Originally posted by @JD Martin:
I'm wouldn't be against buying a new fridge, if this were my tenant, but it would be done on my schedule, not the tenant's demand to have a new fridge. The bigger point is not whether you want to give this lady a better fridge, it is that the tenants don't get to dictate the terms of living arrangements.
Biggest mistake here, actually, was letting the tenant know where the fridge was coming from; a simple "we'll get you a replacement" was all that was required. It is none of the tenant's business where the replacement comes from, so long as it works and is reasonably comparable to the one that's being replaced.
I genuinely like all of my tenants but we have a straight up understanding - this is not a quid pro quo or partnership. I am selling a service - renting my house - and they are buying the service. I set the terms of the service and they either agree, or they go buy a service from someone else. We always try to be accommodating when reasonable and possible, but also make it clear that we are working with them to have a happy existence and that we don't bow to demands.
For sure! She found out where it came from because she was home when my guys went to move it and it came from the unit across the hall. After a little further discussion she decided if the choice was to take the "ghost fridge" or wait a bit for us to get a new one delivered, she's happy to wait for the new one.
