Tenant moves in and the 2nd day wants out of lease!

[Brian Johnson]

So I find a tenant that appears to be pretty level headed. He works and takes care of his disabled mother. So we walk thru the unit and he likes it and wants to rent it. So make a long story short we sign the lease and I give him the key and he starts moving in. The next day I start getting these text messages complaining about little things. I tell them that I will be over the next day and take care of anything they need and to make a list so I can check them off. So the next day I come over and they have the refrigerator pulled out along with the stove saying it is dirty behind them. They also mentioned a couple other things. So I have my tool box and start on making the adjustments.

From the lease signing and texting I have never met the mother until I walk the door to do the repairs that next day. When I first meet her she starts complaining about the cabinets been to outdated and ugly I tell her they are old but they are functional. Then she talks about the floor in the living room. She tells me “do you know these are not real wood and that you can't say they are real wood?” I tell her I never said they are real wood. So at that point I try to avoid her and make the repairs but she keeps barking in my ear about the cabinets being to outdated and that she can't live with this. Then she comes out with this craziness that really makes my blood boil and is the breaking point for me. She said that they want out of the lease if I don't replace the cabinets and they will sue me in court. (she said she knows a judge) So I stop doing the repairs and pack my stuff up. I tell her I will be happy for them to move out and to please go. We have some words with each other and I leave.

I fill a 7 day notice and text the son to come out so I can hand him the 7 day notice. He tells me he is sorry and his mom is on lots of meds. He also tells me that they used all the money they had to pay me and move into this unit. I tell him that is not my problem and she should have thought about that before threatening me. I tell him that I will give him some of the rent back depend on how fast they can move out. The less days they stay the less it cost them for the rent per day. He also did not pay me the other half of the deposit which I was going to collect that day upon agreed when he got payed that day.

So after all this did I forget any steps to start the legal system? Should I come up with a lease termination letter and make him sign it. Keep in mind that He did not give me all the agreed amount of money. He is on the lease she did not sign it. As we are talking about it he is desperate in trying to talk me out of it. He is getting emotional and starts telling me he got a letter last night that the company he works for might lay him off. So I am thinking WOW!! How did I screw up so bad on this screening process??

I need some advice on this very unusual situation that I have never encountered.  Did I say this is crazy?

[Darren Sager]

@Brian Johnson it seems that you broke a few unwritten rules in taking in a tenant.  First off did you do a credit and background check?  Secondly why did you let them into your unit without adhering to the terms of your lease from the get go, of which the very first one is paying you the money that is due upon moving in.  Secondly all adults living in the unit need to be on the lease and sign it.   I don't give tenants the keys until all the steps are taken and the very first one is them paying.   

I think you came across any situation that could be part of a professional tenant's repertoire (even though they might not be one).  Still you need to protect yourself from allowing such situations to happen.  Create rules and stick to them.  If you do the chances of getting into this type of situation in the first place should be vastly reduced.  

And always pull our your fridges and stoves and clean behind and under them every time a tenant moves in and out.   This is one place I always take pictures of before the tenant moves in to show it's spotless.   And when they wonder why they get charged for cleaning the place after they move out I show the before and after pictures.