What Would You Do In This Scenario?

Question

I'll keep it short:

We put a used stove in a tenant's unit.

Tenant complains the stove will not heat to more than 350 degrees.

We decide to send a repairman over because these tenants have been high maintenance and we want to minimize contact with them beyond what is necessary for our immediate response.

Repairman calls me telling me that the stove works, the issue is that the tenant didn't know there was a preheat time difference between gas stoves (what she's used to), and electric stoves (the previous and new stove in the unit). So, after 10 minutes of preheating, the stove wouldn't be 425/450 or whatever she was setting it to, because it wasn't preheated enough.

Would you charge the tenant the repairman's bill for his base visit cost, or should we eat the cost because we chose to not go over and test what she was claiming, before we called in a repairman?

Lynnette E. · Answer

I would pay it, but maybe warn the tenant that future bills may be theirs if nothing is wrong.

I had a tenant tell me she could not use either bath tub, one stank horrid when they let the water out and the other would not hold water, the stopper leaked badly.  Plumber came.  First tub stank because it was filthy and the water added moisture and it stank.  A good scrubbing was needed.  Second tub had a huge hair ball stuck and wrapped around the tub stopper.  Plumber pulled it out.  Said there was enough hair to make a ball.  Plumber left her with good instructions on tub maintenance.

My tenant got the next time you will pay discussion.  But that one was on me.

Ujwal Velagapudi · Answer

Tough call. In the past, I've eaten these charges. Tenant ignorance ultimately falls on me as the landlord for not properly walking them through it all. I chose to call the service person because I couldn't/didn't want to do it myself. Something similar happened with a door not closing properly, where it was just a simple technique to it closing, unfortunately those small things are on us.

Now if it was something where a toilet backed up and the plumber found out it was a stuck diaper or tampon in there....that one is on the tenants!

Simon W. · Answer

How much was the repairman?