Investor · Maui, HI · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 3k+ votes
13y
I have a tenant that continually complains of being cold, and I need to do a better job of sealing her doors (which they are sealed fine.) I go over there- and her heat is off. "Well, I don't wan to pay for all that electricity! I just run it once in a while."
Inherited tenant called last month to say she was going to move out at the end of June. Okay, no problem. Then June comes along and we get no rent from her. We send a 5-day notice and she ignores it as well as my texts asking where the rent is. So an eviction is filed. She texts me that we have no right to file an eviction on her -- "I gave you a 30-day notice which means I don't have to pay my June rent FACT!"
Gardner, MA · Member since 2015 · 7 posts · 7 votes
11y
I had a tenant call me 2 months before the lease expired looking to make sure they could renew the lease. The first 10 min of the conversation was her explaining how she could not afford the electric bill and had to make monthly payments, owed her baby's daddy child support, owed the IRS 20k +, had her wages garnished and had less than $50.00 in her bank account.
Rental Property Investor · Upstate, NY · Member since 2012 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
11y
Our new elderly female tenant demanded 6 names on her (rural) mailbox including that of her deceased mother. We decided to just give her the initials of all 6 followed by the surname that was apparently common to all.
She then complained that there were letters missing from her surname on the mailbox so I asked our maintenance guy of 22 years why & he simply replied he ran out of the letter 'c' as she has 4 in her surname & the initials took up several more.
Then she reported us to the USPS because she wanted a 'regulation' mailbox so we complied but then she didn't like the color!!!. Then in keeping with USPS regulations (that the exasperated mail lady gave us because of the complaints) we added large numbers on the mail boxes that corresponded to the respective tenants units. She was then upset because she was #2 & wants to be #1 & she now wants all the names inside the mailbox lid. Apparently tenant #1 & her had words when #1 would not give up her #.
BUT I keep telling myself 'she always pays on-time' !!!!
I try to avoid putting any names on a tenant's mailbox, but I don't prevent a tenant from doing do themselves. After all, with rentals the name is always subject to change.
But only the last of those links mentions placing a name, and here is what it says: "The mailbox may bear the owner
Residential Real Estate Broker · Chicago Suburbs, IL · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 594 votes
11y
Tenants may claim anything is "regulation" to scare you into doing it. I had tenant, who had previously been a landlord in the 70's and reminded me of that whenever there was something we don't do for her that she used to do while landlording, who did that. She was claiming what she wanted was code therefore we had to do it, told her I was quite familiar with codes and so I told her to send me the regulation. She did...it was a building code regulation in one province of New Zealand. We didn't bother to respond and she never bought up the issue after that.
I try to avoid putting any names on a tenant's mailbox, but I don't prevent a tenant from doing do themselves. After all, with rentals the name is always subject to change.
But only the last of those links mentions placing a name, and here is what it says: "The mailbox may bear the owner
I get an email saying a new post has been made. Get all excited about what dumb thing a tenant has said or done now. Looking forward to laughing. Only to find this.
I clicked the Vote button hoping I could down vote it, but it looks like that's not an option here.
Investor · Valparaiso, IN · Member since 2011 · 103 posts · 65 votes
10y
So now if anyone has come here looking for an actual post...
I've had a couple of calls from some college kids renting a house that I manage. One was because the lights had gone out on the main floor, and "it's too dark right now to go down to the basement to check the generator." Generator? I'm not sure what he thinks is powering this house! :) By the time I got the voicemail and called him back, one of them had managed to brave the dark basement and flip the breaker back on.
Another time, the thermostat battery died, so the heat wouldn't come on. It was 9:00 at night and starting to get cold, so they didn't want to wait until the next day, if possible. So I went over with some batteries, popped it open with my fingers, and changed the batteries (2 AA). When they saw how easy it was, one of them said, "Oh, we could have done that!" Another one said, "I didn't realize it was just the thermostat. I thought it was something with the furnace." Good thing I only live 2 minutes away!
