35 years in this business and I cant believe how many times water has made life difficult.

Have had a toilet tank crack (company defect) in the middle of the night and flood all the way into the basement, causing 30,000 in damage. Water seeped UP from the floor after a new floor was poured and caused baseboards to swell so I had to install a 3000 sump pump. Roofer dropped a stick down a toilet vent causing a blockage in the sewer line that cost 2500 to clear (he paid). A well system that gave up the ghost and rotted out, which now needs a new well drilled or a cistern installed (thousands of $$). More than one leak under a sink thats rotted out the counter or ruined the cabinet. Dishwashers that leaked and soaked into the floor below. Kid plugged a bathtub drain that required jackhammering out a concrete floor section to remove the blockage. Toilet leaking that stained the ceiling below. A driveway that sagged on one side and then drained water into the basement. Rotted out window ledges. Mild mold below a shower. Water tank leaking from an overpressure valve that wouldn't close. Toilet that ran for weeks straight before the tenant informed me. A water line into a garage that froze up in winter and then thawed in spring and caused a $600 water bill. Tankless water heater that either doesnt work or is far too fussy to adjust properly...

Its just crazy how many times Ive had to fix things or call out a plumber to repair water issues. If there is one thing Ive grown to despise its water and water issues.

Currently have a rental thats occasionally empty for a week. I now require the tenants to shut off the water before they leave for more than 2 days. Also have water alarms under some of the most likely culprits like toilets. And my leases say that tenants have to inform me of ANY and all water issues immediately.

Whats your water story?

I'm interested to know in what cases landlords hold or take security deposits. What are the things that tenants should take care of to get their security deposit quickly? Any advice you want to give to the tenants as a landlord?

My parents are thinking about selling the second home that they own. Currently there is a couple renting whose lease terminates at the end of July. Originally in mid-April, there were discussions about renewing the lease and my parents expressed that they would offer a new lease. However, my parents have recently changed their minds and want to explore options to sell the house. Next week, I'm scheduling a real estate agent to come over to take a look.

What is the best way of telling the current tenants about the change in current plans? The tenants have been great so far, but I have heard all the horror stories and don't want the situation to become difficult. My parents are amenable to the continued rental of the house on a month to month basis, and are willing to offer two months notice prior to any sale.

So the tenants upstairs asked us if they can have pets last year. We told them no and everything was going fine. The last few days my mom and grandma have been showing severe allergies. My grandma went to the doctor and was told it’s likely cat or dog allergies. So we confronted upstairs. Apparently they have a hypoallergenic emotional support dog who is only there at nights.

I didn’t read the lease so I am not sure if it mentions pets at all. My grandma is also gonna speak to the agent who introduced the tenants tomorrow but that is usually a lengthy process.

Is there anything I could do in the meantime?

Lawyer made me 450 for the Marshall application and then another 150 for the Marshall to come out for the eviction. Has anyone else experienced the same fee structure?

I have a tenant who pays late often without communicating and essentially would not like her to renew. I could raise the rent by 10% (San Diego County limit) but was thinking of sending a notice of non renewal. Some say AB1428 doesn’t allow that but that seems to be just for evictions. Anyone have any idea?

Lease says no nails in wall. They’ve also hung a tv on wall. Obviously changing faucets is not allowed. Is this grounds for eviction? It’s already a breach of contract, for sure.

And I foresee more damage coming in next 6 months; considering they’re always late on rent, what proactive steps can I take?

Will eviction case hold up for negligence?

There’s a lot of background I won’t include or this would be too long. This is a holdover tenant, she signed a 3 month lease with me after I closed with the option sign a 1 year lease at an increased rate after 90 days. (Which she did not sign.) she never paid the rent in April. We sent her a notice to leave by July 31 (30 days after the lease expires). She has not paid rent, but my understanding is I’m not allowed to collect rent since we’re doing a holdover eviction.

