Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 512 posts · 301 votes
Are warrants considered a hard pass?
I’m not use to dealing with “C class” like and
There were other factors that made previous tenants a pass, standing alone does it always make a hard pass or which warrants out in the past make no difference or aren’t of much concern for you. Do you call anyone? Lol
Rental Property Investor · Upstate, NY · Member since 2012 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
6y
We had one once where the parents 'rented-to-own' our large <C-class duplex & installed their daughter, wayward BF & couple of kids in the adjoining unit. A couple of years later when we went to collect the rent from the parents an ADA was there with a couple of detectives with active warrants in hand looking for the young couple. The parents & kids vacated without incident after doing a lot of rehab including a Hi Effic. Fce. & central a/c. I felt sorry for the older parents but we sold the property & 10 years later still hold the note.
Contractor · Oxford, MA · Member since 2018 · 807 posts · 745 votes
6y
@Jonathan Watt there are many different "warrants " out there but I can't think of any I would say yes to. In some places people can get them for parking tickets, not paying certain fees and taxes or even their kid skipping school too much. So I don't consider all people with warrants the same but all the ones I can think of give me reason to say no.
Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 512 posts · 301 votes
6y
@Bryan Devitt thank you, I mean warrants for money owed are obviously like bad on every level disregarding safety and law but on these cases where people can get locked in a cage for something that, like you mentioned, you have to wonder if your two steps from someone being in that case? Plenty of renters, finance or lease cars. There are like 5 ways to get a warrant for irresponsibly owning a car.
Anyways Non b class tenants are new to me and so watching a red flag pop up was like. Wow. No ways
Thank you everyone for your answers
I was curious if anyone had a story or a outcome of sorts to share. Maybe even a feel good story, “well I asked and he took care of it and we got him in” type story. But let’s be real it’s landlording
Anyways, it’s very clear that money owned to government that could get you in jail is a big no no.
Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 512 posts · 301 votes
6y
@Nicho Pruett where I’m from, a lucky 20$ bet can get you enough money one day randomly to pay off your $ticket or whatever the misdemeanor leading to warrant is for. Not sure if they kick down doors for that kind of warrant but either way, cops and disappearing tenants by force of cops is no bueno.
But I couldn’t find anything on bp about warrants and I’ve never seen flags in a background check and it’s weird to think about that one day a person who once had it, the next day won’t because of a lump sum owed.
@Dennis M. You ever wonder if the previous landlord accepted them with it? What happened if you don’t mind me asking? Did they just go poof too?
It’s a long story ... Eventually the law caught up with him and he ghosted on me owing lots of rent plus he destroyed the unit and sold my mower and mountain bike I lent him for drugs . Cost me a couple thousand dollars atleast . Inherited tenant . Thank God in heaven he’s gone I might screw up now and accidentally make a profit lol
Rental Property Investor · Upstate, NY · Member since 2012 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
6y
We had one kid who did a rent-to-own on a C-class duplex we had. I picked it up trashed complete with frozen pipes for $12,500 & my wife was very annoyed & would NOT go through it. The kid signed on for $28k & completely rehabbed it. A couple of years into the deal he goes back to Ohio to visit the ex & his kids only to be incarcerated for outstanding warrants & probation violations. His wife at the time left him & handed back the keys to the duplex. So as my wife is saying 'I told you so' I had to evict the tenants, who also trashed it, then fortunately I sold the place for $30k to a neighbor (who approached me) & held the note. She never missed a payment & had it paid off in 15 years.
There were other factors that made previous tenants a pass, standing alone does it always make a hard pass or which warrants out in the past make no difference or aren’t of much concern for you. Do you call anyone? Lol
Chicago, IL · Member since 2018 · 546 posts · 227 votes
6y
Probably in the best interest of your business to hard-pass on this. This tenant has an active warrant for their arrest and signing a lease with them now almost guarantees a super quick turnover (and potential damage incurred to the property if they need to kick the door down).
I had a rental when I first started out (section 8) in CA. I went by for regular repair items and bicycles kept coming up and leaving. After the 2nd time observing the behavior I realized I might be dealing with a drug house. Long story short that was confirmed. If you have any red flags, find other tenants... Unfortunately, experience is a good way to learn how to better vet tenants.
Rental Property Investor · Northern NJ · Member since 2019 · 672 posts · 677 votes
6y
@Jonathan Watt I have dealt with warrants (on the door kicking side) for many years and consider it my specialty. While I could go into how you should find out what the warrant is for (how do you know this person has an active warrant anyway?) and how warrants can be for trivial things, its best to pass on the tenant.
Most law abiding citizens will turn themselves in once they find out there is an active warrant to clear up the confusion. Why take the chance of having a person who's going to get your front door, and possibly windows, broken and dragged out of the place?
Investor · New Orleans, LA · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 944 votes
6y
I have a tenant who moved in as of March of this year. Her criminal background came out clean.
But, as it turns out, there was a warrant out for her arrest on a traffic ticket she had ignored. I'm not sure how old the ticket was, but she gave me the impression it was a few years old. She got pulled over for something else, that popped up, and she was thrown in jail for a few days. She was put on house arrest, but could go to work.
Long story short. Between the original ticket now inflated to (I'd assume) many times it's original fee. And all the expenses she had with the house arrest...because the house arrest option is not free. She could no longer keep up with the rent. First she started falling behind. Then she couldn't pay anything for this month. And now we're headed to eviction court (sigh).
Assuming it was only an unpaid traffic ticket like she said, that's about as minor as you can get for a warrant. But here I am. Still out rent because of all the problems it caused her, once it caught up to her.
Rental Property Investor · Sioux Falls, SD · Member since 2015 · 9k+ posts · 18k+ votes
6y
@Jonathan W. I had a tenant who had an outstanding warrant for unpaid parking tickets. She was arrested on the same day she paid rent one month. She used her "one call" to call me, to ask me to use the rent money to bail her out. She had three small kids at home and a good job that she would have lost had she not shown up. I went down to the courthouse and bailed her out using her rent money. The bail money paid her tickets. She ended up paying me back with late fees on her next paycheck.
Despite my act of kindness, three years later she moved out in the middle of the night without giving notice. She left a mess behind.
Years later I saw her at the DMV with her 16 year old daughter, who was pregnant. You realize it is just a sad cycle of poor decision making.
I don't rent to people with warrants. I don't rent to people engaged in questionable activities, tax evasion or people who have revoked licenses (if they drive up to the property). I can't afford to have their problems become my problems.