Depressed landlord - painful and rude tenant (Boston: renters, hotels)

[BruinsGirl]

We had to help our relatives to get an apartment in December.
They are pretty much low income, but together they do make about $6K a month. They were looking for about $1400-1500 in Ashburnham - Gardner - Fitchburg area and found several.
Credit scores were low, but history of renting was pretty good. Good reviews from 2 previous landlords.

I couldn't believe my eyes. Apparently landlords are now checking credit scores. They had to pay about 6 months of rent aside from having a cosigner!

[wolfgang239]

Cash for keys. They can drag this out for months and end up costing you money in lost rent, utilities, legal fees etc. Just offer them $5k to leave and save the headache.

Edit: Nevermind just read the last sentence, apparently you already tried that!

[newenglandgal123]

Originally Posted by BruinsGirl

We had to help our relatives to get an apartment in December.
They are pretty much low income, but together they do make about $6K a month. They were looking for about $1400-1500 in Ashburnham - Gardner - Fitchburg area and found several.
Credit scores were low, but history of renting was pretty good. Good reviews from 2 previous landlords.

I couldn't believe my eyes. Apparently landlords are now checking credit scores. They had to pay about 6 months of rent aside from having a cosigner!

Since when did $6K a month become low income?! That's $72K per year if it's after taxes....definitely not wealthy but certainly wouldn't call it low income.

[matrix5k]

Originally Posted by newenglandgal123

Since when did $6K a month become low income?! That's $72K per year if it's after taxes....definitely not wealthy but certainly wouldn't call it low income.

That sounds very high for Fitchburg!

[BruinsGirl]

Originally Posted by newenglandgal123

Since when did $6K a month become low income?! That's $72K per year if it's after taxes....definitely not wealthy but certainly wouldn't call it low income.

Well, each of them are making about $15-$17 an hour which for Massachusetts of 2023 is pretty low, but of course it is enough to rent apartment they were looking for.
They had a good renting history, but bad pretty weak credit history.

[Beachcomber4]

Good luck. Start the process asap. It is going to take time and money. We had top notch tenants in our rental but decided to sell after first hand knowledge of the hell some tenants put landlords through and how difficult the state makes it to evict. That along with the chance to cash out during a seller’s market and this rising entitlement and anti-landlord (not even supposed to use that word) sentiment of people who feel victimized by those who dare rent out property to provide them a place to live. Not worth the headaches.

[cb2008]

Originally Posted by Basic2020

Thank you. I gave them the 30-day notice but they don't seem to care. They are very confident that MA law is towards tenants. If they prefer going through hard way, can you tell me how bad the situation will be? I am worried I will lose the house-selling season and land up getting back the house in fall.

If you wanted to be in the business of real estate trading you should not have been in the rental business. Tenants are people with real lives. I suggest you leave them alone until they find a suitable place. Sell it when you get it back. You will a a avoid a lot of stress and anxiety and gain some goodwill. They are paying you rent on time. Be thankful.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by cb2008

If you wanted to be in the business of real estate trading you should not have been in the rental business. Tenants are people with real lives. I suggest you leave them alone until they find a suitable place. Sell it when you get it back. You will a a avoid a lot of stress and anxiety and gain some goodwill. They are paying you rent on time. Be thankful.

I certainly appreciate your empathy (that's often lacking in these discussions), but the tenants made it clear to the OP that they're not going to even attempt to find another place. So doing nothing means they're staying in perpetuity. Unfortunately, this seems like a scenario where the property owner needs to take action.

[cb2008]

Originally Posted by lrfox

I certainly appreciate your empathy (that's often lacking in these discussions), but the tenants made it clear to the OP that they're not going to even attempt to find another place. So doing nothing means they're staying in perpetuity. Unfortunately, this seems like a scenario where the property owner needs to take action.

There needs to be a balance. The family is working hard, raising a child, paying the rent. There is presently a housing crunch everywhere. We have homeless people everywhere in the richest country in the world. Many Americans cannot afford food AND rent. Children need the security of a home and their school. It is great we have landlords and their business is an ethical contribution to society. Yes they own the property but they also have an ethical responsibility towards people and children.
The property always belongs to the owner, and it is an asset that is only going to appreciate. In the mean time it is producing income. To start a legal case over this is going to take all his time, money, and peace of mind. Peace of mind is priceless.
He can afford to be patient and he will make his profit. I am glad i live in a state that protects renters rights.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by cb2008

There needs to be a balance. The family is working hard, raising a child, paying the rent. There is presently a housing crunch everywhere. We have homeless people everywhere in the richest country in the world. Many Americans cannot afford food AND rent. Children need the security of a home and their school. It is great we have landlords and their business is an ethical contribution to society. Yes they own the property but they also have an ethical responsibility towards people and children.
The property always belongs to the owner, and it is an asset that is only going to appreciate. In the mean time it is producing income. To start a legal case over this is going to take all his time, money, and peace of mind. Peace of mind is priceless.
He can afford to be patient and he will make his profit. I am glad i live in a state that protects renters rights.

The need for balance extends two ways, though. The tenant didn't say "we will not be able to find anything else." They said, "we won't be able to find nice houses." I can see the "ethical obligation" argument if we're talking about putting a family on the street. But that's not what's happening. The landlord gave the tenants 6 months notice to vacate, and the tenants said "we refuse because we won't get a place we like as much." They're essentially holding the landlord hostage over personal preferences, not the potential lack of shelter. That's not right or fair.