She admitted via text the kitchen is full of dirty moldy dishes. I was in the unit yesterday, it’s the same pile of dishes that were sitting there when I closed in March!! (I also looked in the bathroom while I was there and it was gross.) She also smokes in the apartment which is against the lease, but when I was there yesterday she forced me to wear a mask because “she’s sick” and had multiple fans going in the unit circulating air.

I’m concerned she’s going to attract rodents or bugs and affect the upper tenants.

Is there anything I can do? To force her out sooner? To get her to clean? Anything other than cash for keys? (I’ve been already so much money on this house with zero profit from day 1.)

My tenants cosigned a lease through November. They paid on time. One of them has been threatening the other and may have killed their pet. A restraining order has been granted and there is to be no contact for 14 days. I'd like to just terminate this lease at the end of the month and get out. Do I have any legal obstacles? I have it written in my lease I can terminate the lease early for criminal activity.

I stayed at a friend's place for a couple months and didn't sign the lease. I paid a deposit when I moved in and now they won't give it back claiming they are "still looking for a replacement" after I've sent them multiple people that they rejected. They are about to renew their lease and I'm indefinitely waiting on getting my money back. What steps, if any, can I take from here?

We have no contract, just a friend doing a favor by giving me a room. I have text messages that it's a deposit and a venmo transaction (although that just has the amount which was $800) really upset here.

In text, I stated I'd give a 30-day notice before move out and I did that.

Thanks!

I have a SFH rental in TX. The tenant hired someone to mow their lawn, and that person somehow cracked the glass sliding door to the backyard. The lawn person is just some random guy they found and refuses to pay for the damage.

Normally I’d expect for the contractor to pay for damages. But I think it’s unlikely we’d be able to get anything from him. Would the tenant responsible for paying for repairs since they hired the person? Or is it on us to go after the contractor, and if we aren’t able to get anything out of him then it’s on us?

I have a question related to Massachusetts security deposit interest.

It is my understanding that as a landlord in Massachusetts, I am required to hold the security deposit in an interest bearing account in Massachusetts and pay it out to the tenant once a year. In my experience so far, the interest has typically only totaled up to a few dollars per year and most tenants seem to prefer that I keep the interest in the account rather than depositing a check for $3.50. I would also prefer to do this, however if I have a problem in the future and got sued by the tenant I was wondering how much would I be liable for? It seems that most security deposit violations can cost up to triple damages, would that be 3x the security deposit or just 3x the interest, assuming I did everything else correctly?

I've asked other landlords I know and most are either unaware of the law or just don't bother, so I want to make sure I'm doing things right.

Greetings! I am looking at possibly renting out a 2/1 house in a rural Tx area. What would you advise me as a first time landlord to have in the lease, screen tenants, policies you have found beneficial?

Any information on Zillow rental tools?

Anything I should look into adding to the house?

What type of payments do you accept (PayPal cash check etc.)

Anything that surprised you when you first started as a landlord?

Any advice is appreciated!

We're wondering how much to disclose when applying to our new place. What information do agents even ask for? What information is shared between landlords during a reference check?

We have good history prior to our current place. At this place, our landlord is blaming us for water damages because we installed an undersink water filter without asking him, and did a non-renewal when we've only lived here for 9 months. Other units are also causing similar damage to units below without installing water filters, and he tried to sell the whole building recently despite just buying it, but we know it's our word against his. Last time we tried to discuss how it's not our fault and that he could come check himself about the other units having problems he yelled at us over the phone and didn't listen to a word we said. Unfortunately, he's incredibly charming at first.

So, is he going to share the whole sordid story or just say something briefly like "Yeah I wouldn't recommend them, they caused water damage"? Is he just going to provide basic information like always paying rent on time and confirming dates we lived there? Is there anything I can say that would help someone weight our side of the story against his?

My family and I lived in a rental property for about a year. In that time we got a dog. We where completely at fault for damages done. We paid them $3000 plus saw no return on the deposit.

