Will a maintenance request impact a pending eviction?

Question

I inherited tenants on month to month leases and notified a tenant that I would not be renewing. They did not leave, so the eviction was filed today. Ironically, the same tenant filed a maintenance request today for a door knob falling off. Should I address this request despite the pending eviction? Should I wait? Will taking one action or the other impact my pending eviction? Thanks!

Rob Rothman · Answer

Since you will need to repair the doorknob eventually why not do it now and use this as an excuse to document the condition of the property in case the tenant tries to make allegations regarding maintenance. In Ohio the courts tell the tenants that the condition of the property is not an affirmative defense to an eviction for non-payment of rent. The same holds true for an eviction when the tenant has been given a notice of non-renewal.

Courtney King · Answer

I'm not sure what your local laws are but here in Texas, I would recommend that you at least respond to the request and attempt to schedule the repair; I'd use it as an opportunity to go to the property and informally inspect it as well.  Even if you schedule the repair AFTER the court date you still showed good faith. I'm not an attorney though. Additionally, that's such a minor thing. I hope this helps. Maybe consult with a local PM or attorney that has handled evictions in your area.

Jennifer T. · Answer

I can't speak for NC law.  But I had something almost identical happen.  I bought two duplexes (deplorable condition) from the same seller.  I had inherited tenants in 3 units.  Gave everyone a notice to vacate by the end of the next month.  Rent was due for two of the units about one week after I closed.  Neither one paid.  So then I posted a 5-Day Notice to Pay or Quit.

A few days after the Pay or Quit, I received a phone call from one of the tenants.  She said the ceiling had caved in for one of the bedrooms.  I didn't even ask her about the rent, nor did she mention it.  I take care of necessary problems, at any point in the eviction process.  If anything, I think that just makes me look better for the eviction judge.  I then spent many minutes of my life I won't get back trying to schedule a time when my husband could come see it.  Or a few day/times they were available so we could schedule something with our drywall guy.  I'd also told her they didn't need to be home, but she wanted one of them there.  In the end, she said she would call me around 6pm that night after she spoke to her b/f about his schedule.  She never called me again (shrug).

She also made a point in our conversation...talking about the scheduling...to mention that her b/f was at the doctor because some of the ceiling had fallen on him and now his back was hurting (boldfaced lie).  I only replied back that I hoped he was feeling better and, yeah, definitely call me back later when you know his schedule so we can get someone out there to take a look.  My husband (who was doing work on one of the other units) even ran into the b/f a few days later.  He asked if he could see the ceiling, but the b/f was running out and didn't have time to show it.  But he did tell my husband what had happened.  Either he was not willing to be a liar or they had not gotten their stories straight, but he said they found the ceiling like that when they had returned home the previous night.

Just funny she was so frantic about this ceiling and "we needed to fix it right away".  When, really, I think she was trying to so amateurishly play this up, so we wouldn't follow through with or would delay the court filing.  I would have been happy to fix the ceiling promptly if she'd gotten back in touch with me their schedules, but I personally didn't care when it got fixed.  Easier for me to wait until they were gone and take care of it while we were doing all the other work for the unit anyway.  I did, however, send myself an e-mail that outlined the call, what was discussed, and that she had not gotten back in touch with me.  I sent a second e-mail to myself about one week later that she still had not gotten back in touch with me.

Ronald Rohde · Answer

Is it an exterior door? TX requires locking exterior doors and your eviction would be held up due to that repair.

Will a maintenance request impact a pending eviction?

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