Tenant Abusing Washer / Dryer

Tenant Abusing Washer / Dryer

Wantagh, NY · Member since 2018 · 2 posts · 0 votes

I live in a multifamily home where I rent out the second floor to a tenant. The unit has its own washer/dryer and the utilities are on a shared meter for the whole house. The tenant lives by himself but has his kids over occasionally for the weekend. 

My problem is that the tenant seems to be abusing the washer/dryer. He recently started working from home, and it seems like the washer/dryer runs nonstop during waking hours. He is doing at least 10 loads of laundry every single week, which to me seems insane for a single person living by himself. (Also, it isn't just that he's working through a backlog of clothes or something like that, this high usage has been going on for months and months) I believe he has some form of cleanliness OCD, both because of this and because when he moved in initially he made many other requests for things to have extra cleaning, additional painting, or to be replaced. 

The utilities bills have been around 30% higher than they were for the prior tenants (which was a couple with a child), but I'm even more concerned about all the additional wear and tear he's putting on the machines. I feel like its only a matter of if, not when, that he breaks down the machines and expects me to replace both of them.

The lease stipulates "reasonable" usage of utilities. But I'd rather not get into a he said/she said argument about how many loads of laundry he's doing and whether that is considered reasonable or not.

Does anyone have any suggestions for how to handle this? I was considering looking at getting a payment system for the washer/dryer like you would have in an apartment complex or laundromat. Does anyone have experience with those and how much they cost to install/maintain?

Thanks.

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Member since 2016 · 13k+ posts · 12k+ votes
8y

There are all kinds of band aid solutions to the problem all of which do not directly address the problem. Best solution is change your lease at renewal to bill for water or jack his rent to cover the cost (add some to pay to replace washer and dryer when needed). I would opt for the higher rent to simplify my life and If it is too much he will leave. Hopefully you will get a better tenant next time.

If you do noting and he stays 10 years it will cost you a fortune. Act now.

I personally never invest in multi units that are not separately metered due to the consequences of having irresponsible tenants. Look into separate metering for all utilities.

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  • Investor · Troy, NY · Member since 2016 · 1 post · 1 vote
    8y

    I have had a similar problem however my lease has a stipulation about any utility usage past a reasonable amount will be looked into and if determined to be unreasonable use by a tennant the difference would be thier responsibility. I understand this is difficult to prove or enforcable but it makes the conversation go smoother. I called a tennant after recieving an abnormally high water bill and she admitted over the phone to filling a pool from a garden hose. Being a reasonable person she did pay me the difference between the current bill and the same quarter the year before. I find if people know an issue like that is being looked at they often straighten out. I might just be lucky though.

  • Chris SeveneyBusiness Member
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    Investor · VA · Member since 2015 · 21k+ posts · 19k+ votes
    8y
    Sam K. Put a Submetering on the washer so you can track water usage. The machine will say how many gallons of water per load. Then you can say they are allowed x number of loads per month and everything above it is extra Option B swap it out with a coin operated washer and dryer.
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  • Rental Property Investor · Brooke Park Drive · Member since 2018 · 1k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    8y

    Maybe he is laundering money?

  • Real Estate Agent · San Antonio, TX · Member since 2017 · 523 posts · 362 votes
    8y

    I believe you set yourself up for failure by having such a general rule on the lease. Now you are left with a very difficult decision because you can't point to the lease and make the lease the bad guy, you will be the bad guy. I would most definitely change your lease and be as specific as possible so this doesn't happen again in the future. I would then either meter the washer and drier themselves, or get coin operated ones as said previously. I had this problem with some of our duplex's and we now put a limit on when they can wash and how much. After looking at the average reasonable amount of water usage across our portfolio we decided we would only pay 50$ a month for water everything after that is billed to the tenants. You would be amazed how quickly that solved the problem now they aren't creating loads for a pair of pj's, or taking hour long hot showers in the winter. It is going to be difficult but you are just going to have to be straight up that this is a business and you can't afford to be paying for extra water usage that isn't even your doing. Explain that he is more than welcome to wash what he wants, but now after x amount of loads or after x amount of dollars a month he is responsible.

  • Member since 2016 · 13k+ posts · 12k+ votes
    8y

    There are all kinds of band aid solutions to the problem all of which do not directly address the problem. Best solution is change your lease at renewal to bill for water or jack his rent to cover the cost (add some to pay to replace washer and dryer when needed). I would opt for the higher rent to simplify my life and If it is too much he will leave. Hopefully you will get a better tenant next time.

    If you do noting and he stays 10 years it will cost you a fortune. Act now.

    I personally never invest in multi units that are not separately metered due to the consequences of having irresponsible tenants. Look into separate metering for all utilities.

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