All Forum Posts by: Barbara May

My husband and I had a similar situation. The smoking tenant had been there for 15 years when we bought the 4-plex. She passed away after 2 more years. We had to remove all carpets and window coverings. We replaced the interior doors, as most were wood and had absorbed the smoke. The kitchen cabinets were painted, so a thorough scrub inside and out got rid of the smell. Had to scrub down all the appliances, as well. An ammonia solution cuts the cigarette tar and neutralizes the smell, but it's not fun to work with (protect your skin and use a respiratory filter). We sprayed the ammonia solution on the walls and then washed them down thoroughly to remove the stains and smell (this took multiple passes). Primed and painted the ceilings (2 coats of each) and painted all the walls with 2 coats. It was a ton of work, but there is no smoke smell in the unit now and we rent to only non-smokers. 

We have a tenant in the upper unit of our four-plex who needed to be taken to the hospital via ambulance. The landing on the upper units is narrow, and when they tried to take the gurney through, it ripped the screen door out by the hinges. They couldn't get the gurney out even then. The ambulance team finally had her walk to the bottom of the stairs and took her from there.

It cost us $500 to replace the screen door. Are we just stuck with this expense, or will the insurance for the ambulance company reimburse us for this? Or would that be the insurance for the tenant that should be responsible?