Rental abuse by not informing the landlord of numerous pets

[William Hendrix]

We are newbie landlords. We rented our double wide manufactured residence for $1000 a month through a rental management company. We were asked if the tenant could have two small paraqueets or love birds ( the rental company wasn t sure which the tenant had.) always kept in their cages. Although we had said no pets , we agreed to make an exception. After two weeks the tenant complained that there were toxic plants called angel trumpets in the yard and he would like them removed. My wife and I wanted to oblige so although we are in our seventies we went over there and chopped down all 7 or 8 of the toxic plants. When doing so we noticed that all the blinds were up in the front entry room (a large 25 ft x 12ft room). The room was closed off from the rest of the home. When we looked in the window we saw 9 large cages and about 9 birds much larger than love birds. Two of the birds were large cockatoos and they had their cages wide open and were flying around the room. There were perches set in the room for the birds  when they would be out of their cages. We still not have received a copy of the tenants rental agreement with the acceptance of two love birds only remaining in their cages. We are not sure what is the next step, as we feel it hard to trust any future actions of the tenant. What advice does anyone have under these circumstances? Thanks Bill and Norma

[Account Closed]

Give them a notice to comply or quit.  And, start managing your own properties.  Buy one of these books:

https://store.nolo.com/products/landlord-tenant/la...

Write up tough criteria for applicants and never waver from it.

You should get rid of these tenants, even if it means a loss.  They are not only damaging your rental indoors, but they have already proved to be a general PITA time-waster.

[Wesley W.]

No good deed ever goes unpunished.

If you have rules in your lease, they are there for a reason.  Stick to them, or remove them from the document.  Making exceptions not only causes issues like this, it can also be construed as discrimination or at least favoritism if your other tenants get wind of it, and they always do.

This goes without saying:  issue notice to cure ASAP to let them know you intend to follow the contract you all signed.

[Michael Noto]

@William Hendrix Unfortunately you bent on your standards to get a tenant in the rental and now they are taking advantage. Once the door is open to pets this is the risk a landlord runs. 

[Thomas S.]

As pointed out you dropped the ball when you compromised your standards. When dealing with tenants it is guaranteed they will push the limits and attempt to take advantage of landlords. It isn't their property so they do not care what happens to it.

You either enforce your rules, send notice to quit, or you live with the consequences. Many landlords will live with a bad tenant preferring to ignore lease violations rather than ever risk a tenant turn over. They allow their tenants to manage their investment. Most will do anything to avoid  having to actually manage. The possibility of having a tenant turn over is paralysing so they justify the violation based on cost. Your state codes will outline the process, you decide whether you care or not.

[Theresa Harris]

@William Hendrix  Talk to your Property Management company and tell them you want them to do an inspection of the home as you saw more than 2 birds and they were not in their cages.  It isn't that unusual for property managers to do an inspection with new tenants.  When they go in and see all the pets and that they are not in the cage, they should tell the tenants to get rid of the birds as they are breaking the lease agreement.

[Lynn McGeein]

I hope you took pictures of the birds for evidence.  If not, next time you are there, make sure you take some with your phone.  Also, before discussing with management, request a copy of the lease and pet addendum and read through it to insure it's what you discussed in case management may have mislead you.   

[William Hendrix]

Thank all of your advice. We will begin implementing immediately.  Regarding taking pictures, is it ok to enter to take the pictures because the glare on the windows doesn t allow for a clear picture.

[Theresa Harris]

@William Hendrix  Take photos once you are inside the unit.  

[Thomas S.]

Legally you are most likely required to give 24 hrs written notice to set foot on the property unless invited by the tenants.

[William Hendrix]

Thanks again for all your help here on the forum.  We just got back the contract and the pet addendum from the management company. Unknown to us it said 9 birds were accepted by the management company and it did not stipulate what kind of birds they were although we were told verbally they were just two love birds which are about 5 to 6 inches long and birds that are in the apartment flying around are cockatoos about 14 to 18 inches. What is the next step since now we have been locked into a year lease by the management company and were not told the truth about these birds. Also the addendum says there is no pet deposit, pet entrance fee or pet rental fee. None of this was discussed with us.  What recourse do we now have if any?

