All Forum Posts by: Rob B.

Hi Raimon, at this point, it is probably best to reach out to legal counsel to figure out your best course of action, and whether or not it actually falls on you. As some others have noted before, you may not want to get involved-- but again, consult with legal counsel so that there's no ambiguity around what is expected/what needs to be done in order to get this individual removed. State laws vary, and in some instances, even hyper-local laws vary. Don't chance it. It would be different if this was a temporary guest situation but it sounds like the individual has resided at the property for quite some time (5 months+). I hope everything works out. Definitely a tough place to be in because you want to make sure that your property isn't at risk due to the domestic disputes that seem to be taking place between the tenant and their guest who has assumed residency. 

Hi Zac, some of this depends on the location of the rental (if the rental is, for example, a Florida rental which will be available in the winter, I don't think you'll have too much of an issue getting the place rented out). However, I would recommend a couple of options. You could enable a 6-month lease renewal which should bring you through to the end of March. This way you have some time to get yourself back on season (or, if you don't want to go that route you could decide to go on a month-to-month lease status until you're back on season, but there's still the chance that the tenants won't renew prior to reaching April or June; but again, given where the property is located, you should be able to get the place rented. There are a ton of resources out there that can help to make the listing process easier for you (so to help you cast a wider next by posting that listing on all of the major sites). @Zac Boelkow

Hi Matt, there are definitely a lot of helpful tools out there; ***a lot of people use Zelle or Venmo, but they’re not designed specifically for rent collection. Some would suggest TenantCloud, Tellius or other apps which allow you to process rent collection; but, there is an option out there which allows you to collect rent much quicker than those others but still provides other rental management tools you might find valuable  (again, not to knock Cozy or these other tools like Zillow rental manager - which admittedly is newer so they still have to iron out all of the kinks), but you can easily keep track of who paid what and on which date with a tool that is reliable and fast. Definitely can help to make the process as painless as possible and more efficient for both parties (landlord + tenant), and also offers digital leases. Again, you may run into transfer limits with some of those other apps which aren't necessarily designed for the purpose of rent collection but the right landlord software can make this seamless for you. Would love to learn about any additional needs; definitely helps to keep landlord solution providers on their toes! @Matt Lorentsen

I think where things get tricky is in your decision to accept sold as is; however, I don't think this is out of line at all. In fact, a big part of the due diligence phase is to uncover things like this. Now you have to try to figure out a way to present a clear communication around why you'd like to proceed with additional negotiations on price. And as Wayne carefully noted in his response prior to mine, that As-Is agreement has nothing to do with the right to inspect or renegotiate afterward. Again, figure out which local area laws are binding as far as that agreement and think through inspection contingency. I'll defer to a few others on this but interested to learn how things turn out! @Anthony Gayden

Hi David, this is definitely a tough one, and I'm sorry to hear you're dealing with this situation. Emotional support animals, in regards to residential real estate, are service animals. The Fair Housing Act states that tenants with emotional support animals cannot be charged extra fees for having their support animals. Based on FHA, you must allow the dog, even if you have a no-pet policy, and you can't charge extra pet rent, pet fee, or pet deposit. That said I know a lot of landlords who have run into issues with the ESA process; there's a difference between extra fees and cost to cover destruction of property, and as far as breeds, some insurance companies are a bit more reluctant to insure the property if certain breeds are residing there. I'd definitely lean on legal counsel locally to get a better idea of what options you have; you want to make sure you're not violating law by evicting a tenant for an ESA but you also want to make sure them having an ESA doesn't violate their HOA rules (sounds like it gets a bit more complex now that the HOA has gotten involved). I'll defer to others who respond after this, but since you're ready to proceed with the eviction process, best to seek out legal counsel who is savvy in Landlord-Tenant law where your property is located. @David K.

Hi Matthew, this is an interesting situation and I wouldn't let an existing tenant deter you from making a business decision for what you've set out to accomplish. All comes down to that lease, your local laws, and as Will has noted, be super careful when considering deals that entail difficult tenants. I'm not sure what Ohio's laws specify (and I'm in no way giving legal advice, as I'm not legal counsel), but I will say that you'd probably be best suited not renewing a lease with this tenant in particular. Additionally, figure out the timing of when notice to vacate/evict would need to be provided (ex. if 30 days before hand, make sure you give yourself enough time with that process so it doesn't hold up your entire renting process on this unit). There are a ton of great legal resources here on BiggerPockets as well! I hope everything pans out well for you! All things considered, this sounds like a great opportunity. @Matthew Carlton

Kim is spot on. No need to do a new one; best to let those leases expire (and gives you some time to see what the current tenants are like rather than just presenting them with a new year-long lease without any insight on what type of tenants they are). It may not always be in your best interest to renew so soon since you didn't handle the initial screening. I hope everything works out! 

Hi Carmela! This a good question to think about as you're getting started. I know there are a lot of stigmas attached to renting to individuals who hold Section 8 housing vouchers; it is easier to think through the cons - however, some of the pros might be that you open up the property to a bigger pool of potential applicants. In many instances a large portion of the rent is almost guaranteed to hit your pocket each month - again, this may not cover the full amount but they are consistent payments coming in (paid by the government). Typically the tenants are already prescreened and you're much more likely to have a lower vacancy rate. However, there's always a certain level of risk that you take in accepting Section 8 vouchers and for you, you need to decide how you'd like to proceed - I know a portion of the rent is guaranteed, which is great, but I also wonder if the portion that the tenant is responsible for is considered riskier when compared to non-section 8 tenant candidates. Additionally, there are a lot more regulations that you'll have to abide by as far as the level you can set the rent at, and I don't believe HUD pays Security Deposits either. Other downsides to going this route: the process to get the unit approved can be long and tedious; the apartment has to pass section 8 inspection - they are thorough, and go by the book. Section 8 doesn't manage the tenant, so if the tenant isn't paying their portion of the rent it's still your responsibility to evict them. All you can do is report it to Section 8 and there's a possibility they can lose their voucher. I'll defer to others though to keep the pros and cons coming! Still learning about this myself but happy to share what I've learned thus far. @Carmela Cirilli

Usually, I'd assume a bird to be on the safer side, however, my cousin used to own one and 1. parrots (regardless of the breed) seem to love wood moldings, and 2. they can be loud. With any pet, there's more of a chance of incurring additional damages and you also want to consider whether or not the animal will be a nuisance to you and the other tenants within the building. Curious to know which direction you went with this, @Marilee Sando!

All comes down to evaluating that prior lease and per what Cameron and Jim have noted above, definitely worth seeking out legal counsel to figure out what your options are in this particular instance. I additionally think that the 30-day notice is something you should move on in a timely fashion (as @Bob Okenwa stated) because you don't want that whole process to slow down even further (so if you're going to be looking for another tenant - might make it more of a challenge as we head out of peak rental season). I hope things work out for your situation! Best of luck.