Unwanted Guest...

[Michael Limina]

Hello all,

I always preface my posts by letting you all know that I am very novice when it comes to real estate, so please excuse my ignorance.

I own a double home; I live downstairs and my tenant upstairs. It's come to my attention that my tenant's boyfriend has been doing his laundry at my house. That's probably why my water bill has gone up noticeably since last quarter. I will clearly be addressing this, but my question is: Since my property is only rented to my tenant, is this guy technically trespassing by being in my basement?

[Jason Minnich]

Has he been staying with your tenant as well or just coming over and doing laundry? If it's the former, talk to the tenant about the lease's guest clause, if its the later, talk to them about her boyfriend using your utilities and that he should either use a laundromat or you would have to negotiate a different utility structure. Either way, find out what his purpose is and explain to her that he doesn't get a free ride.