tenant says he is going to call the police on me at 6 PM friday night

[Rochelle Wilkinson]

  If you saw my post last month I recently inherited a 60 unit apartment complex that I am now self managing..ok.. so here in baltimore it is june and temps are running about 85 degrees during the day  and goes down to 69 at night.. it has by no means been a hot summer this year so far..our air conditioning units are about 20 years old and I have had 4 services calls this month about units not working properly.. 2 were in need of freon, 1 need a whole new unit and 1 needs a part they are having trouble getting..all calls have been handled except the guy who needs the part they dont have.. they have said it should be fixed tomorrow.. here is the problem.. I came home to an email that said " if my air conditioner is not fixed by 6 PM I am calling the police on you for endangering our lives" I emailed back and asked if he had recieved the fan i had our handyman dropped off, he said yes.. then I asked if he had opened the windows for air flow.. he said he wouldnt open the windows due to safety issues.. I pointed out that he lived on the second floor and does not have a balcony.. and no one has ever climbed our building and broke in, and lots of people in our buildings have their windows open..his reply was he would not endanger the lives of his family as per someone elses suggestion.. then he sent me a receipt for a hotel an said I would need to reimburse him as they felt they were in jeopardy of heat exhaustion and fled to a nearby hotel.. I looked up the past weeks temps and it has been 85 during the day and 68-69 at night.. and i pointed out that at 69 degrees there would be no need to even run the air..  my question is  " what can the outcome of him calling the police on me have"?  I cant help that they don have the part?? they are very fast compared to other places i called.. all the a/c guys are busy right now..  also on a side note.. what reason/ paperwork do you need to let someone know you will NOT be renewing thier lease.. this is not the first time they have been total jerks.. when i took over my apartments he  was late every month for 6 months, when i went to his apartment and presented him with the late fee bill we argued for over an hour and he even called his wife on the phone and had her arguing with me over the charge..I am done with them.. just need to know i wont spend the weekend in jail.. my 7 years old is in the baseball championships.. thanks in advance..

[Account Closed]

It is not a crime to not provide an air conditioner to your tenant, so you won't be arrested.  The cops probably won't even show up.  If they do, just tell them the part has been ordered, but as far as you know it's a civil matter and the tenant can just sue you, but can't have you arrested.  They'll know this.  Like I said, they probably won't even show up.

I highly suggest you no longer engage with this tenant, other than in writing.  You shouldn't be having arguments with the tenants.  And your communications can normally be done in a small paragraph.

How long have they been without A/C?  Why don't you abate their rent for the days they were without A/C?  In other words, if they were without A/C for 5 days, give them a 5 day rent credit for next month.

But, that's all the court would ask you to do.  You don't have to pay for hotel rooms.

And why don't you buy a couple portable A/C units you can loan to tenants when this happens?  Have them sign a receipt that says the value of the unit on it, so if they decide to try and steal it, you will have a written receipt with their acknowledgement of the value - so you can charge them for it if you have to.

 I would completely ignore his threat to call the police.

Also, I suggest you do not give him notice to move until the notice time frame in your lease.  If you give notice now, it will look like a retaliatory eviction, which is when you kick out a tenant after they have exerted a right.  He is asking for you to fix the A/C, which he has a right to.  If you kick him out now, he may win a claim for retaliatory eviction.  So, wait to give notice of non-renewal until it's required.

As far as the weather outside - landlords who have contracts that they will provide air conditioning, don't get to tell the tenant when it's needed.  If they want to chill the place down to 55 degrees, that's their right.  Unless your lease says otherwise, and they agreed to it.  The issue here isn't what the weather is outside, it's the time it's taking to repair an a/c unit, that is part of the agreement you entered into with a tenant.  He rented a place with air conditioning.  So, that's what you have to provide.  And you need to fix in in a reasonable time frame.

But, I'd send a short email to the tenant like this.

Dear Tenant,

As you know, there has been a delay in acquiring the part for your air conditioner.  I have been told that your air conditioner should be repaired tomorrow.

I realize this has been inconvenient for you.  And although Florida law only requires me to make repairs within a reasonable time, which I have been attempting to do, I am willing to give you a rent credit for the days that you have been without air conditioning.  I will get back to you with the exact amount you may deduct from next month's rent.

Also, if the unit cannot be repaired tomorrow, I will provide you with a portable air conditioner to use temporarily.

Please be aware that I am not required by law to do this much, but I am willing to do this to show my good faith effort to take care of this problem.   If you seek reimbursement beyond this, you will have to look to your renter's insurance policy.

Sincerely,

You

Something like this, is what I'd do.  Good luck.