Tenant-caused property damage that cannot be recouped

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
OP is just incredibly dumb. Their maid doesn't want to clean (not at the rate OP is paying), so she tells OP it can't be cleaned, and OP believes her and throws the appliance out. Ha!

You really struggle with reading comprehension, don’t you?

I’m sorry. That must be challenging to live with.

[Anonymous]

I am definitely refocusing my efforts on my Section 8 properties. Saves a lot of the drama and fraud.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am definitely refocusing my efforts on my Section 8 properties. Saves a lot of the drama and fraud.

I bake into my Sec 8 properties the need to replace at least appliances when tenants move out. I have a good source for second hand appliances and a handyman who pulls together a crew to do the work needed. I jack up the rent and have never been refused because the properties are in "nice" condition and most have five legit bedrooms.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I also found dead roaches in these areas. The property had been treated which is why they were dead.

Sauté the roaches in ghee, serve over rice pilaf. Yum!

Wait -- I thought that was the latest recipe for pet dogs and cats!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I can't get past "quarterly walk-throughs." I rented for years and no landlord ever required this. If you need that level of control, you're not cut out to be a landlord.

Same. If a landlord asked to walk-through my apartment ever three months, I'd tell them to F off.

Most landlords don't but your lease might allow it. It could also be to your benefit because the landlord might know about problems in the property that show signs of re-emerging and save your the bother of having to move out if an icemaker line breaks and floods the apartment or a recurring electrical issue. If something occurs and you would not allow the landlord the property, the insurance carriers may put the blame on you for not following the lease. BTDT

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I mean, messes in kitchens are pretty typical, no? I thought you were going to say the walls were now unstable/the house was uninhabitable and the renters were bankrupt.

+1 yeah this isn't that bad. our tenants stuck a huge kiddie pool on our nicely manicured lawn and killed a massive patch of grass.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If the sticky liquid and crumbs fell "where they could not be cleaned safely," how did you expect the tenants to clean them up?

Yeah, I own and I know that behind my stove it's probably terrifying. Oh well!

This is not a renter/owner divide.

As a real estate agent, I can assure you that most of the kitchens I see before putting a house on the market appear to be clean but are filthy when cabinet and pantry doors are opened, range hoods are touched, and fridges are moved. Cleaners I used typically spend from 2 to 4 hours cleaning a kitchen.

+1 OP would be sad about the state of our refrigerator and oven and we're not even renters!

[Anonymous]

Got to say this seems like an easy prob to solve, OP. Agree w previous poster who said thought the post would be about smell in drywall or floors. Even people who don’t have cats can leave residue. I also agree that being a LL is not for everyone. Good tenants are hard to come by and a few kitchen spills seem hardly problematic when compared to pee in the utility sink, cat urine, smoking and non payment of rent etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just an FYI for those of you considering becoming landlords around here, and for filthy tenants.

I just had a family move out of one of my properties due to lease non-renewal. I had seen enough damage done to the property while they lived there that it wasn’t worth the rental income. I do quarterly walkthroughs.

I pulled all of the appliances out of the kitchen and found multiple sticky spills that were never cleaned and some type of food crumbs behind and inside of all of the appliances. The oven was such a mess that I had to throw it out. The sticky liquid and crumbs had fallen where they could not be cleaned safely. The interior of the refrigerator was filled with a sticky liquid that they had tried to clean but it had already seeped into the seams of the shelves so they had to be thrown out.

I also found dead roaches in these areas. The property had been treated which is why they were dead.

Tenants- your filth is your problem, not your property manager’s. This place is more disgusting than a frat house.

I'm a landlord, too, and you've got to be kidding me.

Some crumbs??

Sticky spots (that they even tried to clean?!?)

A few roaches behind appliances??

How old was the stove you had to throw away in the first place?

How on earth did you not recoup your money from their deposit?

You definitely aren't cut out to be a landlord.

This sounds like troll bait to me and if it's not, you should get out of the landlord business and get into AirBnB's.

Short term rentals are far more appropriate for someone with such ridiculously high expectations and overwhelming control issues.

BTW, don't bring this to court, the judge will laugh you out of the courtroom.

Signed,
Landlord of 18 years.

Nah. There’s no way in hail I’m staying in an Airbnb with roaches

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You threw out an over because of some sticky stuff and crumbs? WTF.

Roaches. Did you miss that?

Most tenants are not roach caretakers. I would know.

Dead roaches. This is not "unrecoupable propoerty damage." Get over yourself.

Amen. I was picturing them having backed a truck into a structural wall. Landlording is not for you, OP.

[Anonymous]

And that is why I have no desire to be a landlord. Even in a higher end property, you still get crazy tenants that dont' take basic care and can easily cause way more damages than the "deposit".

[Anonymous]

Crumbs and stickiness are definitely not an issue. Just get a good cleaner

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:ALL of that sounds retrievable, because my husband does this kind of mess regularly, and I always manage to clean it. For the baked-on stuff in the oven, you need to break out the toxic cleaning agents, though, which I hate to do, and it can leave scratch marks. The fridge seams can be cleaned with patience and ingenuity.

You are not cut out to be a landlord, OP, if you think that sort of mess is not salvageable. Also, you have no idea what actual damage some renters can do if you think this is bad!

Totally agree. I'm personally a total neatnik, but I've been a landlord, and I'm realistic about how most people leave rental property. Go on Youtube and there are videos of how to clean stoves with baked on goo. (Pro tip: spray the inside and outside of the oven with oven cleaner and wrap the outside with Saran Wrap. Leave it for a few hours, and wipe off.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Huh? LL here. None of that sounds terrible. You aren’t LL material, sorry. You have to learn to chill

You have to learn to read your lease.

I’m renting in the DMV and my lease clearly states that the tenants are responsible for pests that result from their belongings. It’s a clause I signed when I moved in. If your landlord doesn’t include that clause, they are novices.

I think the point is that we’re all trying to figure out why OP *threw away appliances* instead of cleaning them? Yes it sounds like withholding part of the security deposit makes sense but I’m unclear how an oven gets ruined due to crumbs?

OP here- two appliances were broken (cracked) and I withheld the security deposit to replace them. I already explained what happened with the spill in the refrigerator. The oven is built in, not freestanding, so doors can’t be removed without removing the unit. The maid service tried to clean it and told me this. So I’m replacing it.

Classic. You weren't getting any sympathy, so now the story has changed. The appliances were "broken," but you just failed to mention that in the OP & focused on the fact that they were dirty?

Not to mention your story about not being able to clean the oven still doesn't make any sense. It doesn't make any sense that the doors to the ovens can't be cleaned without taking them off, and, even if you needed to do that, "built in" ovens slide in and out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yupppppp bad tenants can be the worst - that’s why it’s important to treat good tenants with respect and kindness. They’re like gold. I’d rather rent to a good person at below market value than raise rent constantly and get bad people like you’re describing.

Sorry OP Hope you made them put down a chunky security deposit to at least recoup some of the money. Sucks that people like this exist since it forces landlords to require such high security deposits + first and last month rent upfront.

Also yeah if you need to spend 4-5 hours cleaning an oven and you make 100/hr at your job, throw out the oven. Time is money.

That pure stupidity the ones paying low are the ones that are not high end. Look for market rate and do strong credit check and rental history