HELP: Evicting a Disabled Veteran

[Jeff L.]

Howdy BP!

I have a huge dilemma I could use you help with.

My question is this: How can I get rid of this tenant?

Over the weekend I had an inspection done on a property (duplex) I have under contract in Colorado Springs. During the inspection, we had trouble getting into one of the units because the tenant, a disabled veteran who has lived in the property for 8 year, was giving me and the inspector a lot of trouble.

We finally got in, and the bones of the unit are 100% solid, but the tenant absolutely must go for this to be a successful deal. While the meth test came back negative, it is very apparent that there is something illegal going on in the house. There are weapons lying around, marijuana everywhere, all the windows are covered, he has cameras outside the house, ect. Not to mention he is an absolute hoarder. We could not even walk into some of the rooms because of all his junk.

How can I get rid of this guy before the deal closes? I'll be speaking with the seller tomorrow, who is already aware and warned me of the issue.

Can I request that the tenant be evicted before closing on the deal? Can I pretend that I am moving into that unit and ask him to leave? The last thing I want to do is upset him, because he is a rather scary individual. What would you do in this situation? Do you know if there is red tape around landlording disabled veterans?

Any advice you have would be hugely appreciated. Thank you all in advance.

All the best,

Jeff

[Jeffrey H.]

It's the Seller's decision whether to evict prior to close, and only he can do that.  You can ask him to non-renew Tenants (hopefully) month-to-month lease and can extend the closing until that happens.  Or the Seller may tell you he is not going to do it, and that's your problem.

At this point you have to decide if this is something you're comfortable doing - are you okay to non-renew this guy's lease and if he doesn't leave to then evict him?  Are you okay for this to potentially take 3 to 6 months (depending on the friendliness of your landlord laws) of your time at the purchase price you have negotiated, or do you need to ask for the Seller to make a concession to take care of this burden?

A final tip - don't ever provide a reason for non-renewal.  It can bring legal problems along with it.  Just non-renew the lease and provide the state required amount of time to vacate the property.

[Bill S.]

@Jeff L. there are a couple of issues.

1) is the tenant on a lease? If so you and/or the current owner must let the lease run it's course. The only other option is to evict for a violation of the lease. Please note evictions for violation of the lease are difficult to win. It can be done but the courts don't like to do it and if the tenant fights it, the process can drag out for months.

2) if the tenant is on a month to month then you or the current owner can give notice according to the written agreement that is in place. Usually it is the case that the lease reverts to month to month after the initial term expires. This is not always the situation so read the agreement. 

So why do you think the place is for sale? I know why. You should definitely get some concessions to get this situation addressed if he is still in place when you obtain ownership. If you make the current owner get rid of the guy it will drag out the closing at best and may make the deal fall apart. You have to decide what you want to do on that front.

If it were me, I would get a concession of something like $10K and get the guy out after I purchased it. I would start with $20K reduction for negotiations. If it ended up that the property came with him which I think it will.

I would probably take the following tract. It would raise rent in $100 increments until it was at least $100 above what I thought market would be for that unit completely rehabed. Then I would match the market increase each year. I would get him set up on automatic debiting service from his bank account so that it could all be handled remotely. I would put a new MTM agreement in place. After that I would collect rent until he dies.

If I thought I needed to get rid of him but had some time, I would increase rent until he moved. Say $100 a month to start then after 6 months another $100 until he gets the idea and moves on his own.

I might also get the VA involved and see if they could get him relocated peacefully.

Lastly if I absolutely had to have him out, I would hire a large law firm specializing in evictions to do all the noticing, and carry out the process. Definitely share with the sheriff the situation with the tenant (guns and drugs) if it comes to a set out.

You clearly what him gone but long term paying tenants are the things that real estate wealth is built on. Him collecting his stuff and doing legal MJ and owning guns is not necessarily a bad thing so stop and think about this real hard. Just because he doesn't meet your standards doesn't mean he has to go. Don't get hung up on having nice property, get hung up on having paying tenants. This one doesn't seem like he is going to go anywhere soon so why not roll with it and cash the checks?

My first multi had a guy similar to this in it. I should have at least left him in place until I got the rest of the building whipped into shape. Knowing what I know now, I would have taken my first suggestion and he was much worse than what you described. 

[Bill Hamilton]

Sorry. I don't see how you can leap to the conclusion that "it is very apparent that there is something illegal going on".  The man is a veteran. Meaning he is probably comfortable with firearms and is expressing his 2nd amendment rights. Marijuana is legal in Colorado. Would you have the same issue if he had beer bottle caps laying around or a keg in the garage? Cameras and covered windows. Entirely possible the he is a little paranoid or has PTSD. Unless he is doing something you can prove is illegal then his lease stands as is. Why do you feel "the tenant absolutely must go for this to be a successful deal"? I am not saying you are wrong but you haven't given a reason why this is so. If his presence is keeping you from doing something that is needed to transform the property into what you want, then go with what @Bill S. is saying. Wait out the lease and simply choose not to renew. P.S. you are going to run into a huge number of veterans in Colorado Springs and I honestly feel the issues you see from this tenant, are things you will run into from time to time in that city. Also, keep in mind that Colorado Springs is a rather smaller community and fiercely military, and very supportive of veterans. If the press gets hold of a story that spins you as anti veterans, you will have a hard time doing business there.

If any of this makes you uncomfortable, you may want to consider sticking to investing in the Boulder/Louisville area where you are far less likely to run into this type of tenant.

Best of luck with whatever you choose to do. I think it's important to comfortable with both the area you invest in and the clientele you are likely to deal with.

