Tenant Keeps Making Maintenance Requests

[Vi Huang]

I have a tenant who moved into my rental in California in Feb this year. They've lived in the home for 7 months and have made maintenance requests every single month. They installed bidets without my permission and created plumbing issues so I had to pay for a plumber to come out several times, I've had to replace a frontdoor knob and deadbolt last month even after we rekeyed the home prior to them moving in, the garbage disposal blades were jammed so had to call a handyman, repaired a broken window which my property manager claims was broken prior to them moving in even though the repair was made 3 months after they moved in. The most recent request was that the dishwasher isn't working. The repairs are starting to get more expensive and I'm not sure how to handle all these requests. Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated.

[Nicholas L.]

@Vi Huang

hire a property manager

[Vi Huang]

@Nicholas L.I have one. They are the ones who keep saying I have deferred maintenance from the last tenants. Sounds like I might need to find another one. I haven't been able to find a good one. I had to fire my last one and hired this one almost 1 year ago.

[James Mc Ree]

Fire the property manager.

A tenant who installs bidets already violated my lease. The plumbing bill is the tenants' to pay. Hopefully, your lease says the tenants cannot modify the property without your permission.

Some of the other items could be ordinary maintenance requests or something you are just stuck with. For example, I had a broken window when someone threw a brick through it. My tenant said they didn't break it and don't know who did. I ended up paying for it.

Some things will just break and you have to deal with it. It is important to understand why it broke. For example, were the disposal blades jammed because someone disposed of something they shouldn't have? That would be a maintenance bill for the tenant if they did not use the disposal properly.

[Colleen F.]

@Vi Huang You need to understand why the repairs are being made. Bidet would be a lease violation and they get the bill for the plumber. If the disposal broke you fix once explain what can go in it, and then tell them you will remove if it needs further repairs because they always cause issues and hey if you are putting things in the plumbing that shouldn't be there then there will be plumbing issues.  If a window was broken on move in that should have been on move in checklist. I have had to replace door locks when people kept jamming the wrong key in. It sounds a little like they are hard on things, do they keep the place nice?  My guess is the dishwasher could be another plumbing issue where they don't scrap dishes and the filter or inlet is clogged.  If it is a newer appliance. 

[Theresa Harris]

Talk to your PM and tell them that you want the tenants out. They have clearly violated the lease by installing bidets.  Tell them to give the tenants the required amount of notice that they are in violation of the lease and see if they go.

[Theresa Harris]

Quote from @Vi Huang:

@Nicholas L.I have one. They are the ones who keep saying I have deferred maintenance from the last tenants. Sounds like I might need to find another one. I haven't been able to find a good one. I had to fire my last one and hired this one almost 1 year ago.

 Assuming the PM never mentioned anything, the deferred maintenance is their responsibility. They should have told you and given you the opportunity to repair things.  I'd start looking for a better PM or think about doing it yourself.  No one is going to care about finding good tenants more than you and no one will take better care of your place.

[Calvin Graves]

If the property manager attributes these to deferred maintenance, then either they're admitting fault or trying to pin it on you. Were issues with any of these items brought to your attention before the tenants put in maintenance requests?

The bidet thing is definitely on the tenants. No tenant-made upgrades allowed, unless they're professional quality. In which case, hire them to run the property instead.

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Vi Huang:

Your property manager is awful!

1. They should document the condition heavily before moving tenants in. This would prevent the tenant from complaining that the window was broken before they occupied.

2. They shouldn't allow the tenant to do their own work, such as installing bidets. And if the tenant installed something that results in a plumbing bill, then the tenant is responsible for paying that plumbing bill!!!

3. Jammed garbage disposals are a tenant responsibility and they should have paid the bill.

Your property manager is going to suck you dry. Do some research to learn how a good property manager behaves, then spend a LOT of time researching and interviewing until you find a quality manager.

Remember: cheaper doesn't mean you'll make more money.

Start by going to www.narpm.org to search their directory of managers. These are professionals with additional training and a stricter code of ethics. It's no guarantee but it's a good place to start. You can also search Google and read reviews. Try interviewing at least three managers.

