Impish Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 Our landlord came by last Sun, before we left town for several days. Amongst other issues, he turns to Wolf and says, "There's a can of stain around here for the deck." Wolf replies, "Yes, it's in the laundry room" (Wolf's thinking the guy wants it) Landlord says, "Well, when you have a free afternoon, go ahead and stain the deck." Uh, 'scuse me? Sorry, pal, that's so NOT our responsibility! Then, our neighbours rent from the same guy. He wanted them to a) make plumbing repairs on their own and b) drive 45 mins away to pick up blinds! Wha?! This guy really doesn't seem to have a clue as to what his responsibility is as a landlord. It would totally be one thing if he offered, "If you can stain the deck, I'll take $x off the rent." but to expect us to do *his* maintenance? Or others to run out of town to pick up things for him? I don't think so, Tim. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athena1277 Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 Thanks for reminding me why we live in a rental that is business owned, instead of privately owned. I call the handy maintenance number when something breaks and they come (usually within 24 hrs for non-emergencies) and fix it. Of course they will nail us to the wall if we end our contract early, but I'll deal with that when we finally move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted September 22, 2012 Author Share Posted September 22, 2012 Honestly, we've always rented from individuals, and have had really good, really bad. Nothing in the middle :lol: i'm still boggled that this guy thinks tenants should fetch and work for him for free. No, we pay our rent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieSong Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 We're landlords (only a few properties) and that is just weird. I have had people who wanted a bedroom painted a different color, not because it needed painting but because they wanted a change. I usually tell them I'll buy the paint if they do the painting, as long as it's not a garishly bright color. If it really does need to be repainted, we'll do it. I would NEVER assume a tenant should paint, stain a deck, or do any kind of repairs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssavings Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 crazy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frugalmama Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 I've only rented once in my life, and it was the rental from h*ll. It was from a company, and had several problems including a stove that leaked gas badly, dishwasher broke, fridge broke, and the entire apartment flooded every 28 days. I used to joke it was having it's period :D I was SOOOOOOO glad to get out of there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted September 23, 2012 Author Share Posted September 23, 2012 From the other side--we have three rentals, all under market price and we DO expect our renters to do some upkeep. They aren't paying $1200 a month, which we COULD get, so I don't think it's unreasonable to expect them to do a bit. We actually put our long-term renters (one family's been in that house for 18 years) on the charge account at the hardware store. Occasionally, we'll have new faucet something or a plumbing piece for the pressure tank show up on the bills. We figure David or Dan took care of it. We've gotten the call asking if they can repaint a bedroom. Sure, as long as they don't pick an awful color and they are careful, I'll buy the paint. If we ask them to do a big job such as staining the deck, I'll take it out of their rent. For changing a faucet washer or the element in the stove, no. It's not under market rent. At. All. And the plumbing issue was to do w/the pipes under the sink...the guy went to hand the dh tools and leave. He then got snotty w/them when the dh refused, since the dh had to leave asap for work, not to mention has no clue about plumbing at all. So, yeah, I do think it's unreasonable to be told to paint a deck, or do plumbing. They even expected the neighbours to pay an overdue water bill left from the LAST tenant! Not *their* water bill, but the folks that lived there before them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssavings Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 From the other side--we have three rentals, all under market price and we DO expect our renters to do some upkeep. They aren't paying $1200 a month, which we COULD get, so I don't think it's unreasonable to expect them to do a bit. We actually put our long-term renters (one family's been in that house for 18 years) on the charge account at the hardware store. Occasionally, we'll have new faucet something or a plumbing piece for the pressure tank show up on the bills. We figure David or Dan took care of it. We've gotten the call asking if they can repaint a bedroom. Sure, as long as they don't pick an awful color and they are careful, I'll buy the paint. If we ask them to do a big job such as staining the deck, I'll take it out of their rent. For changing a faucet washer or the element in the stove, no. I think it's different if it is an expected arrangement worked out before. In your situation, your tenants are able to do some maintenance, and as part of their lease do some work in exchange for a lower rent. That's pretty different than having it sprung on you when you're not prepared and haven't agreed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted September 23, 2012 Author Share Posted September 23, 2012 See, we'd never even met the landlord before this. His cousins ran the mobile home park, and just recently sold it. They were the ones we'd been dealing w/. I don't know if this guy is just totally clueless or what, but def seems to have the attitude that he's doing us a favour by allowing us to pay him rent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TranquilMind Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 Our landlord came by last Sun, before we left town for several days. Amongst other issues, he turns to Wolf and says, "There's a can of stain around here for the deck." Wolf replies, "Yes, it's in the laundry room" (Wolf's thinking the guy wants it) Landlord says, "Well, when you have a free afternoon, go ahead and stain the deck." Uh, 'scuse me? Sorry, pal, that's so NOT our responsibility! Then, our neighbours rent from the same guy. He wanted them to a) make plumbing repairs on their own and b) drive 45 mins away to pick up blinds! Wha?! This guy really doesn't seem to have a clue as to what his responsibility is as a landlord. It would totally be one thing if he offered, "If you can stain the deck, I'll take $x off the rent." but to expect us to do *his* maintenance? Or others to run out of town to pick up things for him? I don't think so, Tim. Where do you guys find these landlords? :confused::tongue_smilie: I'd be out there staining the deck myself. I don't even WANT tenants doing work on a house they do not own. They generally do very sloppy work, from what the landlords I know tell me. I have let my best, most careful ones do things, but that is after a long relationship, when I know they will do it correctly. But generally, no. You don't want tenants doing work on houses. And they don't want to work on the house either...that's why they rent! