The reality of this is it's not surprising.The fact that they cleaned the inside living in it that long is a miracle.Usually people that have lived somewhere 10,15,20 years etc. accumulate a ton of junk.This is why when a bank forecloses and they offer the former owner 2,000 to leave in "broom swept condition" many times they seller will deny the cash for keys.The reason is most likely they are downsizing and the amount of money to rent trash bins and pay a truck to move their extra stuff combined with storage rental fees is a losing proposition.They come out way ahead by simply leaving all the trash there and sell off the rest and taking the leftover essentials to the next place.We would see this all the time on the REO side.If they didn't have much stuff and only lived there a few years cash for keys was more successful.You would need to prove they dumped it there.I would just get it hauled away and move on.If it's a short sale at least in my area the former owners are on the verge of bankruptcy and it's a waste of time and energy to go after them.

Perhaps selling,and thus burning my bridge and safety net, will give me even more motivation to become successful in real estate.

This was a magistrate court judge in Gwinnett county, GA.I had to pay $17,500 to a tenant that burned down my rental house, the fire report clearly said it was their fault.

. ;-)I wouldn't spend too much time and energy on one until you acquire about 3-4 rentals, 2-3 years experience managing them, and begin seeking private investors/partners to grow your business or try to get financing through a portfolio lender or commercial bank.

Right now, it's a mix of private lending (via LendingClub) and precious metals/energy juniors (stocks).

electrical burns down the house?

Hey Ann, Thanks for the reply, but a hard money loan is pretty much out of the question b/c of the cost of capital.I could pay cash for it, but would rather lock in financing at 3-4% rather than burn through the cash reserves.

So they misbehave because they have pent up energy they're not getting out.

I know I've done that with the heat, but because I've never had a landlord pay for that, I was the only one who got burned (no pun intended...well maybe).Thanks again for the information.

I've caught the RE bug and have been burned out sitting behind the desk.