All Forum Posts by: Jeremy Szymankowski

@Bill Brandt

Yea, the cigarette residual in the air just hits you when you walk into the place. The pictures don't entirely do justice. But yea, being in Vegas, rents have rocketed, so I'm hoping to get an additional $200+/month after all the renovations... new paint, new floors, and new appliances.

But as you said, I'm just thankful she got out of there when she did, and didn't make it that much more difficult. I've heard of plenty of horror stories of tenants just squating indefinitely and the landlord having to now work around the system to get them out..

Some sort of justice must be found in the middle to help both tenants and landlords equally.

 And thanks for considering the option Jim. I just felt that the hassle and process to go through isn't worth my time for a couple thousand dollars. As nice as it would be to have that extra couple thousand for something else, I'm coming to terms with just accepting what has happened and learning from the mistakes. Plus, our time is too precious to waste more of it on what was initially a nuisance. 

Well, since she wasn't paying July's rent, the eviction was set in motion, and by the time she got out, it was now August. So, in a sense, her security deposit mainly only covered 1 month of the rent. And yea, this whole thing is a learning experience. I'll be more vigilant with knowing when someone's smoking in a unit from now on. But like you mentioned, just going to have to fix everything, and get it back on the rental market. 

It helps to have a financial cushion, but it just hurts having to eat into so much of it when it wasn't expected.. but then again, we're told to expect the unexpected which now makes the unexpected well... expected.

Here's a couple photos for some amusement 

Well, for an update pertaining to the situation, the tenant has vacated the premises and left a major mess behind.

Smoke smell and stains all throughout the condo.

All appliances need to be replaced.

Cabinets and fixtures need repairs.

Is this typical of an eviction? Does insurance or anything cover this sort of ordeal ?

How is it on the landlord to pay for all this.

The security deposit from her only covered last month's rent, so I'm pretty much at a loss with fixing everything else myself at this point...

Thank you for all the advice and guidance everyone. It helps put a bit of ease throughout the process considering I've only been landlording for a couple years, and this is my first rough tenant experience. Knowing how to handle and approach troublemakers is certainly a learning experience and so it'll prepare me for future circumstances.

My PM said the tenant should have been locked out yesterday, so now it's a matter of seeing how orderly or disorderly she has left the place. I should know more within the week.

@Bjorn Ahlblad

I was managing the property in the beginning, but the tenant was complaining about every little thing along with constantly paying late that I just hired the property manager 2 months ago to help with these concerns.

My property manager notified me that my tenant hadn't paid rent and an eviction process was set into motion. After she didn't pay within the week and a hearing was setup, which she did not appear as well, she ordered a "stay" which the judge denied.

Tenant sent me a message saying she slipped in the tub and broke her foot which is why she didn't show, but she has always been late paying rent and always finds some sort of excuse.

She says her "attorney will be notifying me".

Should I be worried. She's in her 60s and has been an issue from day 1. Is it my fault she claims to have slipped in the tub ?

Thank you for all the valuable feedback. This is certainly a learning experience. I suppose trying to play the nice guy isn't the best approach here. This is business, and I need to protect my investments with authority. 

I have made it more clear here, and from now on I will be sure to be up front and forward about the necessary steps needed to secure a tenant, while protecting myself as well. Thank you !!

Thanks For the reply Mike! Soneone else told me I should give a deadline,  so I'll definitely be sure to do that. And yea, I brought up their notice that their lease is expiring, but if their mom was going to start living there,  then I assumed I would need to do a whole new lease and application. 

My current tenant has been with me for a year, and their lease is expiring at the end of the month. 

I listed my condo for rent online, but in the process, my current tenant said they would like their mom to move in to retain the residency and keep their furniture inside the condo. So, I gave the mother an application to complete, and it took her nearly a week to complete it and get it back to me. During this time, I had received many inquiries, and had another woman fill out an application in which she completed within the day. This woman is prompt, communicative, and seemed very excited for the condo. I would certainly feel comfortable moving forward with her in the application if I weren't working with the current tenant though. 

So what do I do then? The current tenant paid on time, and took care of the property, and so I trust that if their mother takes over, things will still remain orderly. She has good credit, and no debt, but she has just been very slow at filling out the papers and getting back to me. Now I am waiting for some paystubs and bank statements. After that, we'll have to do the final lease paperwork, along with the security deposit and I don't want each of these to take a week to receive.

Is there any courteous approach in telling her that I need these papers or I will have to move on to an alternative candidate? I would just like her to be a little more prompt throughout all this, though I feel this is out of my control. Should I just go with the person who is more prompt and communicative? 

Note: This is my first condo I am land lording for.