I am not keen on returning any of this money back to the main tenant as it is very evident that the damage he has caused on the property with a rotating cast of characters and a pet is likely significantly higher than $2000.5) Legal fees and other costs: Can we include a demand for unpaid rent, legal fees, and other costs in the eviction process for our tenant or does this have to be a different suit?

How do you handle pets? 

@Jesse Santos whenever a prospective tenant wants to negotiate I tell them: “sure we’re always willing to accept more”, and then I don’t say another word.As a rule of thumb, if you enter into the negotiating game with a prospective tenant early on, you will be living with that their entire tenancy on all their maintenance requests, late payments, pet requests, etc.They have already shown you who they are as you thought the initial negotiations were over and then they brought you to round two.

Creative strategy -Monthly Pet fee?

On top of that TenantCloud treats every lease add on (parking fee, pet fee, late fee etc.) as new ACH deposit.

I have all 3 rooms already occupied and have no pet policy.

For example, I mention that every adult must pay a $30 application fee, pass my credit/criminal background, make a combined income of 3x the rent, and whether or not the property accepts pets.

Consult your exterminator, also, as some infestations are difficult to address.If they're going after the pet food, you can be certain they're into the other food stuffs as well for them and your other tenants, if it's a multi.

That might be adding a washer/dryer, dishwaher, microwave hood, or even just allowing pets.

Consider all the things that could go wrong and see if the lease addresses them: unauthorized pets or tenants, early termination, security deposit, lease violations, late rent, eviction, lawn maintenance, parking, etc.5.