I'm not sure these things count as "dumb," really. They've just never owned a house or had to mess with any of these things.
So now if anyone has come here looking for an actual post...
I've had a couple of calls from some college kids renting a house that I manage. One was because the lights had gone out on the main floor, and "it's too dark right now to go down to the basement to check the generator." Generator? I'm not sure what he thinks is powering this house! :)
They've seen too many horror movies. "The Generator" is always the mysterious thing that nobody knows how to work, but some hapless schmuck goes to check it and gets hit in the face with an axe.
One of my tenants, who lives on the top floor of a duplex, didn't think there'd be any trouble to overflow her bathtub and practically go swimming in there while water flowed all over the floor. Of course, I get a call from the downstairs tenants that water is coming through the ceiling in their bathroom. I get a hold of this girl upstairs and sternly explain that she absolutely can not allow water to go all over the place and how she has now caused damage downstairs.
Another tenant who fell behind on rent (but was making payments to avoid eviction), text me the size of the furnace filter so I could drop more off. Then he said, "do you think you could show me how to use the thermostat? It's a little confusing."
This is just standard digital, heat-only thermostat, and he's a pretty handy type of guy. I replied, "well, it's pretty straight-forward so I'm sure you can figure it out, but if not, your neighbor upstairs has the same thermostat and actually probably could be of better help than me."
Maybe my "spidey sense" was tingling, but I felt like he was trying to get me over there alone because earlier in that conversation when I said I'd quickly come by to drop off the filters, but be of no interruption because I was accessing the basement only, he replied, "I don't mind. In fact, I wouldn't mind if you were coming by to watch TV with me!" This guy's GF had just left him....so I just felt weird about the comments.
Investor · Woodbridge, VA · Member since 2015 · 476 posts · 197 votes
10y
@Rich Schmidt I know the feeling. I look forward to when this thread has new stories too. I just thought I would bump it to remind people it was here and see if we could get some new stories coming in.
@Rich Schmidt I know the feeling. I look forward to when this thread has new stories too. I just thought I would bump it to remind people it was here and see if we could get some new stories coming in.
Great. So now I've just rewarded your bad behavior. :)
One of my tenants, who lives on the top floor of a duplex, didn't think there'd be any trouble to overflow her bathtub and practically go swimming in there while water flowed all over the floor. Of course, I get a call from the downstairs tenants that water is coming through the ceiling in their bathroom. I get a hold of this girl upstairs and sternly explain that she absolutely can not allow water to go all over the place and how she has now caused damage downstairs.
Another tenant who fell behind on rent (but was making payments to avoid eviction), text me the size of the furnace filter so I could drop more off. Then he said, "do you think you could show me how to use the thermostat? It's a little confusing."
This is just standard digital, heat-only thermostat, and he's a pretty handy type of guy. I replied, "well, it's pretty straight-forward so I'm sure you can figure it out, but if not, your neighbor upstairs has the same thermostat and actually probably could be of better help than me."
Maybe my "spidey sense" was tingling, but I felt like he was trying to get me over there alone because earlier in that conversation when I said I'd quickly come by to drop off the filters, but be of no interruption because I was accessing the basement only, he replied, "I don't mind. In fact, I wouldn't mind if you were coming by to watch TV with me!" This guy's GF had just left him....so I just felt weird about the comments.
Yikes!!! That is really creepster. But just reading what he said makes me think your spidey sense is right on. I wonder if he knew exactly how to work his thermostat and was just so desperate for company he tried to make an excuse, so you would come visit him.
Maybe my "spidey sense" was tingling, but I felt like he was trying to get me over there alone because earlier in that conversation when I said I'd quickly come by to drop off the filters, but be of no interruption because I was accessing the basement only, he replied, "I don't mind. In fact, I wouldn't mind if you were coming by to watch TV with me!" This guy's GF had just left him....so I just felt weird about the comments.
