All Forum Posts by: Fil M.

Update- Court papers were served, I installed security camera's (something I had wanted to do for quite some time but now this pushed me over the edge), and knocked on the troubled tenants door to set up some time for new prospective tenants.

I video taped the whole thing on my phone but she took a few minutes to get to the door and I felt I was being filmed and I will tell you why. Total 180 in terms of how she acted, agreed to let me show the apartment this weekend as well as next weekend. She also told me she got the attorney letter to which I told her she left me no choice to do.

Lastly, she said she would be out (and to her defense she did look like she was in the process of packing the apartment) and then she asked me about the security deposit and whether she going to get the difference between the rent owed minus the security which would equal half a month rent (if she moves out the first). I told her I would not commit to anything as I needed to inspect the apartment, have all  keys, and everything must be taken out of the apartment including her two dozen assortment of large voses outside (yes two dozen). Initially I thought she was out of her mind given I spent $260 on a plumber and another $100 in eviction fees, but part of me says $700 is cheap to get rid of her so long as I rent the apartment to a new tenant. She also told me she didn't want to tell me the real reason why she was moving out but then muttered some bogus story Thoughts? 

Thought I would keep everyone updated. I had a Certified NJ Plumber come out to the house again and he thought I was a complete idiot. He looked at the three furnaces and told me to feel the pipes as they were all "working." I told him I was fairly certain of that but I had to investigate claims that the heat on the second floor was not working. He also told me all of the units were 3-5 years old. He then brought up an interesting point, he stated since this is an older brick style house and heat on the 1st and 3rd floors was on, the 2nd floor is rather luck in the sense that heat rises and they probably have the lowest heat bill. Nonetheless, we checked all three furnaces and all three apartments- ALL OF WHICH HAD HEAT.

When we entered into the 2nd floor apartment, the tenant in question was not there but her children were (one of which is an adult). He let us into the apartment, we replaced the "old" thermostat and when the plumber turned on the thermostat is was a nippy 72 degrees. Thats right, 72 degrees. I took pictures of the plumber installing the thermostat as well as the 72 degree reading. I also obtained a receipt from the plumber which states that all apartments had heat and are in working order and that he replaced the 2nd floor thermostat. $270 dollars later (on a thermostat I could have easily replaced myself for $30) the job was done. Unfortunately, that is the price to protecting myself in a potential future court hearing.

I texted the tenants and told them that the plumber said the heating system was in working order and if there were any issues to please call me so I can rectify them. I got a response back stating "they did not stay in the apartment last night." I have documented this entire ordeal and have also taken photographs of everything. I would also like to thank:

Coleen - Excellent point on the paying of heat.... I think this point would be even more valid if it were a normal winter in NJ but it has only gotten cold as of a week ago. I think I only used my heat a handful of times in December/November (I think it was near 50 degrees a week or two in November/December).

Sean - I did offer that up but unfortunately my life was threatened and was told she would not pay a dime. She insisted on taking January rent out of her securitty deposit and not only can I not legally do that, but I can not take the chance on her going on her word. If she decides to squat in February then it will take me more time to evict and more money lost.  We are beyond that and all I want at this stage is for her to move out. If she moves out and leaves the apartment without damage I will not seek damages for January rent (or February if she squats)

William - I agree, the $250 is money well spent; however, I did have a thorough application that she filled out. She provided me a SSN, references, and I did a credit check on her which was surprisingly good. I think sometimes you just have a bad apple in the tree and my time was to get it. 

The end of the month can't come soon enough, but I think this is only the beginning of a long journey. I did see boxes as if they were packing, which I found strange given it was only the 7th of the month. This leads me to believe she is already either moved into a new apartment or has a place to go; however, I think when she gets served with papers on Monday/Tuesday, she will lose her mind which I am prepared to deal with. If she does anything to destroy the apartment, I will go prosecute and go to small claims court out of sheer principal. I would rather higher an attorney and give him all the court winnings then give this tenant a pass if she chooses to go down this route... 

