All Forum Posts by: Marvin Meng

Update: 

I sent the above email and haven't heard anything since - so I think the trouble is averted. I originally didn't post the gender because you never know who's reading it and I didn't want to be accused of discrimination based on orientation or give the impression that I'm homophobic but you're right; it's not a "she". (Actually, for a boomer, I'm pretty "woke"). And it occurred to me that I could just as easily be accused of discrimination against a woman based on gender.

I know there are traps out there. I remember reading in Landlording on Autopilot about the landlord who didn't show a woman with a walker upstairs apartments and wound up with a $15K fine. And I knew a lady in college who would call property managers pretending to be different people to catch them discriminating, then report them to the state. So I tread carefully...

Thank you all so much for your suggestions. Overall common sense is a good guide but it helped me to run it by you all!

That's a good idea to keep in my hip pocket. I sent the email and haven't heard back but I think if they persist in any way I will try the restraining order. Thanks!

Thanks - yeah they said they wanted to see it again today. I'll use that. Thanks again! I've had to deal with inappropriate behavior before but nothing this blatant or agressive.

Thank you!

These texts and emails went from zero to sixty so fast I thought maybe they had been hacked. Overnight they continued and got more explicit. Here's what I'm sending:

"Dear XXXX,

It appears we have a misunderstanding. Yesterday when I set up our meeting I had not seen the pictures you sent. Please cancel our meeting today. It would be in both of our best interest if you were to rent from somebody else."

Sound good?

So this is a first for me...

I had a prospective tenant look at an apartment last week. They asked to see the lease so I emailed them a copy of the lease. The individual next emailed me over the weekend and asked if they could look at the apartment again, and we set up a time to do it (tomorrow). They then wen on to email and text me suggestive pictures of themselves and offer me a "pat down" along with other inappropriate comments. 

Obviously this is not somebody I want to rent to or want around my other tenants. Quite honestly I think there may be mental stability issues there. My inclination is to email the individual and tell them that there's been an apparent misunderstanding and suggest that they rent somewhere else. 

BP'ers: Is there a need to be concerned that I could be discriminating against this individual here? I'd really appreciate your ideas of how you would handle this.

I gotta admit, when you landlord, you see it all...

TIA!

Here's a speech I like to use: "You guys seem really nice and I'd love to rent to you. But with landlord/tenant laws the way they are, I have no choice but to use the same screening process for everyone. Let me know if you want to apply..."

Usually they say they'll "call back later" and they go away. But yeah, we get all the "I'm a good renter but my old roommate screwed me", "I have three emotional support Rotties..." in Southern Illinois. It's everywhere. You'd rather pass on a good tenant than take a bad one!

I went through this with a tenant just over a year ago (Madison County, IL). In IL landlords can enter the property with 24 hours notice (I think this is common). Give her the notice then go over to check the place out. 

Also I found my county courthouse to be very helpful in walking me through the eviction process. The process isn't always landlord-friendly (especially in Illinois) but with proper guidance it's navigable. 

My story: The tenant was avoiding me because the 5-Day notice to vacate must be served in person. So I told her I was entering the property "24 hours from now" every day for about five days. After that she had no idea when or whether I was showing up, even though I had checked the box for 24 hours notice. 

Finally I did show up. I requested law enforcement to join me mainly so there'd be a witness to any bad behavior and to protect me from any accusations. It was hilarious to see her come out of her bedroom in lingerie to "negotiate" with me, only to be startled by the presence of the police officer. She grabbed a robe. Short story: I served the notice and she's gone.

Good luck! I've never done cash for keys but that's probably better and quicker. Just don't pay in advance!!! And if you decide to evict you can do that successfully. Just rely on the advice of the experts in your county courthouse.

That's very helpful - thank you!

Hi,

I have a tenant who's habitually late on his rent but usually pays. He's gainfully employed, just not real responsible. Over the last few months he's fallen further behind, incurring late fees. I'd offered him a payment plan where he would pay down the late fees over a few months rent and be caught up. However he has continued to be late, causing more late fees. 

I refuse to allow a rolling/growing total to accrue. (I've been down this road before and learned the hard way.) Yesterday I learned that his October rent check (paid two weeks late) had bounced - so he's now 32 days late. Obviously it's time to serve the five-day notice to quit. And I honestly think this will get his attention for a short while and he'll get caught up. I'm not expecting an eviction to result.

What I'm wondering though is since he has a cosigner, at what point and how do you approach a cosigner? Do any of you have an example letter to a cosigner informing them that their cosignee is delinquent (that you'd be willing to share)? At what point in a delinquency do you approach them and how do you? 

Thank you!