[Thomas S.]

You have no recourse until their lease is up when you non renew. You may want to consider M2M leases in the future to avoid situations like this caused by your PM. This situation is typical of how a PM will manage your property. They will generally accept almost ay applicant and ignore what the landlord may feel is important. They tend to make their own rules.

Let your PM know you will not be renewing this tenants lease. You will need to better manage your PM in th efuture. They can not be left to manage your propery on their own, you are responsible for overseeing all their actions.

[Mike McCarthy]

I would let the PM know that you’re unhappy that they went against your wishes and you expect them to cover cleaning/repair costs when their lease ends.

I’m sure they won’t, but I would make it clear that you aren’t going to be a pushover landlord.

[Scott Mac]

HI William,

If it were me, I'm not sure I would officially notice the number of birds or species. 

I'd probably just mention to them there's a lot more birds or bigger birds then they said, and

ask for added pet rent ((to cover carpet cleaning when they move out) but not tell them that part).

The reason being, with so many big loud birds they may stay a long time because they have to, because it will be hard to find a place to accept them.

Maybe they can teach one of them to say "Pay the rent on time".

Good Luck!

[Theresa Harris]

Unlikely anything you can do at this point.  I'd definitely talk to the management company and tell them you did NOT agree to 9 birds.  Ask them what they are going to do about this and see if they have any suggestions.  The fact that they didn't collect a deposit for animals doesn't say much about the company.  I'd look for another management company prior to renewal though you may or may not have better luck.

Also check with animal control and see if they have any regulations on the number of animals in a house and specifics on bird breeds.

[Nathan Lombard]

Your management company is obviously not respecting your wishes. I would read over the contract they gave you thoroughly to see if there's anything else that might be flying under the radar. Better to catch it now than months later. When the lease is up, you should not renew with these tenants or the PM company.

[William Hendrix]

Again I must thank all of you for your input. Just to update after reading the contract more closely. The contract says more specifically ;  DISCRIPTION OF PETS   *sparrows/Lovebirds (9).   The large cockatoos are mates and referred to as lovebirds which  really is deceptively referring to their condition rather than their kind. Does this change anything legally with the contract?

[Theresa Harris]

@William Hendrix  The fact that the first set are referred to as sparrows, implies that the second are truly lovebirds and not mates.  Sparrows are small birds as are lovebirds.

[Thomas S.]

Birds are birds, you are stuck with them. There is not adiquite grounds to evict. 

[Elizabeth Nurnberger]

It doesn't sound like the management company is a good fit.  It is disappointing you have a lease and agreement but aren't clear on the terms.  I would look for a management company that can look out for your best interests and can help walk your through the process more.  I'd also recommend getting everything in writing (no verbal agreements for tenants or management company!) and be sure to understand the exact agreement terms.  In my mind your management company should be more like a partner.

[Scott P.]

I'm sorry to hear you're having these issues.

Your property mgmt company either misunderstood or is letting you down.

One of my associates had a house in which large birds (maybe cockatoos or parrots, i don't remember - but i could ask him) caused a lot of damage to woodwork, like stair railings.

I thought love birds were small.  Maybe start a new post and ask if anyone here is a bird owner or has had experience with tenants with birds.  Most of us probably only see dogs and cats.  I did have a tenant once with 2 dwarf rabbits. (To my surprise, they chewed on the baseboards when they were out of the cages which they supposedly never got out of.)

I think @Scott Mac has a good point though.  If they stay a long time because their choices are limited you might make enough $ to repair the pet damage - if there is any - and I suspect there will be a lot.

Maybe you cut your fees to management company somehow?  I suspect you'll need the $ for clean up some day...

Maybe if they are selling them you could have a cause to evict based on running a business out of the house?  

Those are the thoughts that come to my mind....

[John N.]

As a word of warning, I have friends who run a bird/parrot rescue.  These birds can be incredibly destructive.  Besides the dropping that will be on every square foot of carpet that will turn it into a gurgling primordial ooze a large bird with any sort of stress or behavioral issues will often act out in a destructive manner.  They can literally tear your walls apart.  I have no doubt that, with that many birds in one room there are stress and behavior issues.  You need to get those birds out of you house yesterday.