When moving we tried going to another rental property (mostly because we did not want to live in a mobile home/ we did not like the mangement the HVAC had problems for over a year. We left on our own accord it was not an eviction) but was denied because of a the bad reference of our previous landlord and because of the time crunch and the feeling that they would continue to give a bad reference to whichever landlord we would apply to we ended up draining our savings to buy a house.

We are now looking to sell the house and go back to renting since this house is not our forever home and the cost of maintaining a home is different rather than renting.

Our question is if we apply to rental property’s do we disclose the the bad reference/ tell them the story? would potential landlords care? this was two years ago (aug 2021) and our previous address listed would be the house that we owned.

We are concerned that potential landlords would call the old reference and they would continue to give a bad review of us.

Family of 3, we still have the dog.

I’m filling my room for 4 months. I have 2 existing flatmates. Because I won’t be living there does it mean that they are technically “tenants” while I’m gone? I’m just up the road house pet sitting for family while they are away. So may as well fill my room while I’m gone. Just want to know the legality of it all.

I own the home!!

Thank you!!

This is a question for residential landlords in Florida. I recently read that one needs to pay sales tax on the income from rental property and that the sales tax is somewhere near 4%. Is this accurate?

If so, do you pay this quarterly the same way a regular business would pay sales tax?

What other landlord fees are unique to Florida real estate?

I have a tenant who came in through a program and required them to pay weekly. They are off the program and I want to switch to monthly. I would prefer that as well, but I am having trouble figuring out a payment plan to switch. Any advice?

Well folks,

I am looking to start a discussion on the struggles faced by Irish landlords

Particularly around finding good quality tenants.

Collecting information for my university dissertation

As the title says lol I have a tenant that has 4 vehicles. Now, when I rented to them, lease says no parking in the driveway and to not ever block my driveway (I too reside in the home). I took it upon myself as a nice landlord and built 1 parking space for them adjacent to my driveway. Pretty cool right? However, that parking spot has a disabled vehicle. The lease renewal is coming up and I’m trying to figure out if I should continue renting to them.

Lease also states no pets but I let them have pets due to its being an emotional support animal. I know, I’m way too nice but they’ve been good tenants minus blocking my driveway at times and complaining that they have to park far and etc. I know it’s not my problem but just venting…

I do have signs that my driveway is private and violators will be towed.

Tenants utility payment failed. Hopefully not an indication of what’s coming next.

I'm doing some major clean up at my rental property, power washing, straightening out the fences and redoing the driveway and yard but I need advice on the lawn. My previous tenants destroyed the lawn and I need advice on what type of grass, turf etc. I should put down that's low maintenance, long lasting and can survive New England (Massachusetts) weather.

https://preview.redd.it/evviyxje2tzc1.jpg?width=1811&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=bb4f05bd6dd3cbb958a57bb7f3954390f6be7473

Hi,

We have a house in Bryan-college station TX area, I recently got laid off. Wife got a job in Dallas area so we will be moving soon.

Looking to rent or sell the house. With the estimate we are getting to sell the house, we would be selling at a loss after the fees and what not.

For context purchase house in 2021 for 246k (252k after VA funding fees) at 2.35%. 237k current bal. Installed solar panels with 24k bal

Realtor said estimate to sell is 280k with 17k fees and 22k proceeds and taking into account the solar panels. Meaning we will be owing.

Is it better to sell or rent it out? we will be roughly 3hrs away.

If renting is it better to get a property management company or diy? Concerned about maintenance (lawn,HVAC filter change in the attic, repairs etc)...

If Diy, how do we go about it?

If property management what to look out for? What are their responsibilities?

For further context- We are POC.

Thank you in advance.

DISCLAIMER: This is long, but it’s worth the read, and 100% true and ongoing.

I really appreciate medical staff, particularly nurses - their hard work, diligence, empathy, and willingness to fill gaps where they exist.

As someone in education, I often feel as though there’s a sense of community between us in being over worked and underpaid.

This leads me to my dilemma.

