LL Question — WWYD re: Lease renewal

[WorldKlas]

Originally Posted by HokieFan

I realize your question is directed to LL, which I am not, but some things to just think about:

When the repair happens, will water service to the house be disrupted? If so, for how long? If for an extended duration, would it be better for the house to be vacant during the repair? (Someone I know had their bathroom & kitchen renovated this summer, and they had no water for 6 weeks )

Is it worth $1200 to find new tenants? Maybe so if they are high maintenance and don't treat the property well. Maybe not if you consider the advertising, screening, etc. etc. with putting new tenants in place.

Good things to think about. Our insurance covers temp housing for tenants if such an unlikely issue arises. We certainly would offer the tenants any reasonable options including waiving rent if they chose to stay with family (both sets of their parents are local), releasing from lease, or providing temp housing.

The DFW rental market is very hot. I always charge reasonable rent. In 30 years as a LL, I have never had a house go uncommitted more than 3 weeks. I do my own screening and tenants pay for the credit/background verifications. Yes, there is cost in tenant turnover — usually because I use the time and some funds to do updates to the property. So, no, not worried about tenant turnover. But these folks have “dibs” on the house and I consider it highly unethical to remove them from the lease if they want to reside there.

I’m told that these days, sewer pipe repairs entail inserting new liners in the old systems. Much less disruptive, and likely done in 1-2 days. We just need to get a fix on the actual repairs needed.

[NYCresident2014]

I'm also a LL and I have a different opinion.

I think you should stick with your standard progression. If the unit really is $200/mo below market, then you're giving them a bargain by offering to renew at +$100/mo. If they choose to move out, you'll end up with a new tenant at +$200/mo. Sure, you may lose a month's rent, but your new tenants may stay 2+ years at the higher rate (plus you can increase THAT rate next year).

This is going to sound nasty, but really it's not- the new tenants won't know about the issue. If it isn't completely solved before they move in, it sounds as though you'll be able to get it done shortly thereafter. Honestly, new tenants shouldn't really care as long as it's fixed quickly- it's not their house. Again, I know I'm going to get flamed by all the non-LLs on here, but if you're going to get the problem fixed then I really don't see any moral issues here.