Who Pays For Ant Control in SFR?

Question

Brand new tenant who has been there for less than two weeks in a SFR that was just rehabbed. House was tented for termites as part of the maintenance. He says he has ants everywhere, in every room. We have a heat wave going in SoCal so I imagine this could cause the ants to appear and I've also heard that the dead termites serve as a food source for the ants and I'm sure we have lots of dead termites. He wants to have a professional come out and spray. Is this a landlord expense typically?

Kaycee Miller · Answer

Since it is the first tenant after the rehab, and you are admitting that the ant problem might be because of dead termites, why not spray for ants this one time and then tell the tenant that ant maintenance will be his responsibility moving forward.

Christine Swaidan · Answer

Thanks for the perspective @Carolina E. and @Kaycee Wegener. This tenant is wearing me out with his constant requests. I hope that once he settles in he will find another hobby besides texting me to request small items.

Carolina E. · Answer

I would  have him try some ant poison first.  If it is not an issue with tenant not being clean and it continues I would then think about spraying. I'd think you would be responsible since it might be due to the dead termites.

Christine Swaidan · Answer

Account Closed He's asked for a rent reduction because he is no longer employed. I said no. His daughter moved in. No problem. A dog came with the daughter. I will be asking for a pet deposit even though he has tried to hide the dog. On the bright side he keeps the place meticulous.

Christine Swaidan · Answer

The tenant settled down. Still a PITA. Less frequent demands now. Guess he ran out of things to complain about Account Closed

Account Closed · Answer

Well, keeping the place meticulous is great. Best of luck.

Account Closed · Answer

Glad to hear that he's settled down, though

Account Closed · Answer

How is he a PITA now?

Account Closed · Answer

Hi @Christine Swaidan. Did your tenant ever stop texting you? I have one that moved in a month ago and I'm tired of them texting me, too. This time it's about ants.

Who Pays For Ant Control in SFR?

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