Did property manager do the wrong thing?

Question

Hello All

In March, a rental property I own in AL that is professionally managed by a sister company of the turnkey company I bought it from in 2015 had a fire. It will likely be a total loss.

Property management company refunded tenant their full security deposit that day. Tenants have left 2 burnt out cars on the property. Insurance is not going to pay to remove other peoples' property. I believe PM should send me tenant security deposit so I can have cars removed.  Thoughts appreciated.

James Wise · Answer

I think you're way to caught up in the weeds on this one. Other people living there & possible lease violations are pretty irrelevant here. Beyond that what your lease does or does not say is not always going to be the highway. Landlord tenant law is going to supersede any lease agreement. Judges can & do find clauses & entire leases unenforceable all the time. In some situations when a property is damaged the landlord is legally required to pay for a tenant's housing.

If you ask me you should drop this & be happy the tenant's are gone. Getting rid of the cars isn't really that big of a deal. The Property Manager probably has several tow truck companies that they can call. You always find that one who'll take the car away, no questions asked.

Mike Freske · Answer

Agree with James. The alleged "breaches" are really irrelevant to your situation.

Theresa Harris · Answer

Get the tenants to sign over the cars to you or have them contact a company to take them away.  As Caleb said you can find some places to take the cars for free if they get to keep them.

Caleb Heimsoth · Answer

@Janet Lancaster. Have you gotten a quote to get the cars removed by tow company? Check your local laws but you may be able to find a company to do it for free if they can keep the car

Caleb Heimsoth · Answer

@Janet Lancaster why are you going to move the tenants cars?  Put them in the street or call a tow company to impound them, that’s it.  Focus on the insurance payout as that’s way more important

Janet Lancaster · Answer

Insurance company will NOT help remove autos. Adjuster told me to move to street and let city worry about them. Demolition cost is about $3,000 more than insurance will cover. At least one vehicle has a lien on it per squatter. I am going to have cars towed to tenants new address. Another out of pocket expense and reason to have their deposit.

Colleen F. · Answer

Yeah maybe the PM should have waited on the deposit but I would move on. If the tenants are abandoning all property take pictures and call a couple scrap yards. Burnt out cars may not be removed for free but in the bigger picture you will lose more concentrating on this instead of getting the property back in service. This is a small part of your issues post-fire.

I doubt after a fire these tenants would have titles for these cars so they can pretty much only go to a scrapyard.

Jennifer Rysdam · Answer

I'm sorry this happened to you. I hope you come out okay with your insurance.

If you think one of the vehicles was the cause of the fire, make sure the insurance company is done checking that out before you move it.

I would just be glad they are gone. If my 8-plex burned down, I can only imagine how many of them would be knocking on my door. And to be honest, the first thing I would do is write the checks for their deposits. Why would I keep them? No lease violation on my list would allow me to keep their deposit besides damage or late rent. I can end their lease for violations, but the deposit would be for damages or unpaid rent. If my building was burned down and they were current on the rent, I wouldn't have a reason to keep it.

I would think your insurance would take care of removing the cars when they clean up the property from the fire. Just like they will clean up their stuff that burned on the inside.

Brandon States · Answer

I would be happy that insurance will cover your losses and move to the next investment. Yes, It sucks big time but try KARS4KIDS, or another donation company to remove the cars for free and very quickly.  Sorry for your loss but maybe this means the next investment will be that much more profitable!! Plus you have a crazy story to tell!

Janet Lancaster · Answer

Fire was March 19. Insurance is still working on claim...State Farm. The lease - which they were in breach of because of 3 additional people living there without permission - states landlord is not responsible or liable, etc. I don't know any lease that would provide for landlord to provide housing if house burns down. That's why there's renter's insurance. PM gave prorated rent back, which is not the issue. The issue is the deposit and me having to remove their property. They were also in breach of lease because there was a torn up car in the carport area where fire may have originated..... they did not keep the property up per the lease.

Did property manager do the wrong thing?

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