And the plot thickens. I went to the house today with a licensed plumber and said the units were all relatively new and were in fine working condition. He was able to "start" each of three furnaces from the basement and said they were all in working order. He then went into the 2nd floor apartment and said the thermostat was working but it was an electronic thermostat and he said these could be problematic with steam heat. He recommended we replace the thermostat to a "dial like" thermostat. He is going out to the property tomorrow.to replace the thermostat. By the way, the apartment was 70 degrees when I entered.

I then got a phone call a short while after with my tenant screaming at the top of he lungs at how I was a slum lord and have not provided heat for the past three months. I remained calm, kept my composure and then told her the plumber was there and the thermostat would be replaced but all furnaces were in working order. She then proceeded to tell me she was going to sue me for everything I had, was going to get the three months she paid me back in court, and she has "whitnesses" that are going to testify that the temperature was unsatisfactory. I simply told her not a problem what so ever (given I am filing papers first thing tomorrow morning) and all I hoped was that we could replace the thermostat so the remaining time in the residence is at least a comfortable one. She then proceeded to threaten my life and told me she would see me in court. 

The court system could take as long as 8 weeks; however, there is not much I believe I can do other than wait. I documented everything in terms of interaction with her, had a certified plumber who is going to write me up a clean bill of health, and her claim that I am a slum lord because I did not want to turn up the heat in my opinion is a fraud. Not only did the plumber explain to the tenants that they are the only ones that can control the heat in the apartment, but that are the one's that pay for the gas bill (PS&G).

Lastly, is there anything anyone can think of to further protect myself. I mean, I can't really prove the heat "was" or "was not" working other then the remaining two units not having an issue. She had one small issue with a fan when she moved in and I attended to it the very next day. She mentioned a heat issue yesterday and I had a certified plumber in there today. Just thinking out loud and any thoughts of wisdom would be appreciated. 

Richard - You present very valid points above, all of which have been going back and forth this past night; however, my main goal is to get her out of the house. Having said that, one would think not to file papers especially if she promised to leave at the end of the month; however, I simply do not trust her. I caught her in two lies (which she is totally unaware of) and these people can simply not be trusted. Additionally, I just got a text message form the tenant stating ""Funny thing.... Heat turned on today, must be because of how cold it is outside." My response was simple "Ok no problem, I will still however bring the plumber to make sure everything is running as it should." 

This leads me to believe they found another apartment that was more appealing to them and have complete disregard for a signed lease. I am not going to take the chance of relying on these individuals to make a good faith statement and relying on them leaving at the end of the month. If they leave at the end of the month, I will simply cancel the legal proceedings against them, but I have a feeling this will not be the case. 

First – I would like to thank each and every one of you for talking me through this situation. Although troublesome for me, hopefully this will serve as a lesson for others.

Pam – I am definitely developing thicker skin and this experience has been eye opening – lesson learned

Tom/Kevin/Seth/Jon/Steve – Thanks for your input. I spoke with the attorney today who handles 50+ cases a week in this county and someone from his office is in court every day. For roughly $200-250 this will be taken care of legally. The FDCPA form will be filed today for non-payment of rent (which was due the 1st of the month and a late charge of $50 will now be applied as outlined explicitly in the lease since not received by the 5th). Getting a court date can take anywhere from 2-4 weeks and then there could be several additional days where the court can grant tenants “an orderly voluntary removal” of the property. If they fail to move after this period, then they will be formally evicted. Nonetheless, this attorney will appear in court (if it gets to that point) for me and in very few circumstances I would actually need to appear which I have no problem with. This apartment is brand new, I was made aware of an issue, and am taking care of it immediately (even though I find it hard to believe there is anything wrong given I was denied access to the apartment and the boiler was on downstairs).

With regards to the lease, I actually have an 8 page lease which was originally drafted by an attorney. It outlines terms in a great degree and I actually reviewed the lease which has the following clause “Access by Landlord to Premises – Subject to tenant’s consent (which shall not be unreasonably withheld), Landlord shall have the right to enter Premises to make inspection and provide necessary services, or show the units to prospective buyers, mortgagees, or prospective tenants.” My current attorney actually commented on how this was a well drafted lease and was impressed. I also had an application prior to signing the lease that has all relevant information including names, work history, rental history, and other pertinent information which is proving to be helpful. I do screen these individuals to what I thought was quite thoroughly, as I followed up with both employer and prior rental (who were there for 6 years) but I felt like I simply just got a bad hand dealt as they found something with a driveway (which they had made complaint of my residence since it down not have one at a lower price in a less desirable neighborhood).

