Real Estate Agent · Columbus, OH · Member since 2017 · 6k+ posts · 7k+ votes
Background: This was one of the first rental properties I purchased, so I made every mistake underneath the sun and I am still dealing with the consequences. I purchased this quad for $247,000. It is in Columbus, Ohio just north of The Ohio State University in a B location. I put about $30,000 into it and now I have it rented or about $3,700 but now it is all falling apart.
Unit 1: 1bed 1bath - Tried to raise the rents from $350 but he could not afford it. I vacated it and paid a contractor way too much to remodel it. I have it rented out for $920 now.
Unit 2: Vacant. Got someone in there within 6 days for $800. We were not running background or credit checks and we had to find a new tenant after a few months. We should have stopped when she said she needed time to get the full deposit. We collected all of our rent, but she left some human feces behind that our cleaner had to deal with. We took it from her security deposit.
Unit 3: Raised rents from $350 to $750. I need to raise it to market rent which I think is $920 but I may just leave him for another year. I have too much stuff going on.
Unit 4: The unit you have all been waiting for!
The Story: My college roommate and I were just getting into the real estate investing game 1 year after graduating college. We had house hacked a duplex and a quad in less than 4 months (we took turns getting the loans). We then took the rest of our money and got an investment loan on this 4 unit.
The 4th unit needed substantial work to get rented to the market value of $1,200. We figured we would offer the current tenant a chance to pay $1,100 as-is. He agreed and paid us rent on time for the next 8 months. When it came time to release, he did for another year. Shortly after releasing, he starts drunkenly calling me about petty things like the tenants putting trash in his trash can. He caused the bottom unit to flood by unscrewing his toilet water valve. Luckily, I fixed it in time to prevent a lot of damage. And now I get the below messages. What would you do? I do not plan to release him when his lease ends in July. How should I break the news to him?
Real Estate Agent · Murfreesboro, TN · Member since 2019 · 194 posts · 181 votes
6y
@Remington Lyman
Good. God. Man. That's the weirdest thing I've ever seen. I'm unsure of the best method to deal with this person. Just wanted to reassure you he's out of his mind.
Rental Property Investor · Columbus, OH · Member since 2019 · 131 posts · 183 votes
6y
@Remington Lyman I know you said you mostly rent to students. I don't know how old this guy is but most people that experience psychosis usually have their first psychotic break in their late teens/early 20's, often when they leave home and face the stress of school. I'm not diagnosing this guy with anything, but those look like they may be more than just drunk test messages.
If you were really worried about his condition and if he was a threat to himself, you could call the cops, but that may just make it worse. Hopefully your lawyer can get it sorted and the tenant leaves.
@Remington Lyman I know you said you mostly rent to students. I don't know how old this guy is but most people that experience psychosis usually have their first psychotic break in their late teens/early 20's, often when they leave home and face the stress of school. I'm not diagnosing this guy with anything, but those look like they may be more than just drunk test messages.
This guy is probably in his 40s or 50s. He is from the previous owner. I hope to have him out soon. I think I should be able to evict him with this information.
If you were really worried about his condition and if he was a threat to himself, you could call the cops, but that may just make it worse. Hopefully your lawyer can get it sorted and the tenant leaves.
Rockaway, NJ · Member since 2016 · 2k+ posts · 2k+ votes
6y
If he was an alcoholic, I would probably assume it was drunk rambling. The real tipping point is when he says something about dieing or killing you. At that point, I would make a risk assessment. If I had ANY doubt as to his mental condition, I would contact lawyer/police. It isn't worth the risk when you have a family to worry about. If I truly did not believe he was a danger to me or my family, I would ignore it and see if it continues/escalates.
Good. God. Man. That's the weirdest thing I've ever seen. I'm unsure of the best method to deal with this person. Just wanted to reassure you he's out of his mind.
Yes, it is. Thank you for the reassurance. He just threatened my life.
