All Forum Posts by: Natalia Perlova

 Heat not working in the middle of winter is an emergency.  Tenant does not have to be onsite.  You as the landlord are allowed access anytime during an emergency.  You can dictate the day and time your contractor shows up to fix the emergency.  

@Natalia Perlova if the switch is in a common area and you are having trouble with the tenant especially if you think they switched the burner off deliberately (it should be a bright red switch plate in our area labeled oil burner). It would be hard to mistake for a light switch. I would put it on camera it. Typically these switches are in the vicinity of the furnace and not easily mistakenly switched off.  I would pay the bill and chalk it up to a lesson learned. Now if it was definitely a single unit and only she could do it and it was properly labled it would be on her.

 I can tell you are very new at this. You should take advice from experienced people here who have not motivation to lie to you. If your tenants have an enjoyable experience with you, as opposed to hating you, you will go far if you are self-managing. If you have turnover after turnover, you will crash and burn eventually. Yea, this may be a bad tenant, but you have to know how to manage that and not get all twisted up in back-and-forth pettiness. Just reading many of your statements if you don't change course this will be a rocky journey for you. Its up to you if you are open to advice. i have currently managed section 8 and every other asset class. Been doing it awhile and there is no reason for me to make all this up. 

@Natalia Perlova this is part of management headaches!

The tenant may be setting you up, hoping you don't respond so she has a reason to withhold payment and take YOU to court.

Natalia, I feel for you—it’s tough when you’re trying to do the right thing, and a tenant makes it harder. Especially during Christmas, situations like this can feel more personal than just business.

If it were me, I’d double-check the furnace to cover all bases (maybe bring in a second opinion) and document everything. That way, you’re protected if it escalates. At the same time, serving notice seems like the right move for your peace of mind and future plans.

How are you holding up with this during the holidays? These kinds of challenges really test us as investors.

@Natalia Perlova

1) You should have a lockbox somewhere on the property with keys to every unit so if you give notice a vendor is coming and the tenant isn't there for some reason the vendor can get access.

2) A plain light switch for something important isn't a good idea for the common area. Could have been a visiting child. Delivery person who thought they turned a light, "on." Etc. You can replace the switch to one that requires a key to move off and on. 

3) We have a repair deductible in our lease, but even so, something originating in the common area wouldn't qualify to be passed onto the tenants. Your HAP Contract certainly won't permit the Section 8 tenant to be charged and she will complain. Why not just adjust the rent to market/HUD FMR max on renewal?

The worst thing you can have in this business is your tenants hating you. The way you present things I can see this occurring eventually. 

 Send an HVAC tech out. Bill her for the service call if they are no issues with furnace. If she doesn't pay the bill refuse her next rent payment and evict her.

Agree with the last two posts. In person is always better than sending a contractor, because you get to see the unit and talk to the tenant.

Not sure where your property is located. In Milwaukee the weather can get pretty cold and we want to protect the tenant, but also the pipes in the property from freezing.

For that reason we do have a stockpile of emergency equipment which includes electric space heaters. I like small units (they don't trip breakers) and they are cheap. If heat goes out in the winter we drop off several units, so they can be placed in different parts of the house - including every room with water like kitchen and bathrooms.

We also have dehumidifiers, carpet blowers, shop vacs, puddle-sucker pumps, extra hoses, extra sump pumps with battery pack, squeegees, and portable AC units ready to deploy. 

Selfishly, being able to respond fast, mitigates damage to the property (frozen pipes, mold!), takes the edge of the emergency and buys us time to get a contractor out without having to pay for emergency hour services. And tenants really appreciate it.