Inherited Tenant on 1st Rental Property Lease Concern

Inherited Tenant on 1st Rental Property Lease Concern

Rental Property Investor · Lehi, UT · Member since 2019 · 13 posts · 6 votes

Good Afternoon BP community, 

Hope all is well, I'm closing on a property with an inherited tenant whose also in the process of purchasing a home. During the closing process I found out the tenant has not paid rent since December 2019, since the previous owner is going through a bankruptcy. I spoke to my lawyer in regards to my options and i have 3 options:

1) Keep the existing lease (exp Oct 2021)

2) Provide a new 1 Yr Agreement

3) Month to Month Lease

When i initially spoke to the tenant, the tenant was stressed out about signing a 1 yr lease, and i wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt (before i found out about the payment issue).  I told him we can keep the initial lease in play, however tenant has to come up with security deposit (bankruptcy court took security deposit) and 1st Months rent. We shook hands and agreed, to find out a few days later from my realtor, he doesn't want the terms we agreed on, and now wants a new Month to Month lease. He also requested a deduction (what a guy!). I'm not fond of Month to Month Leases, and with that there's also the possibility he vacates the property in October, or November, and it will be challenging to find a new tenant during that time. Im worried that he also picked up the habit of not paying rent, and will do that, forcing me to evict him. im also concerned that with this pandemic, since he will have the courts on his side.

This is my first deal, and i'm already dealing with obstacles, and i feel a bit inexperienced to handle this alone. Thank you BP Community for helping me navigate through these tides. 

With Best Regards, 

Gabriel

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Real Estate Consultant · Joppa, MD · Member since 2015 · 218 posts · 178 votes
6y

I think it would be best for you to offer a MTM lease.  You would then be able to get him out faster if necessary.  Since it will be a new lease, you can require him to pay a security deposit equal to one month's rent and you should require him to pay it at lease signing.  NO exceptions and NO payment arrangements. After all, he should be sitting on quite a bit of cash since he totally screwed his previous landlord.

Try not to be controlled by the fear of vacancy. It's a normal obstacle when you invest in real estate, no matter which type of investment you have.  I know that's easer said than done, but you must realize that in your case, vacancy is an opportunity for a much better tenant.  He's already been living there for free, so what do you really have to lose if he's gone?  Put a clause in the MTM lease that allows you to market the unit and show the unit (with advanced notice to the tenant) and market it as soon as he misses a payment!  Hopefully, it is in good condition. 

It sounds like you are a bit overwhelmed, so just take a deep breath and know that this too shall pass and once it does, you will have gained valuable experience as a landlord. Feel free to reach out if you have any other questions.  I'm always happy to help.

Best of luck to you!

Laticia

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  • Investor · Livingston, TN · Member since 2016 · 155 posts · 112 votes
    6y

    @Gabriel E. Galloza Sounds like this guy doesn't have a current lease and if so he is breaking the lease and therefore needs to move out. I would put this on the seller if possible, probably won't happen. Send the guy a letter stating you are starting the eviction process, hoping he moves out. Let him know he's in breach of his previous contract and you'd like hime to leave, and in doing so you will refund his deposit (cash for keys) cost you a little but he's gone and you can start anew. 

    Hope this helps

  • Real Estate Consultant · Joppa, MD · Member since 2015 · 218 posts · 178 votes
    6y

    I think it would be best for you to offer a MTM lease.  You would then be able to get him out faster if necessary.  Since it will be a new lease, you can require him to pay a security deposit equal to one month's rent and you should require him to pay it at lease signing.  NO exceptions and NO payment arrangements. After all, he should be sitting on quite a bit of cash since he totally screwed his previous landlord.

    Try not to be controlled by the fear of vacancy. It's a normal obstacle when you invest in real estate, no matter which type of investment you have.  I know that's easer said than done, but you must realize that in your case, vacancy is an opportunity for a much better tenant.  He's already been living there for free, so what do you really have to lose if he's gone?  Put a clause in the MTM lease that allows you to market the unit and show the unit (with advanced notice to the tenant) and market it as soon as he misses a payment!  Hopefully, it is in good condition. 

    It sounds like you are a bit overwhelmed, so just take a deep breath and know that this too shall pass and once it does, you will have gained valuable experience as a landlord. Feel free to reach out if you have any other questions.  I'm always happy to help.

