Landlord Vent: Need sympathy!

[TranquilMind]

Arrrgh. I've been a landlord for 12 years and am a darn good one. My houses are all close to my own home in excellent neighborhoods and quite well-kept. If something goes wrong, I'm on it and those properties get serviced before my own. As a courtesy, I have the spring growth cleaned up every year for the tenants, even though lawn care is their obligation...just to be nice. No one can tell these are "rental houses".

 

Also, as a courtesy, I have not raised rent since before the crash on anyone. That's right...all have remained in their homes at pre-2008 rent.

 

Um...MY expenses have gone up ridiculously, but I've eaten it. My state has decided to double taxes on landlords. So my houses pay TWICE the tax of the identical houses next door that happened to be owned by owner-occupants.

 

Anyway...so I get a letter today from an existing tenant who pays on time, keeps the house beautifully and has no pets (and nonsmokers). You keep these gems so I have kept them for years, but they do complain. A LOT. They are complaining for the third year in a row about something minor I cannot fix because it is a custom item that I should have simply removed before they moved in. It works, just not as smoothly as they would like. I left it because every previous tenant was fine with it; I warned them this item did not work smoothly (it's a particular screen door) and I could remove it or leave it. All were fine with it. I've had two contractors attempt to fix it. I could order a new one at tremendous cost, but I'm not going to do that because it is not a necessary item AND they accepted the house as-is.

 

You guessed it; got a complaint today AGAIN about how this doesn't work smoothly and oh...by the way....could I LOWER their rent?

 

Hello? LOWER your rent? How about "Thanks so much for not raising my rent all the way through the market crash - that was awesome of you, because I know your taxes have doubled. I read the paper."

 

Arrrrrrrgggghhhhhh! Ok, thanks for listening, landlords.....I will respond professionally....I'm just irked.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I totally get why you're irked. Are you sure you want to keep this tenant? I could help you with a snarky reply. . .:D

[indigomama]

I've never been a landlord, but after owning my own home I have gained a greater understanding of the work and effort of homeownership.

 

You sound like a great landlord, sorry things are so rough:grouphug:

[houseofkids&pets]

Not a landlord, but sending :grouphug:. When we used to rent around here, fees went up annually. It sounds like you have been up front and more than fair.

[JennifersLost]

I completely get it.

 

Our rentals are under contract with a potential buyer. We'll know in a few weeks if the sale will go through or not, and even though we'll miss the income, we won't miss the complaints, the disgusting messes people leave behind, or the calls in the middle of the night.

 

Your tenants have no idea how good they've got it. Sounds like you are doing a fabulous job!

[swellmomma]

If this is their 3rd year in a row complaining about the same item and it was made aware right from teh start AND they are asking for lower rents I would be raising the rent jsut to basically force them out. YOu have no grounds currently for eviction but those are not the tenants to keep there. I would raise the rent and either they will payit or they will give notice and you can get a new family in. Then remove that screen before the new family moves in.

[Mergath]

I agree with the others, though I would add that your tenants might be having their own economic struggles, too, so don't be too hard on them about asking for lower rent. The economy tanking has been hard on us all. :grouphug:

[lea1]

Maybe you should send all of your tenants (and most especially this one) a note telling them about the rates that have gone up for you, as the landlord, over the past 4 years or so, and pointing out that you have not passed those increases on to them. Actually, maybe you should use this letter to raise their rates a little.

 

Some people are just thick, do not think things through and/or do not appreciate a good thing when they have it.

[A.Balaban]

I want to say :grouphug::grouphug:

 

You sound like a wonderful landlord. Our current landlord is really nice too (Could you be the same?!! oh no, we don't have a screen door. :lol:)

 

I went to look at an apartment not too long ago, and the landlord was so disgusted by the place that he did not even bother to clean it up before he showed it. You had to step over garbage, everywhere. Every single floor, surface, counter, was covered in filth, garbage, food, papers. It looked like a commune of hippies had lived there (I say this because of the very poignant art work on the walls) oh it was terrible.

[Desert Rat]

Now I'm a little scared. We're buying our first income property in a few short months. Should I run screaming?!

[StephanieZ]

One law of business I have come to believe:

 

It's business. Not personal. They DON'T ACTUALLY APPRECIATE ANYTHING YOU DO.

 

Raise all their rents. Give them a couple months notice (just to be nice), and be gradual about it. Raise the rents of the difficult tenants MORE than the cooperative tenants.

 

Take the extra rental income and take yourself out to dinner once a week or once a month. Or take a vacation. Or buy your kids or spouse a treat. Or whatever.

 

Stop treating your tenants with such care and concern. They don't give a flying pig about YOU. Save your compassion and generosity for friends and family who appreciate and deserve it. Or for true charity if you are so inclined.

[Carpe]

One law of business I have come to believe:

 

It's business. Not personal. They DON'T ACTUALLY APPRECIATE ANYTHING YOU DO.

 

Raise all their rents. Give them a couple months notice (just to be nice), and be gradual about it. Raise the rents of the difficult tenants MORE than the cooperative tenants.

 

Take the extra rental income and take yourself out to dinner once a week or once a month. Or take a vacation. Or buy your kids or spouse a treat. Or whatever.