1. Ask how many units they manage and how much experience they have. Feel free to inquire about their staff qualifications if it's a larger organization.

2. Review their management agreement. Make sure it explicitly explains the process for termination if you are unhappy with their services, especially if they violate the terms of your agreement.

3. Understand the fees involved and calculate the total cost for an entire year of management so you can compare the different managers. It may sound nice to pay a 6% management fee but the extra fees can add up to be more than the other company that charges 10% with no additional fees. Fees should be clearly stated in writing, easy to understand, and justifiable. Common fees will include a set-up fee, a leasing fee for each turnover or a lease renewal fee, marking up maintenance, retaining late fees, and more. If you ask the manager to justify a fee and he starts hemming and hawing, move on or require them to remove the fee. Don't be afraid to negotiate, particularly if you have a lot of rentals.

4. Review their lease agreement and addenda. Consider all the things that could go wrong and see if the lease addresses them: unauthorized pets or tenants, early termination, security deposit, lease violations, late rent, eviction, lawn maintenance, parking, etc.

5. Don't just read the lease! Ask the manager to explain their process for dealing with maintenance, late rent, evictions, turnover, etc. If they are professional, they can explain this quickly and easily. If they are VERY professional, they will have their processes in writing as verification that policies are enforced equally and fairly by their entire staff.

6. Ask to speak with some of their current owners and current/former tenants. You can also check their reviews online at Google, Facebook, or Yelp. Just remember: most negative reviews are written by problematic tenants. A tenant complaining online might indicate that the property manager handled them appropriately, so be sure to ask the manager for their side of the story.

7. Look at their marketing strategy. Are they doing everything possible to expose properties to the broadest possible market? Are their listings detailed with good-quality photos? Can they prove how long it takes to rent a vacant property?

This isn't inclusive but should give you a good start. If you have specific questions about property management, I'll be happy to help!

[Adam Bartomeo]

The ABSOLUTE WORSE thing you said in all of this is "my rental in California". GET OUT OF THAT STATE!

[Andre Brock]

Sounds like you need new property management.

[Drew Sygit]

@Vi Huang going to guess you either went with the cheapest PMC you could find or the one spending the most marketing dollars to get in front of you.

YOu need to look for a new PMC!

Recommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.

Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.

Also, encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others - by reading posts here on BiggerPockets about owners not having their expectations met by their current Property Management Company.

To avoid going through the same poor experience, keep reading.

Even if someone gives you a referral here, do NOT make the mistake of assuming that the PMC will meet your expectations, just because they met the expectations of the referral source.

In our experience, the #1 mistake owners make when selecting a Property Management Company (PMC) is ASSUMING instead of CONFIRMING.

It's often a case of not doing enough research, as they don't know what they don't know!

Owners mistakenly ASSUME all PMCs offer the exact SAME SERVICES and PERFORM those services EXACTLY THE SAME WAY, so price is the only differentiator – so, they often select the first PMC they call or that calls them back!

So, the first question they usually ask a PMC is about fees - instead of asking about services and HOW those services are executed.

EXAMPLE: PMC states they will handle tenant screening – what does that specifically mean? What documents do they require, what credit scores do they allow, how do they verify previous rental history, etc.? You’d be shocked by how little actual screening many PMC’s do!

This also leads owners to ASSUME simpler is better when it comes to management contracts.

The reality is the opposite - if it's not in writing then the PMC doesn't have to provide the service or can charge extra for it!

A well written management contract should clearly spell out what is expected of both the PMC and the owner, to PROTECT both and avoid misunderstandings. Why do you think purchase contracts are so long and have such small print?

We recommend you get management contracts from several PMCs and compare the services they cover and, more importantly, what they each DO NOT cover.

EDUCATE YOURSELF - yes, it will take time, but will lead to a selection that better meets your expectations & avoids potentially costly surprises!

P.S. If you just hire the cheapest or first PMC you speak with and it turns into a bad experience, please don’t assume ALL PMC’s are bad and start trashing PMC’s in general. Take ownership of your mistake and learn to do the proper due diligence recommended above😊