    Best of luck to you!

    Laticia

  • Rental Property Investor · Lehi, UT · Member since 2019 · 13 posts · 6 votes
    6y

    ***UPDATE***

    Hi BP Community,

    Hope all is well. I discovered some new information that Lightened the situation. After speaking to a few lawyers, i discovered that; In NJ if a Lease is inherited with a purchased property, The New Landlord can legally claim the unpaid rent and would rightfully inherit the tenants debt to the landlord (in this case, $18,000). I was able to leverage this into having him sign a Lease Addendum with my terms that protects me from him bailing overnight. (I'm keeping the existing lease because signing a new lease will void the repayment clause, an Addendum would be best in this situation). 

    I made it clear to the tenant that small claims court is an option, however i am not going to go down that route as long as they give me 30 days notice and turns over the apartment in its original conditions. Since the tenant is actually in the process of closing on a home, he understands that the information i obtain can potentially raise a red flag during his closing, ultimately getting denied by all banks. 

     My intentions aren't to jeopardize their milestone of purchasing their own property regardless of the methods they used to obtain the down payment (didn't pay rent since DEC 2019). I'm not Judging them, on the contrary i applaud their creativeness of leveraging the Landlords Bankruptcy to their advantage and purchasing their first home!

    We came to a mutual agreement and the terms are as follows:

    The tenant owes me a pro-rated tent for the month of Aug (closing date Aug 24th) due at closing. I could've requested the entire month of August. However, since I'm taking ownership on the 24th, I want to do whats morally right, and that is charge rent as of the first day of ownership.

    The tenant Needs to provide 1 and 1/2 Months security deposit, on closing (bankruptcy court took the security deposit from the previous Landlord). 

    Tenants must also provide me a written 30 day notice prior to leaving property (they close in a few weeks) and have to return apartment in its original condition. 

    I am content with our agreement and feel as if i did whats morally right (including leveraging small claims dispute) into getting them to understand the sensitivity of the situation. Thank you BP community for all of your advice, it helped tremendously!

    With Kindest Regards,

    Gabriel E. Galloza

  • Real Estate Consultant · Joppa, MD · Member since 2015 · 218 posts · 178 votes
    6y

    I'm so happy to hear it all worked out for you @Gabriel E. Galloza.  

    Make it a great day!

    Laticia

  • Rental Property Investor · Northern NJ · Member since 2019 · 672 posts · 677 votes
    6y

    Good on you for getting this sorted. Most people just take the advice (which in this thread, is absolutely incorrect for NJ, looking at you Cody Campbell) and give up or move on. Glad you talked to attorneys as NJ laws are very tricky.

    A point of note, did you ask your attorney about the prorated rent? You mentioned you could have taken all of August, that has not been my experience. You are only entitled for the amount when you take ownership. I'm just curious where you got that information. Obviously you are entitled to the SD which you are getting. They legally have to give you at least 30 days notice upon move out and return it in the same condition you took ownership like you said. Here's some future info for you.

    https://www.google.com/url?sa=...

  • Rental Property Investor · Lehi, UT · Member since 2019 · 13 posts · 6 votes
    6y

    @Mark F. Thank you for the link, its extremely helpful! My lawyer said i'm entitled to the full amount due because as i inherit the lease. This case wasn't a regular sell, The owner declared bankruptcy, and the tenant received wrong information from a friend. The lease was a 7 year lease, and the wording of the lease made the tenant responsible for the full amount for the duration of the lease. The tenant has been there 5 out of the 7 years, and the reason why they stopped paying rent was because of the bankruptcy. However a bankruptcy isn't a pardon on any rent due, and the lease laws are separate from bankruptcy laws. and any rent due has to be paid regardless of who owns/owned the property.  My lawyer also made a non negotiable clause that would give me the rightful ownership of any amount due by the tenants. 

  • Rental Property Investor · Northern NJ · Member since 2019 · 672 posts · 677 votes
    6y

    Gotcha. Well that sounds like an interesting situation that is much different than a usual closing. Bankruptcy by owner definitely does not entitle for a tenant to stop paying rent. 

    I still don't believe you can collect full months rent on a regular closing. I know all parties at my closing stated that as I had issues on how much rent I was being prorated. Good luck on the deal. 

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