Tenants that don’t clean, ever

[David Jay]

My rentals are mostly nice sfh, solid B properties in good neighborhoods. I maintain them well and they are always in great condition when I rent them. I have a few long term tenants that have been there 6-12 years. I recently had my property manager inspect some of the long terms. Honestly on a couple it looks like the bathrooms have not been cleaned since the tenants moved in. The PM sent me pictures and it makes me wonder if the showers will ever be the same. Coincidentally, or not these rentals have a single male or two male roommates. In 13 years of doing this I’ve only had one other turn over that filthy (also a single male). So what would you do with the dirty ones at this point. My inclination is to raise the rent substantially, eg current rent is $2300 market is now $2600.  So I’d just raise it $300 instead of the $100-$150 I was planning. Or simply terminate the lease, take my lumps, and re rent it at market. How have you handled filthy tenants. I’d add nothing seems destroyed per se, but one house had a brand new shower when the tenant moved in and I wonder if it will ever be the same. Besides a deep cleaning the house would need a full repaint to turn over. 

[Steve Smith]

Who gives a rats behind if the bathroom is dirty? If you have a paying tenant, especially for several years. KEEP HIM!

If the dirty bathroom bothers you that much, send in a cleaning crew and clean it for him, but emphasize that he'll have to keep it clean in the future. Cleaning or doing work on a house with a paying tenant in it is usually much better than having it vacant with no rent coming in.

Tenant turn over is way more expensive than cleaning a bathroom.