Lastly, the attorney also told me that it felt like these tenants have done this before because the only thing that would “delay” things is if I was not providing heat. I am protecting myself, documenting my interaction with the tenants, have documentation of text messages illustrating that last night was the first time I ever was made aware of the situation and was sending over a certified plumber there today to inspect all heating units/systems in each of the three units to ensure proper working order. This will more likely than not be a waste of his time, but it is money I am willing to spend to illustrate how I immediately attempted to rectify the situation as a landlord. Not sure how much more I can do as I think time is the only thing that will needs to pass to get over this issue

In summary, this is unfortunately part of the game but I fortunately have a prime location in a great neighborhood. Now one can only hope these tenants do not retaliate and do not wreck the place but that is out of my hands. Thanks again and will keep everyone posted on this. 

Bob E am definitely interested in a professional tenant screening. Any more details would be appreciated. Thank you 

Thanks Elizabeth - Unfortunately I think you are right. I am thinking of seeing he in person tomorrow and telling her that I will need January rent by Thursday of this week. Should she not provide me the rent, I will be forced to start the eviction process. Lucky for me, I have a family who has experience in this but I have not mentioned nor seemed their advice given I am trying to resolve my own issues. For a nominal fee, there is an attorney who takes care of the eviction from start to finish. 

Lesson learned. 

Wow - This is unfortunately my firs post (long time lurker) and appreciate the quick response. I have a couple of questions

1) What is the "pay or quit" notice and does anyone have a template to compile one?

2) To Marc Cunningham - Can you explain to me the "legal 3 day notice?" I am in NJ and just trying to understand your thought process. Also, trying to understand the $200 you are referring to? What would this substantiate? Thanks in advance guys and gals. 

PS -  I used Craigslist and checked previous rental history (rented the last 6 years at one residence) and work history (he worked at the same place for close to 20 years)..

Keep the advice coming! Thanks again so much

So I bought a 3 family in NJ and have gut renovated all apartments and have had great luck thus far but have run into my real first issue. Here is the situation

I gutted one of the units (3 bedroom 1 bath) with a new kitchen, new plumbing, electric, bathroom and the apartment is immaculate. It is close to NYC transportation and I was amazed at how many people applied for the apartment (I had to take the add down). Long story short, I rented to a family with "two" kids, I say two because two turned into "four." Anyhow, I rented the apartment for October 1st. Everything was fine and then I see all of these people show up but they were paying rent and I did not say anything. Then the following week I see all these vases into the common hallway and back yard and told them they could not keep them there

Fast forward to today, I showed up to collect the rent and not only did she not have the rent, but she claims she did not have heat in the apartment for three months (which is rubbish bc I tested the heat back in October when it was still warm out and not only are the furnace that are two years old working, but i installed new thermostats). When I asked why didn't you call me, she said they got new phones and did not have my number. I told them they could have knocked on the first and third floors and they said they never saw them.

I started a new paragraph because I was interrupted in the middle of this rant by the owner of the house next store to mine who claims someone from my house was throwing cigarettes onto their rood (yes true indeed). I had also had a complaint when these tenants move in stating the people from the ins floor were throwing cigarettes on their property (note i did not have any issues with the other tenants until these people moved in). Long story short, the owner of the house next to mine stated the lady on the second floor gave them MY NUMBER and said no one in her apartment smoked. Funny how she had my number earlier today but not a couple of hours ago.

So my question is this, she is going to break the one year lease she signed in October, and is expecting her security deposit back; actually the remaining security deposit as she wants to use the "rent" for January out of her deposit. I told her no that it is not an option so my question is 1) Do I tell her to pay me the rent by the end of this week or else I will legally evict her or 2) Do I wait until the end of the month and hope she moves out on her own? The negatives with option 1 is that she can probably squeeze another 1-2 months due to our sluggish court system and she can destroy the apartment but I will eventually get her out. Option 2 leaves at the mercy of the tenant.

So to my experts, what would you do and why?