 

Stop treating your tenants with such care and concern. They don't give a flying pig about YOU. Save your compassion and generosity for friends and family who appreciate and deserve it. Or for true charity if you are so inclined.

 

:iagree:

[TranquilMind]

I totally get why you're irked. Are you sure you want to keep this tenant? I could help you with a snarky reply. . .:D

Snark away!

 

Tell me what you'd really say. I know I'd like to say a thing or two...but I know I won't.

[TranquilMind]

Not a landlord, but sending :grouphug:. When we used to rent around here, fees went up annually. It sounds like you have been up front and more than fair.

 

Thank you! Yes, the landlords I know raise annually. You can bet everyone else raises my expenses, taxes and insurance annually.

 

Not even a thank you...

 

I figure if I have got good tenants who pay on time and take nice care of the house who are LOW MAINTENANCE (which they all are except for the complaints of this one), then I will make life easier for them too.

 

My mistake.

[TranquilMind]

I would raise the rent and either they will payit or they will give notice and you can get a new family in. Then remove that screen before the new family moves in.

 

You know, I always think that I will just raise the rent on annoying people. Then I realize that whomever I get ...could be worse!

 

You just never know.

 

And yes, that screen will be gone! I actually removed it a couple years ago and they called and asked for it back! :confused:

[TranquilMind]

I agree with the others, though I would add that your tenants might be having their own economic struggles, too, so don't be too hard on them about asking for lower rent. The economy tanking has been hard on us all. :grouphug:

 

I won't be hard on them. They ask for a lot of things and I've usually done it. You should see the vomit color of their living room I allowed their professional painter to paint because they just HAD to match the furniture. They said they'd use a neutral color and run it by me first....yeah...neutral vomit. And they conveniently forgot to run it by me, so guess who will be paying for a repaint.

[TranquilMind]

Now I'm a little scared. We're buying our first income property in a few short months. Should I run screaming?!

Yes.

 

No, seriously, just have some really good screening procedures in place. This is the worst sort of stuff I have faced. Never had an eviction in 12 years, though I had to file once, when the tenant just "went dark" (spy term for disappeared and could not be roused, though he was still in the house), refusing to answer the phone, the door, emails...

 

He still cleaned the place when he left though I lost some money.

[TranquilMind]

One law of business I have come to believe:

 

It's business. Not personal. They DON'T ACTUALLY APPRECIATE ANYTHING YOU DO.

 

Raise all their rents. Give them a couple months notice (just to be nice), and be gradual about it. Raise the rents of the difficult tenants MORE than the cooperative tenants.

 

Take the extra rental income and take yourself out to dinner once a week or once a month. Or take a vacation. Or buy your kids or spouse a treat. Or whatever.

 

Stop treating your tenants with such care and concern. They don't give a flying pig about YOU. Save your compassion and generosity for friends and family who appreciate and deserve it. Or for true charity if you are so inclined.

LOL.

 

Yeah, I know. But in my fantasy world, I'm appreciated...;)

 

I also don't want more than one vacancy at a time, and having none for years is better. So I put up with some of the garbage.

[gardening momma]

Write them a letter and tell them you can:

 

A: replace the screen door for $X (whatever the actual amount would be, with labor), which would be due with their next rent payment

 

B: replace the screen door for a $X increase in monthly rent payments (divide the actual amount + labor by X months--make it high, though)

 

C: they can have you take the door out, but it will cost them $X in labor this time, as they've already had it removed and put back in.

 

D: they can leave the door in place

 

Every time they complain about it, resend the letter.

[Scuff]

Now I'm a little scared. We're buying our first income property in a few short months. Should I run screaming?!

 

Yes! Lanlording is not for the faint of heart!

[suppleasthewind]

Sometimes my tenants request aesthetic improvements as if they are necessities. I feel like telling them, "there is a class of people in the world (such as divas) who want something and make it so by snapping their fingers. neither you or I are of that world."

[Mergath]

One law of business I have come to believe:

 

It's business. Not personal. They DON'T ACTUALLY APPRECIATE ANYTHING YOU DO.

 

Raise all their rents. Give them a couple months notice (just to be nice), and be gradual about it. Raise the rents of the difficult tenants MORE than the cooperative tenants.

 

Take the extra rental income and take yourself out to dinner once a week or once a month. Or take a vacation. Or buy your kids or spouse a treat. Or whatever.

 

Stop treating your tenants with such care and concern. They don't give a flying pig about YOU. Save your compassion and generosity for friends and family who appreciate and deserve it. Or for true charity if you are so inclined.

 

Ouch. You know, some of us on this board are renters, and are definitely not like that. My family is very appreciative of what our landlord has done for us, and we try to get him the rent early whenever we have it, along with making a lot of improvements to the place on our own dime.

 

Yes, many renters suck, but don't dismiss all of us as horrible people.

[Alicia64]

 

Arrrrrrrgggghhhhhh! Ok, thanks for listening, landlords.....I will respond professionally....I'm just irked.

 

YOU sound like a gem of a landlord! Rather than buying in our new state we're in the process of looking for a home to rent.

 

I want to be one of those gems you talk about . . . a really great person to rent to. When you have a moment -- and I don't mean to hijack this thread -- can you share what you think makes a tenant a gem?

