Offering to let tenant out of lease early?

Offering to let tenant out of lease early?

Grand Rapids, MI 路 Member since 2018 路 11 posts 路 3 votes

Looking for any insight from experienced landlords.

We have tenant who is consistently complaining of maintenance issues, even once repaired, states that we took too long to address, "don't care about my families health and safety," etc.

The background (and there's a lot of it!): There were screens missing from some of the windows upon move-in which we authorized maintenance to replace (they were backed up several weeks due to COVID shut down), A/C wasn't getting the apartment cold enough even though it had been serviced within the past year (set at 68F during the hottest summer we've had in years in Michigan) and we didn't offer to pay her electric bill, found a bat in the basement x 2 which we had professional pest control there at their first available appointment and they didn't find any evidence of a colony but we had maintenance seal off any areas in the basement that could allow bats in, and now a water leak from upstairs apartment overflowing their toilet onto this tenant's mattress.  She has certainly had unfortunate luck since move in and we've addressed all complaints including being willing to replace basement carpet because of an odor that she states is present even though I can't smell it when I'm there and the carpet was professionally steam cleaned prior to move in.

With this toilet overflow issue, tenant's renter's insurance policy states that this is a structural problem and thus our responsibility whereas we feel that the upstairs tenant is liable for this.  Upstairs offered to have the mattress professionally cleaned, but tenant refused.  Now tenant states that she is sure there is mold between the ceiling from the water leak and that's why she is sick all of the time, accuses us of neglect and many other choice phrases.  I have all records documenting our response times and maintenance records from a legal standpoint should she choose that course of action.  There is no ongoing water leak and maintenance will be there tomorrow to assess and repair, within 48 hours of the initial complaint.  My question to you all is this: am I exposing myself from a legal standpoint by offering to let her out of her lease penalty free because she is not happy with the home or our service?  All 10 of our other tenants have been very pleased with us and how we operate our business.  We certainly will be doing a root-cause analysis of this situation to learn and grow moving forward.  She has 6 months left on her lease and obviously we won't be renewing, has been late once but is caught up and pays on time, she just complains constantly and drags every old maintenance issue up whenever something new arises.  I'd take the vacancy just to be done with the situation.

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Real Estate Investor 路 Hayward, CA 路 Member since 2015 路 134 posts 路 88 votes
6y

This is a landlord no brainer...I would tell her she can move at any time without giving me 30 days notice and that I would return all of her deposit if she moved within 30 days...this is a tenant from hell and it will only get worse.  There is NO pleasing her ever......Please let her out of her lease immediately and move on.  Once she is out, take a deep breath and a sigh of relief.  This happens once in a while, but with really good screening you should be OK in the future.  We are all here to help you.  

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  • Real Estate Investor 路 Hayward, CA 路 Member since 2015 路 134 posts 路 88 votes
    6y

    This is a landlord no brainer...I would tell her she can move at any time without giving me 30 days notice and that I would return all of her deposit if she moved within 30 days...this is a tenant from hell and it will only get worse.  There is NO pleasing her ever......Please let her out of her lease immediately and move on.  Once she is out, take a deep breath and a sigh of relief.  This happens once in a while, but with really good screening you should be OK in the future.  We are all here to help you.  

  • Investor 路 Tulsa, OK 路 Member since 2017 路 102 posts 路 88 votes
    6y

    I would explain that If she is not happy you are willing to let her break her lease. Life鈥檚 to short for the hassle. 

  • Member since 2020 路 36 posts 路 33 votes
    6y

    I will give a third vote to letter her out of the lease. If you feel uneasy about just letting her out of the lease implying that there is something wrong with the apartment, you could try asking her to submit a request to move out or a letter stating that she is breaking her lease. Then it is her request to leave versus you asking her to leave or allowing her to leave. 

  • Grand Rapids, MI 路 Member since 2018 路 11 posts 路 3 votes
    5y

    Thank you all for your input!  We took your advice and offered to let her out of her lease which she has accepted.  We also asked her to compile a list of grievances so that we could run a root cause analysis of these issues to see if we could improve our processes and based on the many blatantly false things that she added, it is clear that we were not the issue here.  Even tenants who meet all of your screening criteria can make land-lording miserable!  Have a great day!

