Investor · South San Francisco, CA · Member since 2015 · 9 posts · 0 votes
Hello,
I am a landlord in California and I rented my SFH to a large family (8 people) about 2 years ago. In the past two years, I've had to address leaks in the bathroom, replace a refrigerator, replace a washer, replace a dryer, and now a garbage disposal. The refrigerator, washer, and, dryer is older so I can understand, but the garbage disposal was new when they moved in. During the replacement of the garbage disposal I saw a large rib bone in the disposal.
I don't know if these repairs are considered normal wear and tear, but it seem frequent. As a California landlord, what can I do? Can I have the tenant pay for these repairs due negligence or should I just raise the rent on them to cover these costs?
Considering it's been rented for two years, these repairs seem fairly reasonable, especially if the appliances were older as mentioned. Regarding the garbage disposal, those are always a pain, and it seems common for people not to know what you should and shouldn't put in them. I've dealt with glass, bones, shrimp tails, a child's toy, utensils, etc. If I can prove that it was due to a lodged item, as is in this case, I'll typically charge the expense back to the tenant and take the opportunity to remind them how to properly use a garbage disposal. If I have a property in a C-class area, I'll even remove disposals to avoid consistent repair issues.
You're not obligated to provide refrigerator, washer and dryer when renting out a SFH, and you can eliminate items that tenants damage so often such as the garbage disposal, but you'll have to replace the sink with one that comes with a built-in strainer so nothing other than liquids and soft food scraps go down the sink. You can also install light fixtures instead of ceiling fans if they happen to damage those as well.
Talk to them about proper use and care of appliances (and a home). A lot of people don't know basics about a home (changing filters on a furnace, not to overload a washing machine, cleaning under your fridge, etc).
You should be raising rent each year, especially if you have rent caps-do the max allowed each year.
Considering it's been rented for two years, these repairs seem fairly reasonable, especially if the appliances were older as mentioned. Regarding the garbage disposal, those are always a pain, and it seems common for people not to know what you should and shouldn't put in them. I've dealt with glass, bones, shrimp tails, a child's toy, utensils, etc. If I can prove that it was due to a lodged item, as is in this case, I'll typically charge the expense back to the tenant and take the opportunity to remind them how to properly use a garbage disposal. If I have a property in a C-class area, I'll even remove disposals to avoid consistent repair issues.
In the future, you could write into your lease that are repairs or replacements that are due to tenant negligence will and can be charged to the tenant. Do a walk thru before a tenant moves in and show them basic home maintenance and that they'll be responsible if they do things that destroy components of the house. Hindsight is 20/20 but something for the future.
I believe California has rent control in place, correct me if I am wrong. You should be increasing rent every renewal because in a rent controls situation it is very much a use it or lose it situation with increases.
California has some tough tenant laws in place so I would double check those to make sure there is nothing in place about charging the tenant back for repairs. The disposal replacement should be a tenant responsibility in this case. Remember to always take pictures in situations like this because the tenant can always come back and say there was not a bone in the disposal and it becomes a he said she said situation. You can educate them on good housekeeping this time, but if it happens again, they are being negligent.
I do two things to limit my exposure to appliance costs ( I have 7 SFH rentals):
1. Provide only the minimum appliances - only those typically built in to the house. I do not provide garbage disposals. Tenants in SFH rentals expect to provide their own.
2. Offer to rent appliances for a reasonable monthly rate.
My lease includes a statement that I am responsible for appliances provided they are used according to the manufacturer instructions. If they are not then the tenant is responsible for repairs/replacement.