Appliance repairs in rental - who pays?

Question

All these years I have been maintaining all appliance in my rentals though my lease says:

"Appliances are in the Residence for the sole convenience of Landlord. They are NOT a part of the Rental Agreement and are specifically exempt from it. Tenant may use appliances, but Landlord is not and will not be responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of such and any appliance. Tenant will have to maintain or repair appliance at their expense with Landlord’s consent OR Landlord will remove same from the premises, if Tenant does not want to maintain or repair them. Landlord must be notified before any appliance is moved from original area by Tenant.Tenant acknowledges that Tenant has inspected these appliances and that the same are in good working condition."

How do you all handle the appliance repairs? All my appliances have been brand new and have been working well but every now and then something pops up that becomes $200 service call. Friends of mine who owns the rentals are stating that they plan to have tenant maintain it. I have pretty good tenants in all my units and pays on time or earlier or not sure how to charge them for repairs. This clause does not include major things like HVAC or water heater.

I am interested in hearing other fellow landlord's take on this.

Mary M. · Answer

I maintain everything in my units that was there when the tenant moved in - appliances, blinds, etc.

It is MY investment after all, and it is in MY best interest to maintain everything in top condition so I can continue to make top dollar for my units.

Find and contract with a good appliance repair company. This will be a life saver for you.

Jon Holdman · Answer

If I provide the appliance I maintain it, despite similar language in my lease.

Nathan Gesner · Answer

@Al Pat my policy is to maintain anything I provide. If there is an exception, I specifically spell out the change.

This is a great example of why Landlords should know what is in their lease. You're maintaining appliances even though your written contract says you won't. When you say one thing but do another then you may confuse the tenant and cause additional problems. i recommend you either follow your agreement or change it to match how you behave.

Greg M. · Answer

If the repair is due to damage or misuse by the tenant, they pay.

If the repair is due to normal wear and tear or age of the machine, I pay.

John Underwood · Answer

My appliances so I repair, maintain or replace them as required.

Ray Harrell · Answer

I purchased a 3 flat with in unit washer and dryer and dishwasher and over-range microwaves. I checked the lease and found that only the stove and fridge were included in the lease. Since I had ZERO intention of keeping the other items on move-out, I told each tenant that if it breaks, you fix, or I can remove, but I will not be repairing or replacing non-essentials. Stove and fridge are all I will maintain.

Richard Sherman · Answer

I agree, as usual, with @Mary Mitchell . I will say that, in general, unless you have higher end appliances, you are almost always better off replacing than repairing.

Al Pat · Answer

I have been maintaining all the appliances I supplied in my SFRs and Multifamily. Its just that as you scale up, these cost start to add up. However, I have great tenants and do not want to rock the boat so I will continue to maintain them despite the language in my lease. Based on the responses, it seems everyone else is doing the same so I am not any different. Makes total business sense and I appreciate everyone's feedback.

Appliance repairs in rental - who pays?

Appliance repairs in rental - who pays?

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