Renters bailing

[Jason Warner]

I am new to the rental business and need some advice. I have been a long time lurker, but have never posted. I have learned much from the members here and respect your opinions.

I have some renters who are splitting up and seeking divorce. Neither one can afford the rental on there own, and have been upfront about their situation. This has all unfolded in the past 24 hours so they contacted me right away. The wife is moving out as I type, and the husband has asked that I use their deposit and allow him to stay until the funds are exhausted. I believe I can trust him to keep the home in good shape, and not trash it when they leave. The rent was due a few days ago, but the husband needs to have money to put down on a new place, thus the request.

My main concerns are: Do I need to file for eviction to protect myself from a legal standpoint? What type of written documentation do I need if I do not file for eviction? What have/would you do if faced with a similar situation?

To this point they have taken immaculate care of the place, and it looks nicer than most of the owner occupied homes in the area. I have no reason to believe he will renege on his end of the deal. He was concerned about having a bad report and not being able to find a new place. I am concerned that he may have trouble finding a place and not leave when the time comes. I am meeting in person with him tomorrow. Thanks in advance for your advice.

Jason

[Jon Holdman]

They're your customer. They pay the rent, they get to stay. No rent, no house.

Absolutely not. If the rent can't get paid on the 1st as scheduled, give a pay or quit notice in accordance with your lease and local laws. If they're not out by the time the pay or quit passes, file for eviction. Yes, that will affect his ability to get another place. But that's also your remedy for not getting the rent paid.

Now, that said, I only do month to month leases. As you're finding, if the tenants need to leave, they will, lease or not. A long term lease is much more binding on you than them. So, my normal terms would be that they could give me notice today that they will be out on September 30. If they were and the house was in good shape they would get most or all of their deposit back. I would fully expect the rent on Sept 1 and would post the pay or quit and would file eviction if it wasn't paid.

Further, I might be willing to accept an even shorter notice. In one case we agreed on a move out date on the 15th. Now, the tenant did give notice about 30 days ahead, but the lease terms would have required them staying until the end of the month. We agreed they would pay for half a month on the 1st and then be out by the 15th. In fact they were out a few days before that, left the property in good shape and got most of their deposit back.

But don't allow the deposit to be used for rent. That's your protection if there is any problem after they're out.