Landlord rights on a inherited lease

[Aman Kaur]

So we have a tenant that we inherited who is paying minimal below market rent for almost 3000 sq.ft. They do not pay anything towards utilities, taxes, maintenance etc. We have taken over the property and looking to make changes.  Ofcourse the tenant wont agree with raising rent or pitching in for utilities etc especially when their lease doesn't require them to till 2023.  Should I consult a attorney and get him/her involved.  Its too long of a course for me to wait around and take the loss. Please provide your thoughts. Thanks. 

[Cason Acor]

I don’t see how an attorney can help you. You may not have been the one to sign the lease with the tenant, but when you inherited the property, you did so subject to the current lease whether you like it or not. You cannot change the terms of the tenant’s lease without their consent until it expires. 

If you want to make changes to the lease before it is up, you’ll have to offer some sort of concessions to the tenant; free rent, tenant improvements, etc. Or you could just offer to buy the tenant out of their lease entirely. That’s obviously the most expensive option. And again, all contingent upon the tenant’s consent.