Rental Property Investor · Fort Washington, MD · Member since 2020 · 13 posts · 1 vote
My tenant who was injured somewhere and is now in a wheelchair is requesting a letter to break her lease. She is a voucher recipient and thus far a really good tenant ( 4 months). She has given me a move date but says she will give me a 30 day notice. I recently went into the unit and it is in great shape. My issue/rookie mistake is DC government was supposed to pay the security deposit but never did then when I questioned it they told me to get it from her. Needless to say I have no security deposit as of now the unit could be cleared and rented the next day but my worry is what if in her 30 days she trashed the place shadow I do. Do I try to accommodate her with a ramp fir the two stairs our will that open me up for more than I want to handle. Any insight would be appreciated
Hey @Troy Biggham, that is an interesting problem! I think that you need to get a security deposit somehow. If you want to keep your current tenant, ask them to pay the security deposit (could be in installments) and if they don't want to I would rent to someone else.
If your tenant does trash the unit (it sounds unlikely), you would have to put in a judgment against her for damages and hope she pays.
If the unit is in good shape now and the tenant so far seems nice, I would let her break the lease. Keeping her in the property just increases your risk especially with the current CDC measures in place, landlords are at a disadvantage.
It may be tough to collect a security deposit from the tenant direct especially if the tenant is not responsible for it and the program is. All lessons have a price either in cost or stress. Hopefully this lesson doesn't have a price tag associated with it.
Not worth picking a fight with DCHA. I'd let her go and be grateful the place is in good shape. If you want to look into the security deposit, they both should have copies of her paperwork which states who pays the security deposit. It's been a few years since I've gone through that process with them, but it was on there then.
Hey Troy - 2 steps would require a ~14’ ramp for a 1:12 ramp slope if steps are code risers. I’m in Baltimore and work in the accessibility field and knowing DC, you likely won’t be able to install a code ramp. There is a small chance the ramp could be worked out to be long enough but unlikely. If you want to DM a picture, I can help you work through it. It ultimately comes down to making a “reasonable accommodation” but not at your expense although you can pay like you mentioned. There is a shortage of accessible housing so if she is truely is wheelchair bound (compared to being to do stand pivot transfer or walk short distances) the she may not have a place to move. A lot of factors.