 

We don't smoke and have outstanding credit. Really. Our only "downfall" is a 12 year old black Lab. But he's our baby and we wouldn't "get rid of him."

 

And we have two kids.

 

Any tips would be so great. I especially need advice on what to tell people initially so we can get our foot in the door. It seems like there's a lot of demand for rentals in our area.

 

Thanks,

 

alley

[A.J. at J.A.]

They don't give a flying pig about YOU.

 

Oh my! I LOVE this quote so much - made me laugh out loud!! :lol:

[A.J. at J.A.]

Write them a letter and tell them you can:

 

A: replace the screen door for $X (whatever the actual amount would be, with labor), which would be due with their next rent payment

 

B: replace the screen door for a $X increase in monthly rent payments (divide the actual amount + labor by X months--make it high, though)

 

C: they can have you take the door out, but it will cost them $X in labor this time, as they've already had it removed and put back in.

 

D: they can leave the door in place

 

Every time they complain about it, resend the letter.

 

:iagree:

[Catwoman]

Now I'm a little scared. We're buying our first income property in a few short months. Should I run screaming?!

 

Yes. Think very long and hard before you purchase an income property.

 

Seriously. In many cases, the negatives far outweigh the positives.

[BlsdMama]

Arrrgh. I've been a landlord for 12 years and am a darn good one. My houses are all close to my own home in excellent neighborhoods and quite well-kept. If something goes wrong, I'm on it and those properties get serviced before my own. As a courtesy, I have the spring growth cleaned up every year for the tenants, even though lawn care is their obligation...just to be nice. No one can tell these are "rental houses".

 

Also, as a courtesy, I have not raised rent since before the crash on anyone. That's right...all have remained in their homes at pre-2008 rent.

 

Um...MY expenses have gone up ridiculously, but I've eaten it. My state has decided to double taxes on landlords. So my houses pay TWICE the tax of the identical houses next door that happened to be owned by owner-occupants.

 

Anyway...so I get a letter today from an existing tenant who pays on time, keeps the house beautifully and has no pets (and nonsmokers). You keep these gems so I have kept them for years, but they do complain. A LOT. They are complaining for the third year in a row about something minor I cannot fix because it is a custom item that I should have simply removed before they moved in. It works, just not as smoothly as they would like. I left it because every previous tenant was fine with it; I warned them this item did not work smoothly (it's a particular screen door) and I could remove it or leave it. All were fine with it. I've had two contractors attempt to fix it. I could order a new one at tremendous cost, but I'm not going to do that because it is not a necessary item AND they accepted the house as-is.

 

You guessed it; got a complaint today AGAIN about how this doesn't work smoothly and oh...by the way....could I LOWER their rent?

 

Hello? LOWER your rent? How about "Thanks so much for not raising my rent all the way through the market crash - that was awesome of you, because I know your taxes have doubled. I read the paper."

 

Arrrrrrrgggghhhhhh! Ok, thanks for listening, landlords.....I will respond professionally....I'm just irked.

 

;) Even as a renter you can have my hug. :grouphug:

 

Oh, and Alley, we got a lot of feedback from the property manager we used. Seems like they appreciate cleanliness and timeliness... Fairly low expectations, lol. Just keep the house like you would expect your investment to be cared for.

 

One law of business I have come to believe:

 

It's business. Not personal. They DON'T ACTUALLY APPRECIATE ANYTHING YOU DO.

 

Raise all their rents. Give them a couple months notice (just to be nice), and be gradual about it. Raise the rents of the difficult tenants MORE than the cooperative tenants.

 

Take the extra rental income and take yourself out to dinner once a week or once a month. Or take a vacation. Or buy your kids or spouse a treat. Or whatever.

 

Stop treating your tenants with such care and concern. They don't give a flying pig about YOU. Save your compassion and generosity for friends and family who appreciate and deserve it. Or for true charity if you are so inclined.

Wow. Okay.

 

I prayed for my landlord and his family on a regular basis. We truly cared for his property because we knew they didn't want to be landlords and renting out the home they built. We bent over backwards to be good neighbors in our community. When we were showing THEIR home on Dec. 23rd (two of my daughter's birthdays) I actually hoped, for their good, they would be able to sell it. We paid full rent, despite showing it and preparing the house for showings. That kind of harshness was generalizing and uncalled for. Just because someone isn't in the market for a home (temporary job move, etc.) doesn't mean they are careless or worthless.

Edited March 30, 2012 by BlsdMama

[ksr5377]

Hmm, some things to think about as my DH keeps trying to talk me into the idea of a rental property.

[RoughCollie]

Ouch. You know, some of us on this board are renters, and are definitely not like that. My family is very appreciative of what our landlord has done for us, and we try to get him the rent early whenever we have it, along with making a lot of improvements to the place on our own dime.

 

Yes, many renters suck, but don't dismiss all of us as horrible people.

 

:iagree:

[meggie]

Ouch. You know, some of us on this board are renters, and are definitely not like that. My family is very appreciative of what our landlord has done for us, and we try to get him the rent early whenever we have it, along with making a lot of improvements to the place on our own dime.

 

Yes, many renters suck, but don't dismiss all of us as horrible people.