I bought a condo during COVID. My roommate had moved out to move in with his girlfriend, my family friend became a realtor, and talking about the possibility of being a homeowner led to searching and searching led to buying - relatively quickly. Six months later, my partner and I decided to move in together to her place.

After letting the condo sit vacant for a few months, I tried Airbnb. This was a no-go with the HOA, so I read the terms, and discovered renting to others was allowed, but had to be 30+ day rental only. With a contract.

So I did that. I researched avenues and listed on Furnished Finder. I’ve been booked, with zero vacancies, since then (Fall 2022). And have had ZERO issues - mainly because I like to work exclusively with travelling nurses. I know they’re clean and thoughtful, rarely even there, and I also feel safe knowing that a professional is staying there.

This has been moderately lucrative. I only charge what is costs me to keep the condo plus ~$200 (mortgage is $1100, HOA is $375 - there’s a pool and I’m in a beautiful and safe part of Charlotte within walking distance of uptown - wifi is $60, electric is about $60 - it is 1br/1ba, free parking, washer and dryer in unit, and all TV subscriptions you can think of) so renter pays $1850 monthly. Rent is due on the 1st but is only “late” (incurring an $80 fee) after the 5th.

I have been putting the extra ~$200 into a HYSA for my son who is also in nursing school (he earned his CNA while still in high school!) and again, as someone in education, I acknowledge how lucky I am to not only save, but to have any property at all.

I ensure that I am the type of person who practices what they preach as often as possible - I have waived late fees, not charged when something is ruined, etc. I once installed a handicap railing in the bathroom for a woman who suffered a concussion while on shift because she was worried about falling in the shower. I intend to always be kind in hopes that maybe cynicism could pause, even just for a second.

My most recent tenant, let’s call her Amy, is from a neighboring state, early 50s, travelling RN, and a grandparent. Of course, I accepted her request for stay, and she moved in on time.

Month 1: She is late on rent for the first month - oddly, this has never been an issue for me before. I tell her not to worry about the $80 late fee and let me know when she can pay. She does, a few days later, and pays me in full (says her paycheck got screwed up with her agency + the hospital). Okay, no big deal, shit happens.

Month 2: She asks for a Mexican restaurant recommendation, I ask her how everything is, and she lets me know that everything is fine but that she feels embarrassed this month because she can only do $1000 now, and needs another week for the $850 (says there are currently "bumps in the road"). This is the second time, and I waived the fee again, but now I’m starting to wonder if this is going to be a pattern.

Month 3: Amy is supposed to move out 5/12 and pay pro-rated rent this month. She texts me and asks if she can move out 5/7, and if I'll prorate the rent - I say of course, happy nurses week, and she talks about how much she loves the place, thanks for being understanding, and I let her know there won’t be a late fee (I felt weird about this, but didn’t want to tack on more when I was honestly unsure I would get any of it at all).

5/5 - I text her a rent reminder, snd she asks for an extension until Thursday for the prorated rent of $418 and says "I know there's an $80 fee and I'm sorry" and I said "let's forget about the fee - how about you throw the sheets and towels in the washer and clean up - nothing too serious - and I'll waive it" she responds "that sounds great, thanks for being so kind" <-- those exact words

5/7 - I let her know to drive safe, no response

5/9 - I send her a reminder that this is when she and I agreed she'd pay the $418, no response

5/10 - I text her again, I call her (probably 10 times) because at this point she's never not responded and she SEEMS like a sweet grandma, close to retirement, who is exhausted and might be having some financial issues. So I go on her Facebook and see if she's literally alive - I message the person she's in a pic with saying who I am, confirming I know Amy (this is my partner’s Facebook because I don't have one), snd that I'm worried about Amy because it's unlike her to not respond and I hope she's okay. I also let her know that I might call wellness check because I’ve never not heard back, and she’s older. This lady lets me know that she’ll message Amy and let me know what she says. Within (literally) a minute, she lets me know she got in touch with her and she’s at home (so, no longer in Charlotte).