If he was an alcoholic, I would probably assume it was drunk rambling. The real tipping point is when he says something about dieing or killing you. At that point, I would make a risk assessment. If I had ANY doubt as to his mental condition, I would contact lawyer/police. It isn't worth the risk when you have a family to worry about. If I truly did not believe he was a danger to me or my family, I would ignore it and see if it continues/escalates.
If you were really worried about his condition and if he was a threat to himself, you could call the cops, but that may just make it worse. Hopefully your lawyer can get it sorted and the tenant leaves.
Do you think I should call the cops on him?
If you are truly worried about his safety or that of your other tenants, yes. Call the non-emergency number (as the texts are not happening now) and talk to them. Do not call the police just to get him out, only call if you fell he is a threat to himself or others.
If he was an alcoholic, I would probably assume it was drunk rambling. The real tipping point is when he says something about dieing or killing you. At that point, I would make a risk assessment. If I had ANY doubt as to his mental condition, I would contact lawyer/police. It isn't worth the risk when you have a family to worry about. If I truly did not believe he was a danger to me or my family, I would ignore it and see if it continues/escalates.
Well he just did that sooo....
Yes I did see that one, which is why I mentioned threats. Truly, I believe they are drunken ramblings, however, I'm not willing to take chances with safety. I wouldn't ignore them.
If you were really worried about his condition and if he was a threat to himself, you could call the cops, but that may just make it worse. Hopefully your lawyer can get it sorted and the tenant leaves.
Do you think I should call the cops on him?
If you are truly worried about his safety or that of your other tenants, yes. Call the non-emergency number (as the texts are not happening now) and talk to them. Do not call the police just to get him out, only call if you fell he is a threat to himself or others.
Thank you for the suggestion! My lawyer instructed me to just post the warning notice
If he was an alcoholic, I would probably assume it was drunk rambling. The real tipping point is when he says something about dieing or killing you. At that point, I would make a risk assessment. If I had ANY doubt as to his mental condition, I would contact lawyer/police. It isn't worth the risk when you have a family to worry about. If I truly did not believe he was a danger to me or my family, I would ignore it and see if it continues/escalates.
Well he just did that sooo....
Yes I did see that one, which is why I mentioned threats. Truly, I believe they are drunken ramblings, however, I'm not willing to take chances with safety. I wouldn't ignore them.
My lawyer said to call the police if I feel threatened. I have a 120 pit (aggressive towards intruders) and firearms at my house so I do not fear for my life. I will be posting a warning notice.
Background: This was one of the first rental properties I purchased, so I made every mistake underneath the sun and I am still dealing with the consequences. I purchased this quad for $247,000. It is in Columbus, Ohio just north of The Ohio State University in a B location. I put about $30,000 into it and now I have it rented or about $3,700 but now it is all falling apart.
Unit 1: 1bed 1bath - Tried to raise the rents from $350 but he could not afford it. I vacated it and paid a contractor way too much to remodel it. I have it rented out for $920 now.
Unit 2: Vacant. Got someone in there within 6 days for $800. We were not running background or credit checks and we had to find a new tenant after a few months. We should have stopped when she said she needed time to get the full deposit. We collected all of our rent, but she left some human feces behind that our cleaner had to deal with. We took it from her security deposit.
Unit 3: Raised rents from $350 to $750. I need to raise it to market rent which I think is $920 but I may just leave him for another year. I have too much stuff going on.
Unit 4: The unit you have all been waiting for!
The Story: My college roommate and I were just getting into the real estate investing game 1 year after graduating college. We had house hacked a duplex and a quad in less than 4 months (we took turns getting the loans). We then took the rest of our money and got an investment loan on this 4 unit.
The 4th unit needed substantial work to get rented to the market value of $1,200. We figured we would offer the current tenant a chance to pay $1,100 as-is. He agreed and paid us rent on time for the next 8 months. When it came time to release, he did for another year. Shortly after releasing, he starts drunkenly calling me about petty things like the tenants putting trash in his trash can. He caused the bottom unit to flood by unscrewing his toilet water valve. Luckily, I fixed it in time to prevent a lot of damage. And now I get the below messages. What would you do? I do not plan to release him when his lease ends in July. How should I break the news to him?