  • JD MartinBusiness Member
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    Rock Star Extraordinaire 路 Northeast, TN 路 Member since 2015 路 10k+ posts 路 17k+ votes
    5y

    On a side note, if I had someone's apartment above me leak toilet water onto my mattress there's no way I'm sleeping on it ever again, professional cleaning or not. I think you were right to let her out of the lease and the leak was probably the tenant's fault but just FYI. I don't think a new mattress was unreasonable. Though she should have had renter's insurance to file against. 

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  • Nathan GesnerBusiness Member
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    Real Estate Broker 路 Cody, WY 路 Member since 2010 路 28k+ posts 路 41k+ votes
    5y

    I'm with the others. There's a big difference between someone with bad luck and a chronic complainer. I would give them written notice that you've responded to the maintenance requests in a timely manner. If they are unhappy, they have one week to decide if they want to move or stay. If they choose to move, they can give 30 days notice and vacate. If they choose to stay, they need to settle down or you will terminate them.

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  • Greg WeikBusiness Member
    Property Manager 路 Denver, CO 路 Member since 2020 路 264 posts 路 327 votes
    5y

    I'm glad it worked out for you, I hope she does leave in a timely manner and doesn't damage anything on the way out. 

    Letting a tenant out of the lease in a situation like this makes sense, but if it happens again, I would suggest having a more formal process:

    -A letter where you clearly state that you have complied with all laws, warranty of habitability, the lease, etc. 

    -Tenant has to sign and agree not to disparage you. 

    -There should be a finite window for the departure, assuming there is a full lease to be fulfilled/not fulfilled. If the tenant misses the window, you should reserve the right to revoke the offer. 

    - Have the tenant sign a Tenant Vacating Agreement, asserting that they waive their right to any possessions inadvertently left behind and that they agree the lease has ended on "X date". 

    -Make clear that any damage above ordinary wear and tear (and not the result of any ongoing maintenance issues) can still be claimed against the security deposit.  Whatever your state law is regarding security deposit return timeframes and methods, you should indicate this shall still apply and the clock starts as of the "X date" when you've taken back possession. 

    I know it can be easy to think it's all good because the tenant agreed to move out, but in property management, there's always a minefield!

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  • Investor | Syndicator | Instructor 路 Cincinnati, OH 路 Member since 2008 路 435 posts 路 198 votes
    5y

    @Matthew Tanis just put a smile on your face and say goodbye. It'll be like an early Christmas 馃巹.

  • San Jose, CA 路 Member since 2015 路 4k+ posts 路 3k+ votes
    5y

    I think the complaints about mold was because she just wanted out of the lease by that point.  She just wasn't happy in the unit, and I kind of don't really blame her.  I think it's really important for landlords to have a unit completely move-in ready, because if it's not, then the tenant starts out with a mentality that the place is not taken care of.  And then, anything that happens after that is proof that the place is a dump, and it just snowballs.

    I learned this the hard way.  Even when tenants want to view an apartment before it's ready and insist they'll be able to see beyond the ladders and appliances pulled away from the walls for cleaning, etc. - if they ever see the unit in less than move-in-ready condition, they will always view the apartment as having maintenance issues.  That impression is there and that tenant ends up being a complainer.  

    So, it was just bad luck in your case the screens weren't up, but then I admit that would irritate me, and I can understand being grossed out by bats and wondering if the carpet was then full of guano, and then the a/c didn't cool down the unit, and then a toilet leaking on my mattress - yeah, I would have been ready to move, too.  

    I can understand how these things can happen, but I kinda disagree with the idea that this was a nightmare tenant.  I think if you got all of those issues fixed, you may be able to keep future tenants.  But, I don't know how you screen for tenants who will put up with all of the above, really, unless they're tenants you really don't want anyway.

  • Theresa HarrisPro Member
    Member since 2019 路 15k+ posts 路 11k+ votes
    5y

    I'm glad it worked out in the end and hopefully you can get a new tenant that is lower maintenance.

  • Real Estate Consultant 路 Member since 2020 路 80 posts 路 102 votes
    5y

    Just as "good" tenants are worth their weight...bad ones aren't worth their rent.  Chalk up the loss and retenant.

  • Drew SygitBusiness Member
    Property Manager 路 Royal Oak, MI 路 Member since 2012 路 13k+ posts 路 9k+ votes
    5y

    All we can add is to CAREFULLY try to include a really good "release of liability" agreement in the early termination agreement. 

    You don't want to celebrate getting rid of her (addition by subtraction) only to get sued a few months from now.

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