Is $10K+ in damages after tenants move out excessive?

Question

I just had tenants move out from our property 5 months early due to buying a home. We've had the same tenants since March 2020 and we thought they were pretty solid. My property manager secured the property some time after the new year and I initially got a bill for 6500. I have since received another bill for 3500 because someone tried to steal components from the heater and the entirety of the hot water heater. I was completely caught off guard by all of the damage and by the break in and resulting additional damages.

Paul Keddell · Answer

Thank you so much for your response Nancy! I asked if they filed a police report and have not gotten a response back yet. I will definitely be asking about references and background due diligence. Those are all things I should have asked about beforehand, but never occurred to me. I will absolutely annotate that for future properties and PMC's that I interview. Thanks again and hope you have a wonderful day!

Nancy Johnson · Answer

Your PMC should have filed a timely police report for the break-in for your homeowners policy and possibly the additional damage by the tenant which would carry greater clout in recovery in the courtroom and with the booking service.
I would also do some background work and check references with previous clients of your PMC and collect the PMCs background due diligence they conducted on employees and contractors.
Many states are right-to-work states and they may not be doing background checks on their contractors or employees. I would also request their crime stats and break-in occurances of all properties in their care for the last couple years, at least, to check for patterns.

Michael Smythe · Answer

@Paul Keddell you should start with the pics/video supporting your PMCs MoveOut Evaluation/Inspection.

How did the tenants leave the property?

What damages did they cause beyond normal wear & tear?

Look at the breakin as a separate issue. What ADDITIONAL damages resulted?

How did the breakin happen? Has your PMC supplied pics/video proof?

What specific date did the tenant move out and when was the MoveOut done by the PMC?-It should have been done within 2-3 days to secure the property to minimize chance of breakin.

If the tenants caused substantial damage that exceeds their security deposit, you will probably have to pursue them via Small Claims for a money judgment. Then another court date for garnishment of payroll or bank account.

Jason Hirko · Answer

It sounds like there are two issues here. 1) the condition the tenants left the property in and 2) the condition it is in now. Sounds like the property manager is saying something happened between those two things. They should easily be able to provide documentation to back it up.

And yes, $10,000 in damages after moving out is always excessive.

Paul Keddell · Answer

@Michael Smythe, thanks so much for commenting. I am working with my PMC to try and get a handle on all of the questions you asked. More than a little frustrated with the changeover process with my PMC.

Is $10K+ in damages after tenants move out excessive?

Is $10K+ in damages after tenants move out excessive?

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