Eviction & PM conflict

[Michell P.]

Hey all, 

Question on how you would handle this - 

We have a HUD tenant who is 2 months behind on rent. Had to pull teeth with the PM at the end of November to find out what was going on, and he finally ended up posting a 72 hour notice on 12/2. So now they are late for November & December - they're supposed to pay half of their rent while HUD pays the other half.

So, when we first talked to the PM he said they had mailed a $100 money order, but that appears to be false.  He said they were going to court for disability and were going to pay us then, but that seems to be false.  He said he'd be willing to file after the 72 hours were up, and now that the 72 hours are up, he refuses, and instead says we should put together a payment plan with them before going to court so we can show we tried working with them.  

He's now saying that b/c these tenants are 2 women with an infant and a 2 year old, the judge will most likely let them stay maybe up to another month to give them a chance to find somewhere else to live, and during that time, they'll be withholding rent, so it's in our benefit to wait and see if we can't get them to pay.  

I've never gone through eviction court before, but the advice here seems to usually be "72 hours and you're out."  

So, what do you think? Is getting a payment plan a good idea, or are we just being strung along by both the PM & tenant?  (And we're letting the PM go at the end of this month, 30 day notice is up in less than 2 weeks - probably part of the problem :/ )

[Marcia Maynard]

1. If you had to "pull teeth" with the PM to get them to give you the information you seek and to act responsibly, the business relationship is not working. Where is the mutual respect that a good business relationship should have?

2. If the tenant is on a HUD rental assistance program, such as the Section 8 housing voucher program, it is most likely being administered by your local housing authority and the tenant most likely has a case manager. If that is the case, the case manager (or other such person in the administration office) needs to be apprised of the situation. If a tenant doesn't pay their portion of the rent, they are in jeopardy of losing their housing voucher. This is one of the strongest incentives for tenants to pay. Case managers sometimes will work with tenants to get them to fulfill their obligations and get back on track with paying their portion of the rent.

3. The PM appears to be relaying excuses from the tenants and/or creating excuses for himself. The whole paragraph about the PM's reason for not serving the 72 hour notices (Pay Rent or Quit) in a timely manner and his reasoning for wanting  you to establish a payment plan with the tenants points to his incompetency. When I read that, I thought... smoke screen... drama... bunk!

4. The PM is wrong about the court and how judges handle evictions for non-payment of rent. Judges follow the law. You need to know and understand landlord-tenant law for your jurisdiction and any PM of value need to know and understand landlord-tenant law too, as well as best management practices. If the PM knows you are letting them go at the end of this month, they don't have much incentive to do the right thing. Single moms with young children can be evicted if they are not paying rent, just as any other tenants can be. They are not a class with special privileges. People with disabilities can be evicted too if they do not abide by the terms of the rental agreement, if the rental agreement is not violating any fair housing laws/disability rights laws.

5. If I were you, I would take this into your own hands and seek out the support and services of someone who is qualified. Where is this rental property? Is it in Portland? If so, contact the Rental Housing Association office in Portland, for resources. Serve the proper notices and contact the case worker for the HUD program. There may be a way to save the tenancy, but not by using the formula proposed by your PM.

6. The serving of the 72-hour notice is the first step of an eviction process. It is not "72 hours notice and you're out." There is a legal process that must be followed. If you don't, the tenant can easily seek the services of a housing advocate and prevail in court. 

7. Be careful about how you go about this. The health and well being of the families residing in your property is at stake. Going into the holidays, everything takes more time. You may be able to successfully work with your tenants. It starts by being firm and fair. Seek a win-win. Right now, they need to pay the rent and if they don't have the money, they need to get money from elsewhere. They may be able to tap family and friends, or they may be able to garner support from local social service agencies in the area. You and the tenants need time to sort this out and much time has been wasted by how your PM has handled this. 

8. Agencies that provide emergency rent funds typically require the applicant to provide proof that their rent is in arrears and that they are facing eviction. To do that, they will ask the tenant to show them the 72-hour notice from the landlord that verifies the amount of rent past due and that the eviction process has begun. The agencies who provide emergency assistance typically will not provide more than one month of rental assistance. So at a minimum, the tenants need to pay the rent for November. If they do and if they are actively working with an agency to cover rent for December (verify this), you may want to be flexible and work with them. It could result in a good outcome. However, if the root cause of why the tenants did not pay the rent is because they can't afford to live there (their ability to pay rent in the future is not sustainable), then they need to move.

9. Vacating in December could be bad for all parties. Presently, there is a housing crisis in the Portland Metro area. There is a lack of affordable housing and the shelters are at capacity. Even if you offered "Cash for Keys", they may have no where to go. Tenants who have no where to go are likely to holdover, even after the court rules in the landlord's favor for eviction and they are likely to stay until the sheriff forces them out.

10. Verify everything the PM has told you and check utility records too. Often tenants stop paying for utilities before they stop paying rent. It is time for a property inspection... do a maintenance inspection and keep an eye out for other lease violations. This may be the tip of the iceberg. Or you may meet the tenants and find out they are able to pull themselves out of this with a little guidance.

11. Sorry you're experiencing this. I've shared a lot of information here; it may seem overwhelming. It takes work (commitment, time, knowledge and energy) and the right attitude and aptitude to be a successful as a landlord and successful in this business. :-)