There's an older guy around 70 that likes to talk and talk and talk anytime I'm over there. I feel like I have to extricate myself from the conversation nicely, and when that doesn't work, I just bluntly say "Well, I have to get to my next appointment. See you later." and then just leave.
Severna Park, MD · Member since 2013 · 7k+ posts · 7k+ votes
10y
Tenant calls me after living there 1 month "the grass is really long it needs to be cut " I tell her that thats her responsibility , I told her verbally and its in the lease . She replies " I thought you were kidding " No I wasnt kidding you cut the grass . She then tells me " I cant cut grass , I am a woman and I dont even own a lawn mower " I told her that the lawn mower doesnt care what gender you are , and if you dont want to mow the lawn I can arrange to have it done for an additional $ 100 per month added to the rent . She then tells me that I could cut it for free with my tractor , ( I was mowing when she looked at the place its 1/2 acre ) I told her I sold the tractor
I have a tenant that continually complains of being cold, and I need to do a better job of sealing her doors (which they are sealed fine.) I go over there- and her heat is off. "Well, I don't wan to pay for all that electricity! I just run it once in a while."
.............
Well, our bright tenant decided to do the sealing of doors, windows, cracks, outlets, etc himself without talking to us. Imagine our surprise to find "Great Stuff" sprayed everywhere, including inside the outlet and light switch cavities of interior walls!
I've had a couple of calls from some college kids renting a house that I manage. One was because the lights had gone out on the main floor, and "it's too dark right now to go down to the basement to check the generator." Generator? I'm not sure what he thinks is powering this house! :) By the time I got the voicemail and called him back, one of them had managed to brave the dark basement and flip the breaker back on.
...
Tell them to install a flashlight app on their smart phone for the next time the power goes off in the dark ;)
One of my tenants, who lives on the top floor of a duplex, didn't think there'd be any trouble to overflow her bathtub and practically go swimming in there while water flowed all over the floor. Of course, I get a call from the downstairs tenants that water is coming through the ceiling in their bathroom. I get a hold of this girl upstairs and sternly explain that she absolutely can not allow water to go all over the place and how she has now caused damage downstairs.
...
All bathtubs I have ever seen that were properly plumbed have an overflow, behind the shiny plate or lever near the top of the tub, which directs into the drain any water trying to get above that level. Of course, it's possible for the occupant to block the overflow openings or to have the water flowing into the tub at a faster rate than the capacity of the overflow to drain it off.
Rental Property Investor · Baltimore County Maryland and Tampa Florida · Member since 2013 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
10y
@Steve Babiak Your guess was right. She had the water on full blast and the overflow drain could not keep up. She left it to fill and forgot. Then came back, turned off the water and hopped in, which again filled the level over the tub. She's not quite mentally running at 100%.
Investor · Vancouver, WA · Member since 2013 · 3k+ posts · 4k+ votes
10y
It's midnight and once again I see an unauthorized car parked in our parking lot in another tenant's place. I've seen this car before and have addressed the problem with the owner, who happens to be the ex-girlfriend of one of our tenants and mother of his children. The children are named on the lease with the dad, but they live primarily with their mom. On that night, after calling our tenant's phone number and getting no answer, I decide to go ahead and call the tow company. It's posted with legally compliant signage that unauthorized vehicles will be towed at the owner's expense. No more warnings.
While waiting for the tow company, the ex-girlfriend comes out of the apartment with her three young children; now it is closer to one a.m. I tell her once again she can not park her car there and that I have already called the tow company. She pauses, looks at me with her big brown eyes and says meekly, "Well, can I at least get some of my things out of my car before it's towed away?" I reply, "If I were you, I would get in your car now and drive it away BEFORE the tow company comes. As you know, street parking is free and there is plenty of it. You just can't be parking your car here." She follows my advice from then on out. Sheez!