 

:iagree: No kidding :glare:

 

Our contract states that we're responsible for all plumbing issues and paying the plumbers. When the bathroom sink was leaking, I asked our landlord if he could walk me through it, since I didn't want to have to pay a plumber. He came by four or five times to fix the darn thing because every few weeks it would start leaking again (and not just a drip, drip, drip. It was streaming water.) He's such a nice man, I really do appreciate him and all he does. DH and I had one awful landlord when we first got married. We've had two really good ones since then. Landlords can make or break the situation.

[Jennifer3141]

We have an awful landlord right now. Actually, I'm not sure if she is still our landlord since the bankrupcty court is allowing her to abandon this house.

 

Our landlord didn't think fixing a pump in the basement was a good investment, even though every time we used the toilet, the water flowed all over the floor since the pump was DEAD and couldn't get the water to the septic system.

 

The dishwasher in this house was prone to leaking so instead of fixing that, she just kept replacing the ceiling tiles under it. Until one day I went downstairs to find the light fixture under the dishwasher on FIRE and mold all over the insulation between the floor and ceiling. Eep.

 

But it's all working out in the end. We're going to buy the house from the foreclosing bank and the landlord will be completely out of profiting from it.

 

Oh, and she stole our depost. lol

[Desert Rat]

I know. We have decided to buy a house and rent it to my slightly disabled BIL. He just needs a bit of help, someone to make sure he has a roof over his head. We aren't intending on renting to strangers; I'd rather sell the house, I think. This would be a long term arrangement. We are charging him enough rent to cover all of our costs, including a little extra to cover repairs, etc. I figure it's a good way to get our feet wet and see if it's something we want to pursue, plus he really does need the help. My MIL is kinda leaving him high and dry. This was the best alternative we could think of. Housing prices in our subdivision are crazy low. We can't buy cash but we wouldn't carry much of a mortgage.

Do you guys that answered "Yes!" still think it's a bad idea? If so, what would you do differently, realizing that we are the only ones to help this man. He works full time and is able to pay his bills. He just needs a little assistance in housing. He would pay his own utilities, etc.

[SweetIrony]

One law of business I have come to believe:

 

It's business. Not personal. They DON'T ACTUALLY APPRECIATE ANYTHING YOU DO.

 

Raise all their rents. Give them a couple months notice (just to be nice), and be gradual about it. Raise the rents of the difficult tenants MORE than the cooperative tenants.

 

Take the extra rental income and take yourself out to dinner once a week or once a month. Or take a vacation. Or buy your kids or spouse a treat. Or whatever.

 

Stop treating your tenants with such care and concern. They don't give a flying pig about YOU. Save your compassion and generosity for friends and family who appreciate and deserve it. Or for true charity if you are so inclined.

 

Wow. I'm not even sure what else to say to this besides... wow.

 

I love our landlady and very much appreciate her and the things she has done for us. We take care of this house and have made many improvements to it with our own money.

 

I would truly hate to have someone like you for a landlord. Again, wow.

[TranquilMind]

Wow. I'm not even sure what else to say to this besides... wow.

 

I love our landlady and very much appreciate her and the things she has done for us. We take care of this house and have made many improvements to it with our own money.

 

I would truly hate to have someone like you for a landlord. Again, wow.

Everyone is jumping on Stephanie, but I think this is simply her experience speaking, possibly tongue and cheek. While we all know of these sorts of tenants, she is not saying anyone HERE is like this, merely that this is par for the course if you have been a landlord for long. You will run into these types and they will be the rule rather than the exception.

 

I've been a landlord for 12 years, and have had some great tenants, but I can certainly count them on one hand. Most did not care anything about how I went the extra mile for them, ignoring my own family or needs to do so. That's just true. A few were wonderful.

 

Unfortunately, I just got a "We bought a house" email from one of the best couples ever. I knew they were going to go sooner or later, because they had a baby and the next logical step is buying a house. I was just hoping they would stay a bit longer. They sent a wonderful email, saying many nice things. I'm sorry to see them go.

 

This is the only way I ever lose tenants; they buy a house. One bought a house right down the street from my rental. I hope that says something about how I run my business.

 

Most of the people on this forum are anything but average in anything, so I would expect there to be a higher percentage of great tenants here among these intelligent, educated, home-oriented folks. I didn't take her remark to include present company. But it is true in general for landlords that no good deed goes unpunished, so I could relate.

[TranquilMind]

I know. We have decided to buy a house and rent it to my slightly disabled BIL. He just needs a bit of help, someone to make sure he has a roof over his head. We aren't intending on renting to strangers; I'd rather sell the house, I think. This would be a long term arrangement. We are charging him enough rent to cover all of our costs, including a little extra to cover repairs, etc. I figure it's a good way to get our feet wet and see if it's something we want to pursue, plus he really does need the help. My MIL is kinda leaving him high and dry. This was the best alternative we could think of. Housing prices in our subdivision are crazy low. We can't buy cash but we wouldn't carry much of a mortgage.

Do you guys that answered "Yes!" still think it's a bad idea? If so, what would you do differently, realizing that we are the only ones to help this man. He works full time and is able to pay his bills. He just needs a little assistance in housing. He would pay his own utilities, etc.

