Raising rent on elderly couple

[Alexander Zurn]

I am a few weeks away from becoming a first time home owner. 3 Unit in Rhode Island. The property contains a 2 unit building and a 1 unit standalone cottage. This will offer a unique opportunity to be a landlord/property manager in a separate building then my tenants. I am certain of the numbers, the zoning, the structure, etc. and have really done my homework (thanks to all of BP!). My question now concerns future tenants.

I was recently at the appraisal and I (unfortunately) was asked to stay on the street while the appraiser did his inspection. During this time one of the tenants in the unit with the highest rent (still below market) really tried scaring me out of buying by bringing up points that I have already factored in and thoughtfully considered. Needless to say, I played it off but still took note of everything he said and triple checked it. All is well! However, during this conversation I was lead to think that it may be wise to raise the rents on this unit first because in reality they may try to do this with future tenants I try to acquire (i.e. speak out against the property, etc.). The only and exact point of raising rent will be to get it up to market value so if the tenants I am speaking of can pay, great! But I have a feeling they cannot. The wife of the couple is very sickly. She has had a tough winter, I know because I have heard stories during inspection, etc. and I have seen the proof of 16 stitches on her head from falling due to high blood pressure. My question is this:

Say I close February 1st, give a 60 day notice of rent raise (more than required) to fair market value (a difference of $300-$400 in what they are paying now) and they decide to leave. What happens if the wife becomes ill during the moving process? Assume worst case scenario, am I legally liable for any illnesses incurred during the moving process? What if she becomes sick and bed ridden during the time they are supposed to move out? My worry of course is that I would that I am responsible because I would be "kicking them out" (Would I be though?) but this could be the non-landlord/business attitude of my speaking and something that I will have to get used to.

[Anthony Thompson]

Alex, I'm not an attorney by any means, but I don't believe you would be liable for any tenant illnesses or health issues.

Also you should know that if the tenants are over 62, or you would have reason to think they might be, you actually must give at least 60 days notice of rent increase (RIGL 34-18-16.1 Rent increases – Notice requirements).

If it were me I guess I'd try to form a good relationship with them at first and try to understand whey they may have wanted to say bad things about the property or current (soon-to-be-former) owner. For example if they felt the owner ignored their maintenance requests, you may be able to start off on a better foot with them by assuring them you will take their requests seriously.

I'd also consider that you may not want a vacant unit in the middle of winter, so if it were me, I'd probably spend the first few weeks getting a sense for these tenants, their issues, etc. and determine if you think they're going to bad-mouth the property/you to others.

I guess as long as they seem like relatively reasonable people (i.e. not hostile), if you still want them to move I'd probably defer to giving them 90 days notice and basically tell them you're giving them more notice than you need to because you want to make sure they have enough time to move.

But also tell them based on how much you paid for the property you absolutely need to raise the rent - it's not a question of your being a nice/mean guy, it's a question of making the #s work so you can afford the mortgage payment.

I'd also consider searching out some community organizations and contact info for the Department of Elderly Affairs and anyone else who might assist older people in finding new living arrangements, and include that as a second page to the rent increase notice.

A lot of questions like this depend on the specifics of the people involved, whether you can build a rapport, understand and possibly address their concerns, whether you think they're acting in good faith, etc.

So it's hard to really give an exact answer but those are some thoughts. And obviously if you're seriously concerned about any potential liability contact an attorney :)

(I'm assuming you've already told the tenants that you'll be the new owner; if not, I'm fond of telling tenants I'm just the property manager and someone else is the owner, so "the owner" can be the bad guy and I can be just another guy trying to do a job for his boss.)