Who is responsible for pest control on a rental in Washington?

Who is responsible for pest control on a rental in Washington?

Rental Property Investor · Seattle, WA · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes

My lease just says tenants are responsible for any condition they create regarding pests. New tenant moved in yesterday and claims there are ants by the back door. I was working on the house for a week and never saw ANY ants anywhere. I have liquid ant bait etc. that I can put down, but that generally made me wonder, who is responsible for pest control at the rental by law since my state provided lease doesn't adequately address this IMO...

0Reply
25 views

4 Replies

Jump to latestLatest
  • Rental Property Investor · Tacoma, WA · Member since 2018 · 244 posts · 140 votes
    6y

    @Jack B.

    If it were me, I (Landlord) would take care of it. Nobody cares about your rental like you do. I think this is preventative maintenance, and a quarterly visit from a pest control company is a pretty cost effective plan. That, and I like to take care of my tenants so they in return will hopefully take care of me.

  • Rental Property Investor · Seattle, WA · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    6y
    Originally posted by @Justin Frank:

    @Jack B.

    If it were me, I (Landlord) would take care of it. Nobody cares about your rental like you do. I think this is preventative maintenance, and a quarterly visit from a pest control company is a pretty cost effective plan. That, and I like to take care of my tenants so they in return will hopefully take care of me.

     Agreed, plus it gives me an excuse to enter the unit to see what's going on...

  • Rental Property Investor · Tacoma, WA · Member since 2018 · 244 posts · 140 votes
    6y

    Good point @Jack B.

  • Nathan GesnerBusiness Member
    Moderator
    Real Estate Broker · Cody, WY · Member since 2010 · 28k+ posts · 41k+ votes
    6y

    It is normally a tenant responsibility. However, since they just moved in, I would probably provide them with some ant traps or granules to get started. They clearly didn't cause this so it's an opportunity to start off on the right foot.

    The DIY Landlord Book4.7247 Reviews
Join the conversationCreate a free account to reply, vote on answers and follow this thread.