Hmm. I hope it works out. Mixing business and family rarely does. Someone usually gets angry and feels taken advantage of; I hope this does not happen to you in this situation.

[nukeswife]

Ouch. You know, some of us on this board are renters, and are definitely not like that. My family is very appreciative of what our landlord has done for us, and we try to get him the rent early whenever we have it, along with making a lot of improvements to the place on our own dime.

 

Yes, many renters suck, but don't dismiss all of us as horrible people.

 

:iagree:

 

My landlord is pretty good about getting things taken care of, being he's military like us, I do as uh as I can to make things easy for him. I've fixed many a plumbing issue so he wouldn't have to call anyone and have never asked him fora dime back of the repair costs. I replaced the broken kitchen faucet, We didn't break it, it was just old and worn out, never asked to vibe reimbursed. Just yesterday I paid over $300 to have the entire house and deck power washed because we have algae growth issues here due to the way the house sits on the lot, and don't expect him to pay me back. I've taken on coordinating and shopping around for the best price on repairs we couldn't do, like a rotten porch post and railing, because he lives 1500 miles away, and we've wanted to make things easier for him. He's due back in the area in July and we offered to terminate our lease if he wants his house back even though that would mean trying to find another place to rent for less than a year.

 

I'd say we're pretty Good tenants that go above and beyond to make renting to us pleasant and easy for the landlord. So please don't lump us all in a group of unappreciative, lazy, moochers, that just want someone to take care of every little thing that may not be up to unrealistic standards.

[TranquilMind]

We have an awful landlord right now. Actually, I'm not sure if she is still our landlord since the bankrupcty court is allowing her to abandon this house.

 

Our landlord didn't think fixing a pump in the basement was a good investment, even though every time we used the toilet, the water flowed all over the floor since the pump was DEAD and couldn't get the water to the septic system.

 

The dishwasher in this house was prone to leaking so instead of fixing that, she just kept replacing the ceiling tiles under it. Until one day I went downstairs to find the light fixture under the dishwasher on FIRE and mold all over the insulation between the floor and ceiling. Eep.

 

But it's all working out in the end. We're going to buy the house from the foreclosing bank and the landlord will be completely out of profiting from it.

 

Oh, and she stole our depost. lol

 

I don't understand a number of things about this post.

 

1) Why do landlords lose houses without warning tenants in advance?

2) Water is a house's worst enemy; a landlord never disregards water anywhere!

3) I don't even understand the whole dishwasher thing. Why would this not be fixed.

4) It doesn't sound as if there was any profit to be had in this house, which sounds like it has issues. Are you sure you want to take that on? I hope you got a screaming deal if you do.

5) You have legal recourse to your deposit, but you won't get it until you vacate. She didn't steal it. She likely had to turn over any moneys held to the bank when she lost it. But it is there somewhere.

[TranquilMind]

:iagree:

 

My landlord is pretty good about getting things taken care of, being he's military like us, I do as uh as I can to make things easy for him. I've fixed many a plumbing issue so he wouldn't have to call anyone and have never asked him fora dime back of the repair costs. I replaced the broken kitchen faucet, We didn't break it, it was just old and worn out, never asked to vibe reimbursed. Just yesterday I paid over $300 to have the entire house and deck power washed because we have algae growth issues here due to the way the house sits on the lot, and don't expect him to pay me back. I've taken on coordinating and shopping around for the best price on repairs we couldn't do, like a rotten porch post and railing, because he lives 1500 miles away, and we've wanted to make things easier for him. He's due back in the area in July and we offered to terminate our lease if he wants his house back even though that would mean trying to find another place to rent for less than a year.

 

I'd say we're pretty Good tenants that go above and beyond to make renting to us pleasant and easy for the landlord. So please don't lump us all in a group of unappreciative, lazy, moochers, that just want someone to take care of every little thing that may not be up to unrealistic standards.

It sounds as if you are good tenants.

[TranquilMind]

Sometimes my tenants request aesthetic improvements as if they are necessities. I feel like telling them, "there is a class of people in the world (such as divas) who want something and make it so by snapping their fingers. neither you or I are of that world."

 

Oh, yes. These people. We've all had the pleasure, though I try very hard not to let them become my tenants in the first place.

 

I have been told to paint a newly painted house because it "wouldn't go with her decor." Um, no. I've been asked "if we could paint in lieu of deposit" the freshly repainted house. Um, no.

 

I've actually been told to come over and move a 5 gallon paint jug in a garage that annoyed the tenant. He couldn't be bothered. I told him that no other tenant had complained about its presence and it would remain. I've been told that the front yard was too bumpy to mow, due to tree roots. I told this tenant that I could not deliver a perfectly level yard, that all other tenants had managed to cut the grass over the years and I'm sure he would be able to do so as well. He left the grass a foot tall around the tree just because he was a jerk. I had to go over and cut it myself.

 

Oh, I could go on all night. But I've never been rude and never failed to meet any of my obligations or do anything wise in preservation of the property. I certainly hope it pays off some day. There is NO money in this gig at all, especially the last decade. We went without things so tenants would have updated homes. We shall see...

