Can't make tenant happy.

[David Albertson]

I'm to the point that I'm not sure what to do so I hope some of the more seasoned Landlords can help me with this. Not that it makes a big difference but this is a lower income rental house.

I have a tenant that has complained from day 1. In the very first week she complained that there was a "rotten egg smell" coming from the ductwork. I checked it out but could not smell anything out of the ordinary. The house had been vacant for a few weeks so I told her that after a few days of running the AC the smell would probably go away. A week or two later she calls again. This time she says it's the refrigerator that smells. I go check it out. This time I take my wife. We couldn't smell anything "fowl" or "rotten" as she described. As I was looking under the refrig to see if something was in the drip pan I got shocked when I touched the coil. Obviously there was a ground fault in the refrigerator so I replaced it. Everything was fine for a few weeks. Then she calls again. The smell is gone but the house had been broken in to. One of the windows was broken and they stole some jewelry and vandalized her furniture. I call the window guy and get it fixed. She tells us she doesn't feel safe living there. I tell her there's nothing I can do about that. Again were good for another week or so. Then she calls and the AC isn't working. I go check it out. All of the sudden the AC is low on freon (it's worked great for the year and a half I have owned the property). I call the my AC guy. He comes over and checks it out. The unit is old so we decide to replace it as it's part of my investment. Now, were good again, for a week or so. Today she calls, this time the toilet is plugged up, the smell is back and she had to take her daughter to the ER because of an asthma attack. She claims there is mold in the basement. Once again, I go check it out. There is no fowl smell. The basement is bone dry (it does get some water during heavy downpours but today it was dry as can be). There is no mold and no possible way there could be mold because the only wall that isn't concrete is built on top of a 4" concrete curb and can't get wet unless we get a major flood, which we didn't. We took pictures of everything (the tenant wasn't there). I go upstairs to fix the toilet. There is a plunger, the lid to the toilet tank and a snake sitting in the hallway. It almost seemed staged. Sure enough the toilet was plugged up. I used the plunger and had it cleared in 5 seconds. We flushed the toilet 3 or 4 times while we video taped it. It was working fine. We go home. We call her to tell her that we fixed the toilet and scheduled an appointment with a foundation contractor to take a look at the water seepage problem. She's home from work now. She says the toilet is still plugged and is still overflowing. I've had about enough if this crap. I think all of these "problems" are bogus. I think she is intentionally plugging the toilet, I think she intentionally let the freon out of my AC. I think the smell is something she is making up. I don't know what her problem is but I'm not sure what to do here. We are almost 3 months in to a 1 year lease. I think I'd be better off with this %^&$#! lady gone but right now is not a good time to find tenants as school has just started. What do you all think?

PS - One more thing. We got a notice from the city because some bushes in the backyard are "overgrown" and need to be trimmed. Hummm. I wonder who called?

[Ralph S.]

I'm in Tim's camp on this one, but I wouldn't throw out the baby with the bath water just yet. There is a silver lining here, and that is she is reporting some legit items like the AC and fridge, she's just gone too far and you both need an education in who's responsible for what. That's better than the tenant that doesn't report the roof leak until the ceiling falls in!

She needs to know you're not at her beck and call. Renting and old house comes at a price, and she's not paying for and should not expect to treat the landlord as a free "rent a husband," only for legit landlord needed repairs. I would take every one of her complaints to date, and review each one with her. Thank her for letting you know about the fridge and AC. The toilet should be charged for. The bushes should be charged for, and wasted trips to check out bogus claims should be charged for. Explain that the broken window and other damage from the break in is not your responsibility, and if she wants to get renters insurance, that is her choice. She needs to understand that wasting your time costs her money. At the same time, she does need to report problems that you should address.

Seems neither of you have a clear understanding of which is which.

If such language is not in the lease, check with the local housing authority. You may find some good landlord-tenant guidelines, or even something on how the courts interpret landlord - tenant responsibilities. Share these with her, and explain that just because they aren't spelled out in the lease, they still apply.

My take is that you may have a diamond in the rough. So many low income tenants are afraid they'll get charged, or that the LL will require discover something they did do, that they don't report problems and additional damage results. I think you have an opportunity, through education, to save this one. Considering the cost of a vacancy, it's worth a try. She could also be just a little whacko, however, and you'll have to make that call.