Roaches--Who Pays the Bug Man?

Question

One of my tentants in a duplex reported a roach issue recently. I've called an exterminator but I'm wondering how or if I should divide the costs with the tenant. There were no roaches before she moved in (I lived in her unit), and there haven't been signs elsewhere in the building. She said she's noticed bugs in the kitchen before but it just ramped up recently. I wouldn't call it an infestation, but it's certainly enough to cause concern. Below is what my lease says about pests and bugs. How should I handle the costs?

(F)	Tenant shall take any and all necessary actions to keep the Premises free of all pests, including without limitation, rodents, fleas, bed bugs, ants, cockroaches, gnats, flies, and beetles.  If pests infestation occurs due to Tenant’s negligence, Tenant shall pay for all costs associated with remediating pests from the Premises.  Tenants shall inform Landlord at first sighting of any pests in order to avoid any infestation of pests. In signing this Lease, Tenant agrees that Tenant has examined the Premises and certifies that it has not observed any pests in the Premises.

Henry T. · Answer

I once lived in the roach capital of the world. Hawaii. In a apt building. The way you get roaches is by leaving food out. Crumbs, whatever. If you keep things clean you will be fine. I was the only apt without bugs. The nieghbors' bugs used to come thru where the kitchen drains met in the wall. Plug that up and no more neighbors roaches.  In Hawaii its real easy to get roaches if youre not vigilant, In the states you have to be a real super extra slob to get roaches. Commentary aside. As a landlord I give my tenant a spotless place with pride. If they get bugs after that its on them. Unfortunately the City Councils don't see it that way. It seems they write laws stating that we (landlords) are resposible for their mess as long as they occupy. We might as well be responsible to wipe their a** too.  If you really have to get down to it, do an inspection and focus on the food on the floor and countertops and tell them  its not your problem until they learn to clean up after themselves.

Will Fraser · Answer

Exactly my thoughts!  Work your lease, and rest somewhat easier knowing that you have intimate firsthand knowledge of this property up and until the tenant's lease started.

In the future I'd recommend having the tenant arrange for, and then pay, for any pest control that is desired.

Ben Shaw · Answer

@Lucas Dalton it seems you are right. She flat out refuses to pay and is threatening to "enforce her rights" if it goes unresolved. Such a pain. I've always been quick to resolve issues and I've already scheduled an exterminator, so that's covered. Unfortunately, Minnesota law, much like the way my lease is written, leaves gray area that can easily be interpreted to support the tenant in a situation like this. Still, I know the bugs were there for a while without being reported (although, she won't tell me exactly when they started). I'm planning to just drop it for now and pull the costs from her deposit. The kicker is I agreed to pay for half since the house is a duplex and a full treatment was for a whole house, leaving her less than $200 to pay over the course of a year. She's made it clear she refuses to budge.

Lucas Dalton · Answer

That might be a standard lease, but the wording doesn’t look great in terms of preventing conflict. My first thought looking at “If pests infestation occurs due to Tenant’s negligence” is that no tenant is ever going to admit to “negligence” for the simple fact that most people don’t think of themselves as negligent. No one will want to accept that label, so I would expect any attempt to require someone to pay for pest control based on this is going to result in arguments. I'd much rather have something with a concrete, non-debatable standard for determining who pays for what.

Please do let us know if you figure out what "adequate considerations" is supposed to mean in this context. Is she just talking about giving sufficient notice to a tenant prior to inspecting the property or performing maintenance?

Ben Shaw · Answer

Thanks, all! This tenant has been a headache over the last year. She's saying now she cleans regularly therefore she can't be considered negligent, and therefore the roaches are my problem. She said she thinks they were dormant in the house before she got there, which was over a year ago. She also says that such provisions in leases require "adequate considerations," which my lease is not supported by, which doesn't appear to make a lick of sense (my lease is a standard MN lease pulled from Bigger Pockets).

Nathan Gesner · Answer

You have a lease that addresses this, so follow it.

My lease says I will take responsibility for pests for the first two weeks of occupancy. After that, it's a tenant responsibility.

Roaches--Who Pays the Bug Man?

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