Ex PM Nightmare!

[Lindsay Repp]

So a little background i recently closed on my first multifamily. it will be owner occupied as soon as the previous PM moves out (given to the end of aug) when I took over I sent a letter to all tenants explaining I would be taking over management and to bring all maintenance issues to me. Two of the units are occupied by a handicap housing company which i also spoke to the people in the office explaining my new role. This evening i got a phone call from one of the caregivers in the handicap units saying the ceiling caved in. she said she didn't know if i was aware but there was a leak and now the ceiling has fallen. When i get to the unit to assess the damage and speak to the caregiver she explains that her manager in the offices called the previous PM and he told her there was nothing he could do without my permission. Yet he never informed me. Sorry to kind of ramble but what I'm getting at is, does the cost of this mess get eaten by myself or am i able to go after one of the other 2 parties for neglecting to inform me of an issue. Had i known about the leak when it started 3 days ago I might not have been picking up the ceiling off the floor.

[Mark Brogan]

ah the joys of landlording 
i dont know the laws in your state but i imagine it would be on you 
contact a good realestate attorney in your area and ask 
good luck 

[Joel Owens]

Lindsay did you have a written agreement with the past PM where they are representing you and you are paying them??

If not and they represented the previous owner only then it sounds like you have no recourse against them.

Prior to closing you should have sent out ownership change and new contact info to all tenants. They would then know to contact you versus the old PM.

This is going off of the very limited information you have given. Now you must decide if you want to file an insurance claim or just come out of pocket. For instance if deductible to fix is 1,000 and bill is 1,500 you might want to just pay cash so your insurance rates do not go up and you have a claim on record. If damages are really high above the deductible then you might want to file but know the insurance will always try to disallow the claim altogether or minimize payout.  

No legal advice given. 

[Lindsay Repp]

I appreciate your help! @Joel Owens no the previous pm does not represent me and I did send out a letter to all tenants when I took over with contact info and to come to me with any issues. once I have the ac unit looked at I will decide which route to take. Thank you for your input @Mark Brogan! 

[Max T.]

Did you have an inspection done during your due diligence period? If so, did this issue not show up then?

If the answer is no, then it sounds like this issue came up after the seller provided their disclosure. I bet you are going to get stuck with this one. Fix the leak right away. The rest is just clean up. Good luck!