How to deal with petty tenant requests...

Real Estate Agent · Souderton, PA · Member since 2016 · 591 posts · 414 votes

Do any seasoned landlords out there have any advice on how they’d handle this situation? Truth is, I hear from these tenants about once a month or so, maybe less, for stuff like this. With 1 or 2 properties, stuff like this isn’t really an issue. 2 hours trip to the property round trip included to make this repair is no big deal. But with 25 properties, this could become a full time job.

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Investor · Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes

Originally posted by @William C.:

I'm trying hard not to curse you. I deleted the first response because I'm trying to be a nicer person on the internet. You are being an absentee slumlord.

It's not their fault the chain broke. Accusing them of breaking it is deflecting your responsibility on to them in the lowest way possible. Expecting them to pull the lid and reach their hand into the tank water to flush the toilet every time they use it is vile.

If I was your tenant the word I would use to describe you starts with an A.

You chose to invest and self manage out of market. Now you want to make the tenant bear the responsibility of that choice and worse, are accusing them of being petty.

I might start pouring grease down every drain in the house if you were my landlord and treated me like this.

What you could do instead of accusing, deflecting and insulting, is work with them on the phone and maybe, just maybe, you can work together and have them fix it. Now that you've insulted them, that ship may have sailed.

Or get off your lazy duff and go down there and fix it. Or call a plumber and pay them to do it. You might have been halfway there in the time it took you to write and manage this thread.

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Investor · Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
6y
Originally posted by @David Clay:
@Merritt S. Um, this is a bit harsh and unnecessary IMO. The original question was related to small pesky repair requests which transitioned into this one specific issue as an example. Granted, he acknowledged that it is now a repair issue and seemed to be looking for solutions (that’s how I read things). I’ve been reading through the posts looking to see what answers come in for the ORIGINAL question not to see a fellow landlord berated and brow beaten. I’d like to think we are a support community. Given the content available I don’t know this person’s experience with rentals, he could have 2 rentals or ten for all we know. He certainly wouldn’t have a hundred as I’d expect someone with that many units to have his question figured out already. So, maybe we can avoid this level of discussion. You can do what you want, obviously, but I don’t find your response very friendly. I’m surprised by others upvoting this. Just my opinion.

Well, what's the point of the forum then? I wrote another response to another poster with your same sentiment. Maybe read it over and decide if I'm here to be helpful or here to be a troll. I make no apologies here, but I would in a heartbeat if I was beating someone up for the sake of beating them up. I don't think slumlords are very friendly or productive. I think when neighborhoods deteriorate from too many slumlords property values decrease, which hurts investors as well as communities. I think there is a symbiotic relationship between landlords and tenants that when both parties do the right thing, good things happen for everyone, and when both parties do the wrong thing, bad things happens for everyone. Just my opinion. I dunno...maybe I'm just a stupid troll.

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Sam Pollard
Flipper/Rehabber · Pasadena, CA · Member since 2018 · 1 post · 0 votes
6y
@William C. Honestly I have explained to my tenants that certain things are not my responsibility and that if they call me to have it fixed or repaired they will be charged for the service
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Jason Weeks
Specialist · Member since 2019 · 32 posts · 22 votes
6y
@Jim K.
I like this response because it cuts to the core of the issue.
If you don’t want to deal with requests, don’t self manage, hire a property manager.
If you do want to manage, then put systems and processes in place.
Ultimately though to your point Jim, cashflow might be passive, but management of assets is active. One should not forget these.
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Greg M.
Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2017 · 2k+ posts · 5k+ votes
6y
Originally posted by @Jacob Graves:
I would say that this does not warrant repair. If it was in working order and they broke it it's their problem. That might be blunt but as you mention if you tend to these types of issues it will become over whelming with alot of units.

Just because something was in working order when they moved in and now is not working does not mean they broke it. Things wear out. Something like a Chinese-made low-grade metal chain that sits in a tank of water is not supposed to last forever. Plastic flapper valves in toilets wear out. Stove igniters wear out. Hot water heaters rust.
Ever have to replace a car tire? Did it wear out or did you break it?
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David Clay
Real Estate Investor · Chattahoochee, FL · Member since 2014 · 133 posts · 107 votes
6y
Originally posted by @Account Closed:
Originally posted by @David Clay:
@Merritt S. Um, this is a bit harsh and unnecessary IMO. The original question was related to small pesky repair requests which transitioned into this one specific issue as an example. Granted, he acknowledged that it is now a repair issue and seemed to be looking for solutions (that’s how I read things). I’ve been reading through the posts looking to see what answers come in for the ORIGINAL question not to see a fellow landlord berated and brow beaten. I’d like to think we are a support community. Given the content available I don’t know this person’s experience with rentals, he could have 2 rentals or ten for all we know. He certainly wouldn’t have a hundred as I’d expect someone with that many units to have his question figured out already. So, maybe we can avoid this level of discussion. You can do what you want, obviously, but I don’t find your response very friendly. I’m surprised by others upvoting this. Just my opinion.

Well, what's the point of the forum then? I wrote another response to another poster with your same sentiment. Maybe read it over and decide if I'm here to be helpful or here to be a troll. I make no apologies here, but I would in a heartbeat if I was beating someone up for the sake of beating them up. I don't think slumlords are very friendly or productive. I think when neighborhoods deteriorate from too many slumlords property values decrease, which hurts investors as well as communities. I think there is a symbiotic relationship between landlords and tenants that when both parties do the right thing, good things happen for everyone, and when both parties do the wrong thing, bad things happens for everyone. Just my opinion. I dunno...maybe I'm just a stupid troll.

