I am in the process of evicting a tenant who’s boyfriend completed repairs that I did not approve before they were completed. He did a great job on the repairs and she wants to live in the property without paying rent! We agreed to have some repairs done instead of the security deposit but he completed additional repairs. When we asked for the rent they refused to give it to us and asked if we had any work they could do on one of our other properties. We filed court papers and the court date is coming up
Is there anything else we can do right now? I sent a letter to the tenant and included a referance that no agreement was made for her boyfriend to do repairs.
Any help with this would be greatly appreciated this is my second eviction.
You’re doing the right thing in evicting them. I never accept work from the tenant in lieu of anything. If they do any work, it must be approved in writing in advance and we do not give them credit toward the rent or security deposit. All improvements become a permanent part of the property and can not be later removed.
Thanks…next time I will get the repairs done first and seperately! I am concerned that the judge will give them more time because they did the extra repairs, also we just found out the tenant is involved in drugs. We sent a letter to her telling her she is in violation of the lease. Do we file seperately on this issue or can we bring it up in court with documentation of the paperwork we sent to her?
It’s always bad for the tenants to do repairs on their own. For one thing, do you have workman’s comp? If they’re injured on the job doing work for you, then you could get sued if there’s any injury. Also you can’t verify the quality of the work.
As for doing drugs, do you have a police report that says they were involved with drugs? In this state, by law you have to begin evicition procedings if you find out that your tenants are doing drugs or you’re the one that ends up in trouble. Of course it doesn’t mean that they’ll get evicted, that’s up to the judge, but you do have to begin eviction procedures.
I wouldn’t do anything else right now. Usually, evicting for non-payment of rent is the fastest. If they haven’t paid, the eviction is usually almost automatic.
I recommend that this be addressed up-front in the lease. My lease says:
ALTERATIONS, DECORATIONS, AND REPAIR – Except as provided by law, the Tenants agree not to alter or decorate the dwelling without first obtaining the Owners’ written permission. Decorations include painting and wallpapering. Further, the Tenants agree not to repair the dwelling or anything belonging to the Owners without first obtaining the Owners’ written permission unless the repairs cost less than one hundred dollars ($100.00) and the Tenants agree to pay for them. The Tenants shall hold the Owners harmless for any mechanics’ liens or proceedings that the Tenants may cause. When approved by the Owners, the Tenants’ plans for alterations and decorations shall bear a determination concerning ownership. If the Tenants are able to convince the Owners that the Tenants can remove the alterations or decorations and restore that part of their dwelling to the original condition, then the Owners may grant the Tenants permission to remove them. Otherwise, any alterations or decorations made by the Tenants become the property of the Owners when the Tenants vacate.
Then, when push comes to shove, just ask for the “written permission” to proceed with repairs as indicated in the lease…
Check your state Lanlord/Tenant laws. It should specify exactly what a tenant can do as far as repair and holding you liable even without consent.
In my state it must be a health or safety issue and must be reported to landlord prior to them doing it and subtracting the costs from the rent. This is usually done after rent has been escrowed.
It doesnt sound like that is your case but just be familiar with the law when you go into court.