MA - Landlord - Board of Health and Tenants Stop Paying

[Chan K.]

Hi Experience Landlord of Massachusetts, 

I am in the process of acquiring yet another building. After the "Contract to Purchase" agreement, I discover that the property has some Board of Health issues. Also, some tenants have stopped paying since then. 

My question is: Is the tenants stop paying (or is it defer paying), once all the Board of Health issues/concern have been addressed, can I start collecting the defer payment?

Also, I am also concern that the Board of Health has eyes on this property, it is going to be tough getting them off my back. What should I watch out for and ask before the closing in addition to sustainability and management standpoint going forward?

FYI: I have been calling and building relationship the board of health inspector. She is every details oriented, and even failing thing like hole on the screen window ......etc.

Thank you ahead.

-Chan- 

[Randy E.]

Originally posted by @Rob Beland:

One thing you can do going forward is to have her come in and inspect vacant apartments before you rent them. Once you do that, it's on file with the city that there are no BOH issues so if a tenant calls and complains you know they are the cause of the problem. 

 That's a great tip, Rob.  I had that happen to me accidentally once.  

I bought a house that had been vacant for a few years, but was in decent shape.  As I started to get the property ready to rent, a City Inspector stopped by and spoke to the guys doing the work and left his card.  I was worried that he was going to cause delays or problems with the rehab and put off calling him for a couple of days.  When I finally called him, he set a time to meet me at the house.  My worry heightened.  

During the meet, he said he was glad someone was fixing the house -- apparently City Inspectors here have neighborhoods they patrol regularly and he was very familiar with the house.  He walked through the house with me and pointed out a few minor things I should be sure to fix.  He even mentioned a couple of things I had been worrying about and said they were not a problem -- or that I could fix them in an economical fashion that I assumed wouldn't pass the grade.  He was/is a great guy.  I was worried about nothing. 

He's my go to City Inspector now whenever I have an issue or question about anything.

Chan, it's always good to build a good relationship with people in those department.  If you close on the property, give her a call soon after.  Hopefully, it will go very smoothly for you.