[TranquilMind]

Ouch. You know, some of us on this board are renters, and are definitely not like that. My family is very appreciative of what our landlord has done for us, and we try to get him the rent early whenever we have it, along with making a lot of improvements to the place on our own dime.

 

Yes, many renters suck, but don't dismiss all of us as horrible people.

 

I don't think she intended to do that at all, and as I said in another thread, the people on this board are not typical in many ways.

 

Though I cringe a bit when I read about "improvements". Yes, there are those rare paragons who actually do an improvement that is an improvement and not something that is substandard work that will need to be repaired/replaced upon leaving. I have one of those now. They put a brick patio in the back yard, and not a tacky "do-it-yourself" looking job that I would have to rip out. It actually looks great. It's level! This has happened once in 12 years. I hope you mean you are one of these people.

 

My Lease absolutely prohibits improvements/changes/alterations to the house. Some people feel that this doesn't apply to them so they paint a room Pepto-Bismol pink, leaving paint drips everywhere and ruining the baseboards and ceilings, and then claim they "improved" the property. No, they have just paid for a professional to clean up what they did, out of their deposit. Or they remove shelves, leaving holes that they sort of spackle over, which means that I get to repair and repaint entire rooms.

 

Anyway, things like the latter paragraph are more what generally happens to landlords, and almost never things in the former paragraph.

 

Oh, and please, for the love of God, do not buy a house from a guy who fancies himself a "handyman". That was one of my early mistakes and I spent 13 grand repairing all of his shoddy, code-violating work before I could even rent it out!

[CanaryMelody]

One law of business I have come to believe:

 

It's business. Not personal. They DON'T ACTUALLY APPRECIATE ANYTHING YOU DO.

 

Raise all their rents. Give them a couple months notice (just to be nice), and be gradual about it. Raise the rents of the difficult tenants MORE than the cooperative tenants.

 

Take the extra rental income and take yourself out to dinner once a week or once a month. Or take a vacation. Or buy your kids or spouse a treat. Or whatever.

 

Stop treating your tenants with such care and concern. They don't give a flying pig about YOU. Save your compassion and generosity for friends and family who appreciate and deserve it. Or for true charity if you are so inclined.

 

 

:blink: Wow. We rent and have ALWAYS appreciated the care and concern our landlords have shown us. Unfortunately, landlords don't always show that concern back to us despite taking care of their home as our own, leaving a home BETTER than when we moved in, or consistently paying rent on time. I understand landlords deal with all sorts while renting, but not all of us are bad tenants. I shouldn't be "punished" for a previous bad tenant. As much personal information and all the background checks a tenant goes through to rent, too bad we can't give potential landlords a background/reference check as well. :glare:

 

OP, as a previous pp wrote, I'd give your tenant in writing a list of options of what you can/are willing to do about the door. And then go from there. Sounds like, with exception of this one thing, they are decent tenants.

 

As far as the rent amount, maybe they are asking because everyone is bad shape these days. Maybe they thought that there was no harm in asking? Would they honestly know just how much your expenses/taxes have gone up? Do you share this information directly with your tenants? Maybe they don't know about the tax increases from reading the newspaper? We don't even read the newspaper around here at all. I know we would have no clue to these things that a landlord might be dealing with. I guess we figured if a landlord had an increase in taxes or expenses that they would pass on that cost to us if necessary.

 

You should tell them simply that you are unable to lower their rent and you are actually going to raise rents by x or % amount to cover the increased taxes and expenses (if you choose to do this). Then they have the decision to make to stay and accept the door situation and new rent or move on. :001_smile:

[Mergath]

 

Though I cringe a bit when I read about "improvements". Yes, there are those rare paragons who actually do an improvement that is an improvement and not something that is substandard work that will need to be repaired/replaced upon leaving. I have one of those now. They put a brick patio in the back yard, and not a tacky "do-it-yourself" looking job that I would have to rip out. It actually looks great. It's level! This has happened once in 12 years. I hope you mean you are one of these people.

 

My Lease absolutely prohibits improvements/changes/alterations to the house. Some people feel that this doesn't apply to them so they paint a room Pepto-Bismol pink, leaving paint drips everywhere and ruining the baseboards and ceilings, and then claim they "improved" the property. No, they have just paid for a professional to clean up what they did, out of their deposit. Or they remove shelves, leaving holes that they sort of spackle over, which means that I get to repair and repaint entire rooms.

 

Anyway, things like the latter paragraph are more what generally happens to landlords, and almost never things in the former paragraph.

 

Oh, and please, for the love of God, do not buy a house from a guy who fancies himself a "handyman". That was one of my early mistakes and I spent 13 grand repairing all of his shoddy, code-violating work before I could even rent it out!

 

No, we don't do anything that involved. Mostly replacing the cheap, falling apart fixtures around the place with much nicer ones that we will leave here, should we move. And painting over the god-awful colors with nice, calm neutral tones.

 

Our landlord knows everything we've done and approves.

[TranquilMind]

YOU sound like a gem of a landlord! Rather than buying in our new state we're in the process of looking for a home to rent.

 

I want to be one of those gems you talk about . . . a really great person to rent to. When you have a moment -- and I don't mean to hijack this thread -- can you share what you think makes a tenant a gem?

