OOS landlord - need advice on tenant issues

[Sean Pat]

Hey Everyone,

My cousin just told me about this blog and I am hoping someone can help or advice for my situation.

I am relatively inexperienced landlord. I wanted to start small and gain some experience, so I purchased my first unit with a partner - 3 BR, 2BA condo and rented to this lady for about 4 years. Half way through it we both had to move to different states for work so we became OOS landlords. Issues started in the 3rd year - which were minor annoyances. But in the last year things just went to a completely different level. They kept getting into trouble with the condo association over various things. Her new husband (who is not on the lease) got into a fight with some neighbors, allegedly the provoked neighbors threw a stone at the window and broke it. They wanted me to pay for it. As we were arguing about whose fault it is, they filed a complain with the village, inspector basically said I don't care who pays for it or whether it comes out of the deposit but as a landlord you have to upkeep the property, so we had to fork the cash to get it fixed at that time.

I have a guy that did basic property management (not a contracted property management company) for me - collect rent, fix small issues etc. because I am out of town. After that experience, I pretty much told them that their lease wont be renewed.

There were other issues such as - habitually paying rent late, paid late fee on some occasions, completely disregarded all other notifications for late fee on the rent etc.

The notice that was sent to them said on the title of the document "30 day eviction" We gave that to them beginning of May (60 days before). But the date of vacating the unit - was listed as June 30th when their lease was set to expire anyway.

The good news is they finally left. They took it upon themselves to pay only up to Jun 14th rent when the lease was expiring on Jun 30th. However, they did not return the keys until Jun 19th. They just dropped them off at the onsite condo association office. Of course they left the place in a horrible state, I couldnt believe people can actually live like that.

My first experience has been bad enough that I want to just sell and get out and not do this again. Hopefully this is just a frustration that I will get over and learn and do better next time. This is cash flow positive property and our return is about 12% every year.

Here is where I need help -
1. We did not return the deposit - when we added the damage, unpaid rent, broken window issue and late fee on rent - it exceeded the amount of the deposit.
2. They never left a forwarding address to send a statement of charges to.
3. 48 days later I get an email from her stating her deposit is not returned and she will pursue damages etc.

Can anyone that has some experience provide some insights? Suggest a good lawyer etc.? And forgot to mention the property is in Hoffman Estates, IL

Thank you,
D

[Trevor Lybbert]

Hi Sean, 

A few thoughts. Unless you are experienced, for an out of state rental, I would recommend getting a property management company. I would call the top 10 property management companies and ask who they use for a lawyer, the good ones will be more than happy to help. Then I would interview the most helpful companies for property management services. 

You always want to ensure all occupants that are legally adults are added to the rental agreement. A detailed application process does a lot to prevent these issues ahead of time as well. 

The specific details are very dependent on state law and the specific language in the lease. The good news is, it shouldn't take long for a good lawyer with landlord/tenant law experience to get you on the right path after reviewing your lease. 

Best of luck!