@Michael Haynes Wow, thanks for the input. Thing that is crazy is I know I sound like a newbie. I live in CA now (don't invest out here), but I'm from Tampa and I've owned, flipped etc. hundreds of units in Tampa and all throughout FL. I even owned a property management company at one time. I've been doing this 12 years. Can't believe this has never happened and never came up. I have to give a LOL just from typing this out. Ok, so I closed with a big, national hard money lender and did full title search with a very reputable company in Tampa I've done 100s of transactions with. These water liens are ONLY from when I've owned the properties. I have leases that tenants pay all utilities including water, that rolled over to me when we purchased. Yes, I called City of Tampa BEFORE I closed on them and made sure all utilities where in tenants names and not prior owner. I always buy buildings that have separate water meters so I don't have to pay people's water if they wash cars for the neighborhood out front or take 5 hr showers etc. Someone posted on this thread that I should have checked every month if the bills were being paid. HA! We're a decent sized company and don't play parent to each tenant if they are paying their bills or not. City would not have told me anyway as I was not the account holder! I had property management in place anyway. Give me a break. If Tampa let these tenants call in, set up an account with their SS#, put down a deposit WHY would they not just cut off their water if they don't pay it!! At least they should send a note to the ownership that the water is behind after 60 days. Tampa just let it go for 7 months without saying anything, then Bam, stick me with tenants' water bills at the end. Dumbest thing I've ever heard. I'll take it as a $6000 lesson, but if you are hinting that it's someone not doing their job etc, and playing to the side of the "oh, poor tenants" I'm coming in hot. Thank you for the informative information.
