncertain terms that whatever they got away with to the prior landlord, this is not how you run things.
When I bought a duplex with tenants back in 2011, one side was good (still have them to this day) and the other side was not. Of course the prior landlord said both sides were good, paid on time, etc.
First month, she paid on time and in full. Second month, not so much. I think she was testing us. We put up that pay or quit notice and she paid then gave us a letter saying she was leaving to buy a house. (This wasn't true, but whatever.) She didn't give us proper notice, but we could see the writing on the wall with this one. We let her go and she left us with a dirty unit with a cat-urine smelly suitcase in the basement.
Overall, it really wasn't horrible as the unit wasn't "trashed" just dirty. A little elbow grease, a fresh coat of paint, and it was ready for new tenants and we got $25 more per month in rent than with that old one. Plus we did have a security deposit which we deducted from.
@Chadi I am going to try serving the 3 day on my own. The thing is there are children in the apartment and this was not mentioned on the lease so I am trying to work with tenant if I can. If all else fails, I will pursue serving 3 day notice. Depending on how things go, may end up with an attorney.
@Dawn Anastasi Thanks Dawn, I have to stay on top of it as you know tenants will try to see what you are made of. I was very surprised to see a PM company not enforcing the rules of tenancy. Tenant paid half of last months rent, nothing this month and has a pet deposit that has not been paid since inception of lease back in August. Makes me wonder about investing out of state.
Ah, that makes more sense. Yes, there have been many discussions on the forums about bad property management companies. You'd think that anyone that would do a good job would make a killing because of all the bad ones out there.
@Dawn Anastasi you would think, my son owns a home in TX, he is military overseas and contracts a PM company to manage home. 2 weeks after tenant has moved out, PM has not not been by to do walk thru or anything. He calls company and is told agent is out on Christmas vacation and noone is assigned to pick up her workload. Very scary!
Some states have limits as to when you can return the security deposit. For example in WI you need to return a security deposit (with itemized statement) within 21 days. Otherwise the tenant can sue you.
Make sure you set the ground rules in the beginning. Execute the 3 day, and see if there is any progress made, if not evict. This will give you a chance to update the unit, and your other tenant will be pleased. You can also offer the good tenant the updated rental. If you have the $ you can then update the other unit for a new tenant at a higher rate. You would have to be in the right financial position for this.
I do out-of-state investing and I only use my PM for consolidated services. They only manage the repair side of my properties, tenant screening, accepting payment, and placing ads I like to do this. It's been working out tremendously. If there are any money issues I'm on top of it immediately. All repairs the PM is contact by the tenant and the PM informs me and I authorize.
@Dawn, im not sure of the rules in TX but in Florida its 15 days.
@Marcus Maloney thanks for the advice. The properties are actually in good condition and that was why I purchased this unit vs ones I has seen on the other side of town that required much repairs. A good cleaning and some paint will make a big difference. This home is 10 mins from where I live and so far all my purchases I have been able to manage myself. Nice oak cabinets and kitchen appliances. Home is only 7 years and in an upscale part of town. But my plan is to move ahead with 3 day.
@Andrea Shields Excellent advice by Marcus and Steve, especially about getting an attorney to walk you through the steps on your first eviction if necessary. Question - Did you "inherit" the PM company with the property ? i would aslo shop around for a new one you trust if you did
First question is if you inherited a PM company, what exactly are they doing and why are you having to do all this. I think firing them would be first in line of business and then deal with the tenant. Then if you don't want to self manage shop around for a new company before a new tenant but that is just rediculious!
Also by the sounds of it they already broke the lease of they didn't list all occupants, of course underage children could have been left off but still, not good all around. Good luck and post updates!
@Jason Minnich no I did not inherit the PM company and frankly would not use them based on what I know now. I have to get things right with tenant before I do anything else. I will however self manage as its close to home and I have managed all my other purchases. Thanks for the input.
Don't let the presence of kids cause you to take any different tack then if there were no kids. That is illegal discrimination based on family status.
For me the objective would be to get them out. Evictions take time and cost money. Negotiate with them to be out by the 1st. If they are gone by the first tell them you won't pursue them for back rent. Your approach should be to get them out of your life. The only way I would consider keeping them was if they made whole the entire back rent and missing pet deposit (remember they might get an advance on their tax return). Otherwise they need to know if they stay past the 1st and don't sign the termination agreement you will go after them to the full extent of the law.
If they don't move, get a highly experienced eviction lawyer, you have a pro tenant and need expert advise.
Inherited tenants will test you, especially if the previous landlord let things slide. We had one we just evicted that was trying to pay half the rent on the first and the other half on the 15th. We said no because we knew she would always be a problem in collecting and I simply don't have time to chase tenants around for their rent payment.
She started complaining that we needed to fix stuff, then she would pay. We said no, and served her with a 3 day pay or quit notice. On the third day after continued discussions that she needed to get out, we contacted our attorney about filing for an eviction. Our attorney said that she would file the paper work the next morning and our court date would be in 10 days. We notified the tenant that we had a court date set. 7 pm that night she called to say she was out of the apartment. We called our attorney and they didn't file the paperwork.
Once they know you are serious, most will move on. However, if they don't, you will need a good attorney on your side.
I had a similar situation on a duplex I purchased last year. I initially tried to work with the tenant because at the time I was going through a high vacancy cycle. This proved to be a big mistake. The tenant gave us the run around for a few months and I finally filed for eviction. My advice is to file for eviction and get them out. It is much better to
deal with the vacancy and loss of rent. I have since adopted a new policy. I do not let anyone stay who is past a month behind. My reasoning is if they can't pay for 1 month then there is no way they will be able to catch up with 2 months of back rent either.