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 One of these days I'll have to retell the story about the crazy landlord I had in college who actually moved into our house with us and then threatened to murder us when I didn't do the lunch dishes right away one day. :glare: And did I mention he had teenage daughters and they were forced to sleep in his bed with him at night? *shudder* Darn near needed therapy after that one. Makes our current landlord and his refusal to fix anything at all seem rather pleasant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petrichor Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 One of these days I'll have to retell the story about the crazy landlord I had in college who actually moved into our house with us and then threatened to murder us when I didn't do the lunch dishes right away one day. :glare: And did I mention he had teenage daughters and they were forced to sleep in his bed with him at night? *shudder* Darn near needed therapy after that one. Makes our current landlord and his refusal to fix anything at all seem rather pleasant. :eek: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joannqn Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 We rent a house through a property management company. (The owner lives in another state.) Our lease specifically tells us not to do any work on the property, but rather call them for repairs. So far, they tend to leave fairly major repairs undone and call incompetent handymen to do the rest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kolamum Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 Where do you guys find these landlords? :confused::tongue_smilie: I'd be out there staining the deck myself. I don't even WANT tenants doing work on a house they do not own. They generally do very sloppy work, from what the landlords I know tell me. I have let my best, most careful ones do things, but that is after a long relationship, when I know they will do it correctly. But generally, no. You don't want tenants doing work on houses. And they don't want to work on the house either...that's why they rent! That's extremely harsh. I mean, considering how many people in two threads state they rent & are most likely not out to destroy homes. I get that landlords see some doozies, but good grief. Perhaps people rent because they can't afford to buy. That doesn't mean they are out to trash the home they live in. A good tenant is one who treats the home they rent the same way they'd treat their own home. Possibly even better, but to accuse them of not caring & doing sloppy work is a tad.. I dunno. Offensive. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted September 23, 2012 Author Share Posted September 23, 2012 I can honestly say we're good tenants. We pay our rent on time, we don't trash the house, anything our kids have done (like Tazzie using lipstick on the wall and our pug when he was a toddler:glare:) we cleaned and repainted. We don't bug the landlord for little things, we take care of them ourselves...stuff like missing doorstops we just put in, little fiddly things like that. New part on the screen door, no prob. But plumbing? Neither of us have a clue. Nor w/electrical. When the element went in the oven, we called the landlord to let them know, Wolf went across the city to get it, and they reimbursed us for the part. It was no big deal. We were in there for 5 yrs. This guy is a whole 'nother ball of wax. I told Wolf there's no WAY he's staining the deck. I have the suspicion that if one of the kids steps or touches it while still wet, the landlord would charge us for the sanding and restaining :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne Rittenhouse Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 I'd consider yourself lucky. In the rental houses in the US, the repairs were done so badly it was less hassle to do it yourself. With our luck, the landlord would come to paint the deck on a day that I'd want to use it for a luncheon party. He's spill the remainder of the stain on the grass and plants and my kid would get into it ruining his clothes, the bedroom carpet and three bath towels in that order. I insist we do all the repairs necessary, I notify the landlord that the problem is taken care of and I don't mention the cost. Even without reimbursement, it is often cheaper than dealing with the landlord if I factor in our time and the other costs of shoddily done work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 As renters we will do some things ourselves. It is just easier than having the landlord or his people in. Dh will fix minor plumbing and electrical. I feel the need to clean the entire house before calling the landlord so yeah, minor stuff we do ourselves. But to be told to paint the porch or stain the deck is another matter entirely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Impish Posted September 23, 2012 Author Share Posted September 23, 2012 I once had a landlord tell me a tenant called him to replace light bulbs (not any sort of special light bulb situation either). Now that's ridiculous. But plumbing/electrical/staining decks? No way. In fact, as a landlord I'd think it would be pretty dumb to not keep on top of those things yourself because you don't know what kind of job the tenants will do (or not do). A botched plumbing job can do some major damage. A tenant above us once decided to re caulk the bathtub. Within a week the landlord had to replace our ceiling in the kitchen. Really...you do NOT want people doing stuff unless you happen to know they are capable. :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee in NC Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 From the other side--we have three rentals, all under market price and we DO expect our renters to do some upkeep. They aren't paying $1200 a month, which we COULD get, so I don't think it's unreasonable to expect them to do a bit. We actually put our long-term renters (one family's been in that house for 18 years) on the charge account at the hardware store. Occasionally, we'll have new faucet something or a plumbing piece for the pressure tank show up on the bills. We figure David or Dan took care of it. We've gotten the call asking if they can repaint a bedroom. Sure, as long as they don't pick an awful color and they are careful, I'll buy the paint. If we ask them to do a big job such as staining the deck, I'll take it out of their rent. For changing a faucet washer or the element in the stove, no. We tend to be that way towards our rental homes, too. Since we are "undesireable renters" (8-9 people, 2 dogs, and a cat) we try to be the best tenants we can be. Why? Either so we can stay without the rent being raised, or so that we have a very good reference when we leave. Most things are not a big deal to fix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee in NC Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 And staining a deck is a pain! We did ours last summer. That was a project. If I were renting...it would have to be one heck of a deal on the rent for me to consider doing it myself. We're going to do it, but it's because I want it done so it looks better.;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeannie in NJ Posted September 23, 2012 Share Posted September 23, 2012 my bil is a landlord and he has also had tenants call him to replace just regular old lightbulbs in regular not hard to reach fixtures. On the other hand, my nephew and his wife rent out their previous house that did not sell. Their realtor convinced them to repaint all the walls of these house beige. This is a Victorian house where all the rooms were all pretty Victorian style colors. The new tenants (which they say are great tenants) immediatly asked if they could redo all the rooms in Victorian colors! Nephew's wife said that tenants did a good job with the painting. They should have charged the realtor for the cost of the paint lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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