What Is A Problem Tenant
At some point you decided to become a landlord and rent your property to tenants. You probably dreamed of the perfect tenant who always paid the rent on time, and kept the property in a pristine manner. Perhaps your dream included your renter spending their own time and money to make improvements to the property.
Welcome to reality. As a landlord, your chances of having a problem tenant can be very high, especially with the more rental properties you own and the less research you do on your prospective tenants.
Some examples of common issues with a problem tenant include:
- They don’t pay the rent, or they bounce checks
- They trash the house
- They don’t pay the utilities (if stated in their rental agreement)
- They have pets when you don’t allow them
- They throw late-night parties
- They violate your rental agreement
- They are conducting illegal activities in your rental
- Their conduct threatens other’s safety or health
Your problem tenant may exhibit any number of these behaviors. A common issue that problem renters have is conflicts with your other renters. There may be fights, verbal disagreements, or perhaps nightly visits by the police that disrupt the peace and quiet of your other renters.
Address & Document
When your problem tenants are causing issues, make sure you address the problems as they occur. Additionally, ensure that you document all the problems and your actions as they come about. For instance, if your tenant is not paying the rent, provide them written notice for failure to pay the rent, giving them a specific timeframe with which to comply. If their transgression is that they have a cat and your landlord-tenant agreement does not allow for pets, provide them written notice that you have identified that violation of the rental contract, providing them a certain timeframe to get into compliance. Remember that tenants as well as landlords have rights. Wise and experienced landlords become very familiar with the regulations in their city, county, and state. Get to know the landlord-tenant law in your area.
How to prevent problem tenants?
- Interview your prospective tenants
- Do background checks on your potential tenants
- If it is legal in your area, also get the prospective tenant’s credit history
- Get references from your potential tenants and do the reference checks
- Ensure your rental agreement is written and signed, and preferably reviewed by a housing attorney prior to being signed
- Treat all applicants and tenants with proper respect, even if they are problem renters
To ensure you have the law on your side, make sure you always pay your taxes on time. Also ensure your properties are all up to the code and standards as set by your county and state. Additionally, it is a wise idea to have insurance on your rental properties in case something happens to them. Some policies will pay to repair damage done by the tenant.
What to do with a problem tenant?
One of the first things that you should do is to document all the misbehaviors that your tenant has committed. Documentation will come in handy should you need to move to eviction proceedings. The next step is to contact an experienced
real estate attorney or
tenant eviction attorney. Eviction actions can then be started. Sometimes you can work out the problems you are having with a tenant through mediation. If that is the case, retain the documentation of the problem as well as the resolution.