[Chris Mason]

This dude sounds like... I dunno, 20% of my fellow combat vet buddies?

Men like their toys. For some it's cars, for vets the toys are often guns and a healthy dose of freedom.

If my wife didn't keep me in line, I'd probably tack black sheets up instead of having purchased blinds to be honest, in those parts of the home where guests will not see. When I was doing the Marine Embassy Guard thing and had crazy hours, the priority was keeping sunlight out, no matter how it looked. When it's Saturday AM and I want to sleep in till noon, I still miss my thick black sheets and dislike my wife's "but it looks nice" option!

Owning guns is a pain in the butt in CA, so I'm relatively light on the guns but have various bladed instruments staged about our home (that I own, obviously).

The hoarding is the only thing you described that strikes me as unusual.

This dude probably wants to do what is expected of him, which is not causing permanent damage to the property and pay his rent on time, in exchange for basically being left alone to quiet enjoyment of the unit. There's no reason to think that he's up to no good.

Good news is that this dude's not going to be high maintenance in terms of "waaah change this lightbulb" or "the door is squeaking." He will change his own light bulb and use gun oil (which is better than wd-40 btw) to lubricate the door hinge. 

[Jeff L.]

All -

I can't tell you how much I appreciate you responses. My apologize for the delayed response - closing this one has been a bit hectic

@Jeffrey H. Really appreciate you weighing in. The seller has elected to evict prior to closing. There is no lease in place, not even month-to-month, and there never was, which simplifies the process. Great advice on never offering a reason for non-renewal. That will surely avoid some headaches down the road.

@Bill S.As always, thank you sir, for your valuable insights. The tenant is not on a lease and has not been for 7 years. The seller has elected to evict and worked with an eviction lawyer to serve a notice. Court date is this week, so we'll see if he shows. Hopefully the rest of the process goes smoothly so I can close and turn the property over. Like you said, I'm risking the deal falling apart, but hope it doesn't come to that. In retrospect a concession may have been a good call. I will certainly get the sheriff involved when that time comes. Turns out there was a ring of theft attached to the tenant and the property... it had become a 'chop shop' in a way. In any case, your point about paying tenants made me think long and hard. Only time will tell what the best decision actually is. Per your comment, I did get the VA involved and they are supporting his relocation. For now, I'm happy to have the seller paying for the court proceeding instead of me. Once he's out, I'll have piece of mind, but won't have a tenant. A bit of a double edge sword. Plan is to turn the property around and get it rented ASAP. Thanks again for all your help!

[Jeff L.]

@Bill Hamilton Thanks for the thought provoking questions. I am originally from Colorado Springs, lived there for 18 years, and my family still lives there, so I have a strong level of familiarity and comfort with the market and the tenant base. Without going in to too much detail, we now have confirmation that there was illegal activity taking place in the form of theft and harboring of stolen goods. I do appreciate the devils advocate perspective, and had to challenge my thought process several times before proceeding. If you're curious about the status of the deal, see my response to Bill S above. Thanks again!

@Chris Mason You're response gave me a good laugh. I enjoy your perspective, and agree. We were able to confirm illegal activity, and to your point, it was linked to the apparent "hoarding". All of the goods he was storing were stolen, so needless to say the seller has processes with eviction. I really appreciate your two cents, and will keep this in mind as I encounter more veterans in the CS market. Thank you sir.

[Jana Prevatt]

I'm with Bill Hamilton on this post, though the realtors & others have their own professional opinions & insights. I suppose the pros have their reasons as they wanna make their money, & profit off of any method they can use. 

But this is a Veteran you are dealing with. You have to abide by Colorado's Vet laws. If you don't, or if you don't follow both state & federal law, regarding former soldiers, then you run the risk of heavy duty lawsuits over housing rights, do you not? 

It is advisable not to break leases early, or both landlords AND tenants lose available funding or benefits.  But I am just speaking as a caregiver for a Veteran, not as a Real Estate professional. This veteran (my longtime beau & I are living with currently) is a Retired Marine going thru major health battles, who has mobility issues & can't really do any major or minor chores or heavy lifting. His health is heavily compromised, the local agencies are not helping him much(who he uses for medical, food or moving needs) & he has much trouble getting around. My mate & I are helping him out with the cooking, cleaning, chores, errands, shopping, laundry, & hauling needs... but we can't do much else.  Now it's our turn to move again. His landlord is giving him grief for the similar things @Jeff L. describe. His landlord also broke his lease 10 days early, aiding other agencies helping him out to withdraw their assistance. So now we are possibly screwed in terms of getting help paying for another place to rent. Not necessarily our fault, or the leaser. But it is what it is. However, nothing illegal is happening at all, & all rents & bills are paid on time. 


I would think this Veteran guy in CO is probably dealing with similar situations. Take it easy on him, but still encourage him to do whatever he must to keep his housing. Thank you for reading =) 
#HousingFirst #DisabledVets #HousingRightsUS 

[Jana Prevatt]

Also @Chris Mason yes agreed about the Vet wanting their privacy & quiet environment where they are wanting just to be left alone as much as they can stand it. If they request assistance, then OK go ahead & offer some, otherwise butt out! Right? Let them pay their bills & live their life how they want to. As long as no harm done to anyone else -- who really cares about the lifestyle? 

Our head of household is an insomniac with PTSD, brain & spinal injuries, various other chronic pain probs that run major interference with life & everyday activities. He is up most nights but sleeps a lot during daylight hours. So we can relate there. =)