Dealing with a tenant as a wholesaler

Dealing with a tenant as a wholesaler

Wholesaler · Dayton, OH · Member since 2016 · 252 posts · 227 votes

I'm sort of cross-posting this from the wholesaling forum to see if the landlords out there have any advice in this matter.

I'm a wholesaler with two properties under contract. Two identical houses that are about 12 feet from each other and basically on the same lot.

One is vacant, and has even been broken into and had wiring and pipes stolen. The other has a renter in it currently. She is month-to-month, so she can be moved out.

The problem is the seller thinks the current renter might have been the one who broke into the other one. At the very least, this tenant is possibly on drugs and I think she's sort of a "risk" for trashing her own house before she leaves if she's unhappy about being forced out. This would result in my end buyer having a trashed and potentially vandalized house, which makes me look bad too.

So my question is, as a wholesaler, how should I handle this? I know it's sort of "not my problem" but I also have a reputation to protect.

What would you do in this situation? Do you have any strategies for reducing the risk that the tenant is going to get mad and trash the place?

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  • Rental Property Investor · Cleveland, OH · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 880 votes
    10y

    Have the seller remove the tenant before you start marketing the contract. Honestly, if you're wholesaling legally in Ohio (which you are, right?) then you aren't marketing the property and just the contract. The tenant is a liability and if they are month to month, then the seller needs to remove them and secure the properties so that they can be sold to someone that isn't going to inherit a headache and problem tenant. 

  • Podcaster & Multi-Family Apartment Investor · Denver, CO · Member since 2016 · 273 posts · 138 votes
    10y
    Originally posted by @Steven Leigh:

    I'm sort of cross-posting this from the wholesaling forum to see if the landlords out there have any advice in this matter.

    I'm a wholesaler with two properties under contract. Two identical houses that are about 12 feet from each other and basically on the same lot.

    One is vacant, and has even been broken into and had wiring and pipes stolen. The other has a renter in it currently. She is month-to-month, so she can be moved out.

    The problem is the seller thinks the current renter might have been the one who broke into the other one. At the very least, this tenant is possibly on drugs and I think she's sort of a "risk" for trashing her own house before she leaves if she's unhappy about being forced out. This would result in my end buyer having a trashed and potentially vandalized house, which makes me look bad too.

    So my question is, as a wholesaler, how should I handle this? I know it's sort of "not my problem" but I also have a reputation to protect.

    What would you do in this situation? Do you have any strategies for reducing the risk that the tenant is going to get mad and trash the place?

     1) you don't look bad because you are selling a fix and flip that needs to be fixed and flipped.

    2) replacing wires and pipes isn't nearly as much trouble as you think it is, and if you have an experienced flipper, they will be able to do this with no issues.

    How to handle it:

    take a deep breath, and move forward, keep everyone in the loop of what has happened (the facts, not the speculation) and let them decide if they want the property. if I was your buyer I'd already be putting in to account how a property could look with a tenant if they move out. Just know that the tenant cant cause too much damage, honestly. I have had tenants pee all over the floors, steal the appliances and all the copper pipes. It's still only a few grand and a couple weeks, to have the carpets replaced,  some appliances delivered, and PEX piping installed, it's no big deal.

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