So I spend yesterday trying to get in touch with her. I never do. And at this point, I don't know if she's left, but I do know she's okay and I’m starting to realize she left, is now avoiding me, and I likely won’t receive the $418 that she owes. Okay.

So, last night around 10:00PM (again, in education, so I work two jobs), I go to the condo with my partner just to check on things - she's gone - but it is WRECKED y'all.

Chinese food in the bed (how does that happen?) the kitchen caked in grease (every surface - every single one - including the sink), hair (LOTS of hair) all over the tub and in the bathroom, dishes with food on the counter, a weird stain on the couch, anyway, you can imagine.

So I go in the bathroom so start cleaning that first. While I have a crew that deep cleans, I’m a veryyyy clean person and there’s no way I was leaving that night with the condo in the shape it was.

I go to open up the cabinets where spare towels are because at this point I’m going to wash everything, even if it was never used.

I find ... the biggest pad I've ever seen in my life (my partner said they're the kind you get when you give birth and come home) STUCK TO THE CABINET WITH BLOOD ON IT.

A pad. The side of my forearm. Used. Stuck to the top of the cabinet.

HUH?

So I messaged Amy again (still haven’t heard anything) and told her she should be ashamed of herself. I was nothing but understanding and compassionate to her, and she not only stiffed me, but left my place a wreck. I didn’t mention the pad in this moment, but it’s definitely what set me off.

Then, a miracle. She responds.

She lets me know that if I contact her or her friends again (remember the woman I asked if she had heard from Amy because I was worried about her?), that she will sue me for harassment and she doesn’t owe any “alleged debt” <— she uses this phrase

I remind her of the contract and that I have all of our correspondences and text messages. I also let her know that I installed cameras on the exterior of the condo.

She responds “And?”

That’s all from both of us.

So now - this morning - I’m unsure what to do. I know I will not have any money saved this month from her stay, but I also don’t want her to be able to take advantage of anyone like she has me.

I’m going to contact Furnished Finder, but I think other than putting up a red flag on their end, there’s not much I can do.

Any guidance that you all have?

Am I just really lucky it’s taken this long to have a terrible tenant (yes, I screened her credit and background using Furnished Finder)?

Do I just suck it up and deal with the $418 loss?

I recently signed a lease on a new place (Nashville Tennessee), but I want to terminate it before I move in, in 20 days. I would be willing to pay up to 3 months of rent in full--at the amount it was before I negotiated with the landlord for a lower monthly fee....is this enough? My landlord seems like a nice guy when I've talked to him on the phone, I'm just not sure how big of a deal it is. If I have to live there I will, but due to life circumstances it would be better for me to live somewhere else.

We have a tenant that I worry may try to stay past the end of their lease. What steps do I take to make sure they get out as quickly as possible?

I own a property in Atlanta but recently encountered a squatter issue in my New York property. Here's the rundown:

For about a year, my property remained vacant until one day I discovered a young man, 27 years old, had moved his belongings in. He claimed to have signed a lease with an agent who took $17,000 from him. All in all I believe he is lying btw.

Despite trying to establish a legitimate lease agreement with him, he refused. When I involved the authorities, they didn't take action to remove him from the property. I'm seeking advice on how to handle this situation effectively.

Any guidance or legal advice, especially considering l'm based in Atlanta, GA, would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

My friend has an apartment and some of her roommates are moving out. The lease was renewed and my friend is staying and I'm now on the lease in place of the other roommate. The landlord says the deposit carries over. My friend staying, and I will take position of the other roommate. The old roommates are now asking I pay their portion of the deposit before the leases end, and the renewed lease begins. However, I prefer to pay it once I've move in (day of move in) after I get to see the state of the room when I take it over on move in day. When is the appropriate date to pay? Am I obliged to pay ahead of time?

My fear is that if I pay now, any damage done from now until move out, I'm responsible for.

Thank you!