I have inherited tenants who changed the locks. Anytime I visit, they are either not home or refuse to anwser the door - which I am more inclined to believe. I have already gave them their 60 day notice to vacate - 60 days is required in my state under their circumstances - however I suspect they are not going to pay the rent next month so a three day notice may be in their future. I am debating on how to proceed. My thoughts are to change the locks, then if they are home give them a new key. If not, wait around until the return and then give them a key. My fear is that they know what I am doing, spend the night somewhere else and after I leave claim that I locked them out. Any suggestions?
Did you try giving them a written notice that they must give you a copy of the new key?
You do know that you can get a locksmith out there to make you a copy of the key that opens the locks they put on. You can get a key without changing the locks and risking a charge that you locked them out.
Don’t do anything at all without giving them the proper written notice that you are going to be by to work on the house. Just in case they are the rare tenant who actually fights instead of just making empty threats.
I always suspect that there are drugs in the house when the tenant won’t allow anyone inside. But just follow the legal procedure to get them out. Do it legal, be done with them, and move on.
I hope you got a really good deal because the seller was tired of dealing with them.
These guys have got to go. Did they have a lease? What did it say about rekeying locks? Mine says that tenants must request in writing to have locks rekeyed. It also says that I can enter the residence to make repairs. I would enter the premises change the locks. I would place signs all over the outside of the house stating that I have changed the locks and to call my cell number listed on the sign to get a copy of the new key. Say explicitly that they are not locked out and I will be there to give them a new key within 30 minutes of them calling me no matter what time they call. I would then take pictures of all the signs all over the house for the judge. I would also send them a bill for the “repair”. If they don’t pay I would evict.
The laws vary from state to state and province. If the law in your area says you have to give them a 60 day notice to change the locks, you can’t change locks today. That’s the law. It’s a legal question specific to your area and it’s best to talk to your lawyer.
I’ve had this happen to me before and had to give them notice and request a trial date to get an order from the judge to get a key on a specific date or else the locks will be changed. The guy had the nerve to tell me I had no right to a key and he’d call the police if I kept harassing him about it. I couldn’t reason with him and there was nothing else I could do. But, that was specific to my area. It may be different in your area.
You could say you had a locksmith unlock it because of an emergency and had to change the locks to relock it, ex., a broken water pipe with water leaking into the apartment below, but you better have your story straight to tell the police if they have a burglar alarm setup and it goes off and the police show up. If you don’t, you could be charged with break and enter. Not all tenants who change the locks do it because of drugs. Some are just mentally ill and stopped taking their meds and their condition deteriorated. That’s what you get when you buy bargain priced buildings and don’t have the proper due diligence and inspection clauses in your purchase agreement.
Did you get a lease agreement when you bought the place? When you ask several landlords, they might not give you the same answer. I’ve had some managers say that if the tenant does not want you in their home, it isn’t worth the liability to enter against their will. I’ve known other landlords that follow the letter of local law, but they will enter even if the tenant tells them not to.
I use standard lease agreements which allow me to enter for maintenance and repairs.
I would not get rid of a good tenant just because they want the security of assuring that the locks have been changed; the law in my area would allow me to post a 24 hour notice and have a locksmith come out and make me a key.
If, on the other hand, these people want to keep you out because they are destroying the place or breaking the law, then I just set aside a few hours every day to give as good as I get. Give however much notice is required by your local juristiction, and enter to perform the routine maintenance of changing the HVAC filters, or inspect the sink drains for water leaks, or the bathroom for mold…whatever, then make a list of anything and everything you can think of that puts them in breach of lease agreement. Fire hazards, storage in inappropriate areas termite hazards, I’m pretty sure you can think of a few things, and start serving them notices of breach of lease agreement.
If all else fails, you can usually give these folks an eviction notice (30 60 or 90 days, depeding on your local laws) to “remodel.”
Like I said, I would figure out whether these folks are just paranoid or genuine scumbags, and decide what to do after that.
Thank you everyone. I never thought of having a locksmith come out to make a key. That maybe the way to go. Anyway I go I will do everything in writting, including giving them 24 hours notice that a locksmith and I will be stopping by.
Got a really good deal. SFR worth $310,000 bought for $160,000, rents for $2,400. Last owner said that sometimes they pay him half the rent other times no rent. He’s an out of state owner, tired of dealing with the tenants. They have been there over a year on a month-to-month - nothing in writing - so here (California) I am required to give them 60 days notice if I evict without cause. If they were there less than a year, I would only be required to give 30 days notice. Either way, I have a feeling come the first of the month, I’ll be posting a 3 day notice.
What are the time periods in CA if you evict WITH cause? If you post a 24hr notice on the residence that you will be going in for an inspection, and you find issues that are in breach of contract, you now have a cause. You can post a 3 day cure/quit notice, then after that you can proceed with the eviction with cause.