All Forum Posts by: Richard C.

It is going to die. Probably soon. Solenoid switch at the very least. I don't think you can fairly call replacing a 29-year-old fridge, "pre-mature."

Replace it. Much better to do that when you can plan it, rather than scramble in some wildly inconvenient time.

And then consider incluing in your lease for your next tenant that appliances are not included, but they are free to use the ones in the house if they understand and agree that you are not going to be repairing or replacing them.

If it was my tenant, it would never have happened, because sometime during the MONTHS he was complaining to you about a mold issue, I wouldhave dealt with it. I remember your original thread.

You have gotten some dreadful advice on this tthread, which in many jurisdictions would get you your butt handed to you in court. But since it conforms to your own opinions, you want to follow it. Fine. Your choice, obviously.

But you might want to consider whether the courts in California are more like the courts on the East Coast, or like the courts in Tennessee. Just a thought.

There was a prior thread all about the mold. It seemed to me to be a real issue, and one that I am glad to see you addressing.

If you don't want to rent to the guy anymore because of this issue, then don't renew. But if you do renew, put it behind you. The tenant acted to resolve an unsafe situation that, rightly or wrongly, he had reason to believe you were not taking seriously. Chalk that up as a lesson learned and leave it in the past, or just don't renew the lease.

I am not sure how anyone could really answer that based on the information given. Personally I could never make that work in my area unless I could buy it for $150,000. But I have no idea where this is, what could be done with it, etc.

What sort of "dents?" Do you have any pictures?

You can remove small dents with an iron and a piece of wet cloth. There will be small dents created occasionally, as simple wear and tear. Especially from furniture feet.

Make sure you aren't classifying wear and tear items as damage. It is not the tenant's responsibility to turn the property back to you in the exact some condition that it was in when they rented it. It is their responsibility to turn it back undamaged. Normal wear and tear is expected, and a cost of doing business. Too many landlords forget that.

While Bill was sorta joking, that is a valid point.

People will find a way to do what they need to do. If you make it hard you not only irritate them, you increase the likelihood of damage.

Does this mean you should make it easy for them to operate a meth lab? Of course not. But the ability to wash your car in the driveway is pretty basic.

I'm confused. You winterize the spigot by having a handyman go over and replace the spigot with a freeze-proof one. They cost about $20 at Home Depot. What monitoring are you talking about?

Was the paint new when they moved in 15 months ago?

What your current applicants want matters to you, in determining whether you want to repaint at your own expense. It has no bearing on whether the "marks" you describe are actually damage.

I love the, "I'm not really lying, the building is owned by my LLC, not by me" line. And by "Love" I mean "Hate."

Ask yourself this. If you were qualifying a tenant, and they said, "I'm not self-employed, see here are my pay stubs from XYZ, LLC!" What would your reaction be if you later found out that the tenant is the sole owner of XYZ, LLC?

Be a grownup, deal with people honestly and with respect, and expect and demand the same in return.

I have a 100 lb black lab. We also have a cat. If anyone were renting to us, they SHOULD be far, far more concerned with the cat.

I would MUCH rather allow a tenant one large dog than 2 cats.

In practice, I allow both. But I can and do charge a pet fee. For SFR residences in my area, the ability to have pets is definately assumed, and so the market basically requires it.