 

We don't smoke and have outstanding credit. Really. Our only "downfall" is a 12 year old black Lab. But he's our baby and we wouldn't "get rid of him."

 

And we have two kids.

 

Any tips would be so great. I especially need advice on what to tell people initially so we can get our foot in the door. It seems like there's a lot of demand for rentals in our area.

 

Thanks,

 

alley

 

Oh, PLEASE tell me you are moving to my state and want a house June 1! Please!

 

I do not allow pets - except for the three exceptions I made in 12 years, all for older, calm pets. By 12 years old, they are like statues! I'd take your lab.

 

My ideal tenant: Good references from former landlords, great credit, nonsmoking, no pets (or a rare exception, an older dog), NO CATS (I'm allergic and can't go in after), calm, mature, quiet neighbors (not stereo blasters etc). I need people who don't call me every time a screw comes loose, but can handle that themselves.

 

My perfect couple, who are leaving because they just bought a house, I found out tonight, are just wonderful. If something happened, they would call me, but never in an irritable, demanding way. Once it was Valentine's day, and my tenant left a message (never good) but started it out with, "Happy Valentine's Day! I'm SO sorry to call you today but we have had a back up in the drain in the garage, so whenever you could take a look at it, that would be great." I had someone there the next morning.

 

Last summer, the AC unit burned out a transformer when freon was topped off by my regular service guy. He didn't complain for a couple of days (even though i couldn't have stood it) and finally sent me an email with the subject line, "Hot, hot, hot!" It was 95 in the house and he thought he ought to let me know, but it was ok, because they went out to get a window unit to solve their problem until I could get to it. ;) Just nice, and never demanding or irritable. Of course, I bend over backward for those types and got someone within a few hours when every place in town was booked up.

 

One couple never call and take care of everything beautifully. They apologized when they called me at midnight on a zero-degree night when the heat was out. They said they were going to wait until morning and didn't expect me to respond but just in case....

 

I had someone over by 2 in the morning.

 

The rude ones just call up as if I were their personal concierge with a staff on hand to run right over saying stuff like, "Um, YEAH. We have this PROBLEM that you need to get fixed RIGHT NOW. We CAN'T DEAL WITH IT AND YOU HAVE TO FIX IT TODAY!!! (rant rant rant, usually about some non emergency)" Hey, I didn't cause the weather problem or the dishwasher to break or anything like that. Life happens. Deal. :tongue_smilie:

My current complainers probably called 20 times because the dishwasher was not cleaning the dishes as well as they'd like. Hey, MY dishwasher doesn't work that well either because we have incredibly hard water here. I made suggestions, and had a professional come repair it and clean it with 5 bottles of something for which I paid a ridiculous couple of hundred dollars. I finally replaced the dishwasher, even though it wasn't necessary really just to make them SHUT UP. I have a family and a life over here, ya know? They now have a nice stainless steel high end dishwasher while I still have a piece of junk. These people complained that they didn't like the way the landscaper cut the trees! They don't like anything he does; and it isn't costing them a dime. They stand out there talking to any contractor I hire and try to get him to do more stuff for them. Arrgh.

 

:D Oh, some day....my beach house is waiting.....

Edited March 30, 2012 by TranquilMind

[TranquilMind]

No, we don't do anything that involved. Mostly replacing the cheap, falling apart fixtures around the place with much nicer ones that we will leave here, should we move. And painting over the god-awful colors with nice, calm neutral tones.

 

Our landlord knows everything we've done and approves.

That's good. Few people really paint that well, so that's really good!

[Bang!Zoom!]

One law of business I have come to believe:

 

It's business. Not personal. They DON'T ACTUALLY APPRECIATE ANYTHING YOU DO.

 

Raise all their rents. Give them a couple months notice (just to be nice), and be gradual about it. Raise the rents of the difficult tenants MORE than the cooperative tenants.

 

Take the extra rental income and take yourself out to dinner once a week or once a month. Or take a vacation. Or buy your kids or spouse a treat. Or whatever.

 

Stop treating your tenants with such care and concern. They don't give a flying pig about YOU. Save your compassion and generosity for friends and family who appreciate and deserve it. Or for true charity if you are so inclined.

 

:smilielol5:

[TranquilMind]

cbmrj777:

I shouldn't be "punished" for a previous bad tenant.

 

I agree with you, and actually, you really aren't, as you come to earn the trust and good will of the landlord. There are tenants I would trust with my kids, as I got to know them. But just like at the airport, we are all treated as potential criminals because of the few who are.

 

As much personal information and all the background checks a tenant goes through to rent, too bad we can't give potential landlords a background/reference check as well. :glare:

 

You can, sort of. You can look in public records to make sure the landlord really owns the house (or his business does) and you can make sure it isn't in foreclosure. You can speak to previous tenants if the landlord gets approval. I have a wonderful complimentary email I just got from a tenant who is moving that I could show to the next tenant, if he wants to see it.

 

OP, as a previous pp wrote, I'd give your tenant in writing a list of options of what you can/are willing to do about the door. And then go from there. Sounds like, with exception of this one thing, they are decent tenants.

 

You have no idea how I wish I had removed this stupid door before they ever saw the house.