I’m not calling you a troll. I try not to cast dispersions. It’s possible, I suppose, that you didn’t intend to be as harsh as I thought you were. I don’t know. It just sounded like you made attributions about the writer that weren’t supported. I don’t know how you can call that person or infer that the guy is a slum lord based off of the slim bit of info he offered. Keep on commenting. I know I value comments. I wouldn’t suggest you do otherwise, I simply found your post to be less than helpful and not really on topic. I won’t rehash previous comments. This is simply what I thought about it. Good luck with your own journey. I hope you find happiness in it.
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Judy Parker
Rental Property Investor · Closter, NJ · Member since 2015 · 884 posts · 722 votes
6y
The Landlord needs to fix that toilet.
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Matthew Irish-JonesBusiness Member
Real Estate Agent · Buffalo, NY · Member since 2017 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
6y
@William C. This is the main problem all investors run into.
Who can fix the time consuming little stuff? You can find a local, insured handyman and pay him hourly. These People are notoriously hard to find. You can consider using a PM company.
Or you can keep fixing.
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Steve B.
Engineer · Portland, OR · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
6y
@William C. You’re right, that’s a pretty minor, trivial matter, your tenants should be able to handle this kind of issue without bugging you.
Inside the book “land-lording on autopilot “. The author included a bunch of forms that lists minor maintenance and issues the tenants need to handle on their own. Something good to go over at move in or later in your case. You certainly have better things to do than deal with this
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Steven TaylorPro Member
Investor · Lorain, OH · Member since 2016 · 78 posts · 47 votes
6y
@William C.
Tell them when it’s time for rent increases we base it off service calls
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Josh CissellBusiness Member
Property Manager · Oxford, MS · Member since 2017 · 37 posts · 19 votes
6y
Originally posted by @Ricardo R.:
@Josh Cissell although I agree with you that this issue ins't petty (as mentioned in my post above) and it is the Landlord's responsibility to repair or schedule a repair... the guts are worn and the Tenant was using it normally so... no worries there and the Landlord should be finding a resolution/fix here. However, as far as the Landlord being required to replace all the guts simply because they 'look' old prior to a Tenant moving in, is just not right nor is it required, especially if it was functioning properly. Now I'll agree that it would be in the Landlord's best interest to consider replacing the parts before a Tenant moves in which would avoid this situation all together... but that is purely a personal choice and no the Tenant is not paying for every properly functioning item to be replaced to like new condition, they are however, paying for a safe and functional living space.

Requiring tenant's to be responsible for repairs $50 and under is not meant to 'push' needed repairs onto the tenant, the clause is meant to protect the Landlord from truly 'petty' issues such as light bulb replacements, broken microwave plates, etc. It also doesn't mean that the tenant is required to fix it themselves (although they can if approved by the landlord) which opens up a whole new can of liability issues... it just means that the tenant is responsible for the cost of such and in all cases the landlord should be notified. This is a needed repair caused purely because the hardware is old and ran its life, it is a LANDLORD responsibility. Now how landlord's choose to address it is really up to how they do business... some will work it out with the Tenant and pay or credit them to replace it, others will pay for the parts and the Tenant will choose to install, others will fix it themselves and yet others will send a technician... but really if it's a Tenant that is not comfortable doing the repairs when it comes down to it... it is the Landlord's responsibility to make sure this issue gets addressed and really in the LL's best interest.

I didn't say anything about requiring all of the guts be replaced. I said they should have been. The OP was complaining about petty requests and gave this as an example and complained about having to spend two hours of his time fixing something so minor because he has to drive. Had the OP gone through the home and replaced stuff like this before the tenant moved in we wouldn't be having this conversation.
I know the point of the clause that pushes the first cost of repairs off on a tenant but I think it is BS and will cause tenants to not report small problems that could become much bigger. I've managed hundreds of units, never used the clause and very seldom have someone someone who is a problem. If I do it's because we missed stuff that should have been done. Occasionally we have someone who thinks they are supposed to move into a new property and then I just have to tell them no.
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Ricardo R.Pro Member
Property Manager · Michigan Ctr, MI · Member since 2016 · 663 posts · 581 votes
6y
@Josh Cissell okay I understand, thank you for clarifying.
[email protected]810-844-1104
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Account Closed
Rental Property Investor · Twin Cities, MN · Member since 2019 · 122 posts · 150 votes
6y
@William C.
Find a cheap handyman who lives near your units and will handle things like that for 25-50 dollars per visit.
Raise rent on those tenants 25-50 per month.
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Jordin CrumpPro Member
Real Estate Agent · Amarillo, TX · Member since 2014 · 4 posts · 0 votes
6y
I provide in "special provisions of my lease" that anything under $100 is tenant responsibility.
I also clarify a list of common repair examples that I expect tenant to repair, and a list of common repairs I would rather make myself.
Tenant: smoke detector batteries, filters, small plumbing leaks under sinks, clogged drain, loose handles, loose screws, pests
(toilet handle is a little odd but I would likely take care of it.)
Landlord: Major leaks, sewer smells, roof leaks, water heater, hvac, cracked tile, broken faucets, broken toilets.

"please report anything you think necessary, but take care of it as if it were yours."
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Brian Liscio
Little Falls, NJ · Member since 2014 · 88 posts · 49 votes
6y
@William C.
I’m a fan of using FaceTime. I used it plenty of times for little issues. I.e. adding water to a boiler, chain stuck on toilet float. And to see how serious a leak is.
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