Help with tricky tenant situation

[Cliff T.]

Hi all,

I'm hoping to get some help with a tricky tenant situation. I have a property that is currently leased to 4 tenants, all of them signed ONE lease together. That lease is set to end on 9/30.

Last month, I started working with them on a new 12-month lease. It took them a couple weeks to come to agreement and they all verbally agreed to sign. I sent them the new lease on 9/4 to sign and the next day, I get a message from one of the tenants saying she is not willing to sign a new lease and will be moving out when their current lease ends on 9/30.

Not the end of the world, so I mention to the remaining 3 tenants that I'm willing to work with them to still sign a new lease. Again, we reach a verbal agreement and again, like deja vu, one of the tenants messages me the next day (9/10) and says she will not be signing the new lease and will leave when the current lease is up.

Now, only 2 tenants are willing to stay and they're arguing that I'm not giving them enough time if they need to move out by 9/30. I feel like this is fair bc it is when their lease ends, and I'm not responsible for giving them any extra time while they were trying to sort things out with their roommates to sign a new lease with me.

Honestly, at this point, I'd rather have them out of my property as they've been difficult to deal with during this process and other items have popped up in the past (e.g. they've clogged our kitchen sink by pouring excessive oil down the drain, broke the garage door within a year of their first lease, etc.)

My questions are:

-What happens if only 2 of the tenants vacate when the lease ends and stay for an extra week? It might take them a few extra days to figure out their next housing situation. Do I use the full group's security deposit and deduct that extra week of rent at the full rate?

-I have read I should return 1 single security deposit to them with all 4 tenants names on the check. This will prevent me from getting tied up in any of their affairs. Is this correct?

-Any items that I should do now in case this ends up being a messy eviction? Any specific things I should document?

[Nathan Gesner]

Stop working so hard to make a mistake!

Multiple unrelated tenants are  recipe for disaster. They pool their money to afford something that is beyond their financial capability. Relationships change and people will move in or out on a whim. Arguments ensue. What you'll see happen is one or more tenants will decide to leave, the remaining tenants can't/won't afford the rent, and then everyone is in a panic to terminate the lease or rush to find replacement tenants so the rental is still affordable. Either way, the risk of you losing is highly likely. You also have four individuals which increases the number of cars on the property, more visitors, higher likelihood of partying, more inter-personal relationship problems, more wear-and-tear, etc. 

Give them written notice that you will not sign a new lease and want them out. Get someone stable and move on.