 

As far as the rent amount, maybe they are asking because everyone is bad shape these days. Maybe they thought that there was no harm in asking? Would they honestly know just how much your expenses/taxes have gone up? Do you share this information directly with your tenants? Maybe they don't know about the tax increases from reading the newspaper? We don't even read the newspaper around here at all. I know we would have no clue to these things that a landlord might be dealing with. I guess we figured if a landlord had an increase in taxes or expenses that they would pass on that cost to us if necessary.

 

Oh, it is necessary and I was about to do it. Then they ask ME to reduce the rent after the 500 complaints about every single tiny little cotton-picking thing that has every remotely annoyed them in the years they have been here. They are one of the most time-consuming sets of tenants I have ever had; I actually cringe when I see their name on an email or phone call. It's always something minor and it is always going to cost me money.

 

You should tell them simply that you are unable to lower their rent and you are actually going to raise rents by x or % amount to cover the increased taxes and expenses (if you choose to do this). Then they have the decision to make to stay and accept the door situation and new rent or move on. :001_smile:

 

That's the plan. Though I now have the new wrench of another tenant just giving notice of having purchased a house. I do not want multiple vacancies as it is so very hard to find people that I will rent to, as I am extremely picky. I need low-maintenance tenants with some sense of perspective! They are rare.

[Jennifer3141]

I don't understand a number of things about this post.

 

1) Why do landlords lose houses without warning tenants in advance?

2) Water is a house's worst enemy; a landlord never disregards water anywhere!

3) I don't even understand the whole dishwasher thing. Why would this not be fixed.

4) It doesn't sound as if there was any profit to be had in this house, which sounds like it has issues. Are you sure you want to take that on? I hope you got a screaming deal if you do.

5) You have legal recourse to your deposit, but you won't get it until you vacate. She didn't steal it. She likely had to turn over any moneys held to the bank when she lost it. But it is there somewhere.

 

1. The house has been in refinancing heck for YEARS. She's one of those idiots who has more than one mortgage on the house and it is underwater. Declaring bankruptcy is the only smart thing this idiot has ever done. The problem is, she waited too long and has mutiple houses and has lied to the bankrupcty court. And is still trying to collect RENT from her tenants. She is not legally entitled to do so however.

 

2. She didn't have the money to fix it.

 

3. Ditto.

 

4. It's a FABULOUS deal for the price of the first mortgage only - which is what we are going through the process to do. It's not a screaming deal for the cost of the second mortgage too but it would be the more "correct" price for the home. If we get it for the first mortgage only, we're paying less than half of the appraisal cost. We're just going to have to ride out the 6 month redemption period on that second mortgage. And I'm not paying a dime for this house until I know exactly who wants what for it.

 

7. Well, you're mostly right. It's $1500 and it's gone. She spent it. I can sue her in civil court for it because in Michigan, it is illegal for a landlord to abscond with your deposit. To do so, is going to cost me about $3000. Now, there is a treble clause in Michigan so we're figuring out if the way she has stolen the money falls under those statutes and if it does, yes we'll chase her down. But if not, I'm not going to spend $3000 to recover $1500 because she's BROKE. At best, I'll get a garnishment on her Goodwill earnings so in 10 years I'll have my original $1500 back but still be out the legal fees. lol

It'll be an empty victory either way though and we'd be suing her out of spite. Because again, she's got no/hidden her money. So I'm back to garnishing someone who makes minimum wage. I think we should walk away. DH is probably going to sue her either way because of what a JERK she's been.

But once she abandons the house formally, she is no longer entitled to the deposit because we will no longer be renting HER home. The bank deserves the deposit but they have no interest in taking it and assuming a landlord/tenant relationship. They want to be a BANK. :001_smile:

It is a crime in Michigan to steal the deposit too but the prosecuting attorney isn't going to go after her for it. She's BROKE and they have more "real" crimes to pursue.

 

So the gist of my tale of woe is to try to make sure your landlord is on the up and up. My story will probably end up happily ever after because I'm probably getting a great deal on the house and acreage. But whee!!! The drama with the wingnut landlord along the way... If this house wasn't worth it, we'd have been gone long ago.

[Kate CA]

Ouch. You know, some of us on this board are renters, and are definitely not like that. My family is very appreciative of what our landlord has done for us, and we try to get him the rent early whenever we have it, along with making a lot of improvements to the place on our own dime.

 

Yes, many renters suck, but don't dismiss all of us as horrible people.

 

Amen! I completely agree. I am glad my LL doesn't view us this way.

Edited March 30, 2012 by Kate CA

[Annie G]

We've had good tenants and we've had bad tenants. The scale is not evenly balanced between the two.

 

I hope you can raise the rental rates- you've done a stellar job holding the rental rates steady for years. But it's time to raise them.

 

Several years ago we had a property that had a tenant paying significantly less than the going rate for rent- they were good tenants and we didn;t want to lose them. We raised the rates, they were ok with it, and their occasional complaints became easier to take because we weren't constantly thinking that we were undercharging them. Weird, but true.

[PrincessMommy]

Yes. Think very long and hard before you purchase an income property.

 

Seriously. In many cases, the negatives far outweigh the positives.

 

 

my husband and I have considered investing in income property. Are there any good books or websites to educate ourselves?