Dogs Making House Unrentable

[Pawel N.]

I'm renting a house to a group of guys in a college town. I've never had issues with them over the last two years. Rent is always on time and communication has been good.

The house has an upstairs and a downstairs. They are moving out in July and I went over to check out the property this weekend. They have two dogs that they keep downstairs and the smell in the lower level is terrible. In addition to that, there are major stains on the floor (from the dogs knocking things over and spilling them, but maybe also from the dogs themselves).

This makes the whole house seem really trashy and thus borderline unrentable.

The carpet needs to be replaced and I need to do something about that smell before I can show it to potential tenants. Right now is the time people are looking for housing for next school year.

What is my best option?

[Marcia Maynard]

Depending on the size of the house and the extent of the damage, plan on spending a chunk of change. 

Before they move out, secure payment for the damages. The best practice is to charge for damages as they occur or as you discover them. If you wait until move-out and expect to use the security deposit to cover the damages, you will discover it won't be enough. Trying to get money from a tenant after they're gone is often futile.

I would schedule an inspection of the entire premises as soon as possible. Ask them about the damages and what caused them. This will give you helpful information so you can document the damage and choose the most appropriate cleaning remedy. If there is dog urine, don't be surprised if it seeped through the carpeting, to the carpet pad, or even to the floor underneath. If dog urine seeped into hardwood floors, it may result in a dark stain that could be permanent. If urine stains go deep enough, even sanding and refinishing may not help.

Get a bid from a reliable contractor for the cost of doing all the repairs necessary to bring the house back into the condition it was prior to renting to them. Subtract for ordinary wear & tear. 

Estimate the ordinary life of the carpet (varies depending on quality and number of people in the residence) and adjust the replacement cost accordingly. For example, if the carpet was new when they moved in and they didn't live there for a long time, then it should have had many more years of life in it. Charge for the years of life that you are losing due to the tenant's negligence which resulted in the damage.

Use the "Search BiggerPockets" box to find many forum threads about cleaning up after dogs, cats, pets, etc.  Try "dog odor" or "pet odor". Lots of good discussions on what to do. Good luck!