Sorry that this happened to you.
And to think this is in a "B" area. I've seen crazy things specially when I owned apartment buidings in the "war zones" (F areas) but I've seen bad tenants across different areas (A, B, C, D, F).
As others suggested, you can call the police on him if he does not back down on his threats after you post the notice.
This is one of the reasons, when I used to manage my properties myself, I tell the tenant I am just the manager (and technically, it's not a lie because LLCs own the properties and most of the time I have partners in those LLCs). I also have a PO Box where the rents can be sent instead of them sending it to my office (for the few who can't pay online).
You have to protect yourself from these "crazies".
Attorney · New York, NY · Member since 2019 · 72 posts · 27 votes
6y
Wow, and i thought New York tenants were on another level. This is very interesting, but I would have an attorney ready just in case. I'm sure the police deal with people like this everyday
Background: This was one of the first rental properties I purchased, so I made every mistake underneath the sun and I am still dealing with the consequences. I purchased this quad for $247,000. It is in Columbus, Ohio just north of The Ohio State University in a B location. I put about $30,000 into it and now I have it rented or about $3,700 but now it is all falling apart.
Unit 1: 1bed 1bath - Tried to raise the rents from $350 but he could not afford it. I vacated it and paid a contractor way too much to remodel it. I have it rented out for $920 now.
Unit 2: Vacant. Got someone in there within 6 days for $800. We were not running background or credit checks and we had to find a new tenant after a few months. We should have stopped when she said she needed time to get the full deposit. We collected all of our rent, but she left some human feces behind that our cleaner had to deal with. We took it from her security deposit.
Unit 3: Raised rents from $350 to $750. I need to raise it to market rent which I think is $920 but I may just leave him for another year. I have too much stuff going on.
Unit 4: The unit you have all been waiting for!
The Story: My college roommate and I were just getting into the real estate investing game 1 year after graduating college. We had house hacked a duplex and a quad in less than 4 months (we took turns getting the loans). We then took the rest of our money and got an investment loan on this 4 unit.
The 4th unit needed substantial work to get rented to the market value of $1,200. We figured we would offer the current tenant a chance to pay $1,100 as-is. He agreed and paid us rent on time for the next 8 months. When it came time to release, he did for another year. Shortly after releasing, he starts drunkenly calling me about petty things like the tenants putting trash in his trash can. He caused the bottom unit to flood by unscrewing his toilet water valve. Luckily, I fixed it in time to prevent a lot of damage. And now I get the below messages. What would you do? I do not plan to release him when his lease ends in July. How should I break the news to him?
Sorry that this happened to you.
And to think this is in a "B" area. I've seen crazy things specially when I owned apartment buidings in the "war zones" (F areas) but I've seen bad tenants across different areas (A, B, C, D, F).
As others suggested, you can call the police on him if he does not back down on his threats after you post the notice.
This is one of the reasons, when I used to manage my properties myself, I tell the tenant I am just the manager (and technically, it's not a lie because LLCs own the properties and most of the time I have partners in those LLCs). I also have a PO Box where the rents can be sent instead of them sending it to my office (for the few who can't pay online).
You have to protect yourself from these "crazies".
Wow, and i thought New York tenants were on another level. This is very interesting, but I would have an attorney ready just in case. I'm sure the police deal with people like this everyday
Wow, and i thought New York tenants were on another level. This is very interesting, but I would have an attorney ready just in case. I'm sure the police deal with people like this everyday
On it!
Beautiful! Sometimes a strongly worded letter is all you need
Investor · Jackson, NJ · Member since 2015 · 7 posts · 6 votes
6y
While hes still there, get a police report on the books for each incident. Especially the thing about "die" and "kill you" . You don't have to wait for something really bad to happen to involve the police. For whatever reason there's clearly some unhealthy instability there. Its your job to protect your investment and provide a safe peaceful place for your tenants. It's the polices job to help you do so. don't be afraid to pick up the phone the next time you sense shenanigans. A person capable of those texts is equally capable of burning your building down.