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If the tenant is in default it speeds up the process... month to month in good standing you need to follow the procedure with either a 30 or 60 if required.
Lease in good standing simply opt not to renew.
If this were in my rent control city and I felt as you do it would be an easy choice to turn it over to a firm that specializes in evictions and represents exclusively owners...
For a fee the firm will take over the entire process... when the tenant reaches out to you don't answer or simply refer to your attorney.
The battle is already lost if the tenants are dodging you... don't lose the war.
One more time: Hire a LOCAL attorney to manage the eviction for you.
Maybe your RE agent there can recommend someone to use...
but based on what else they've done (and not done) for you to date I'd be very suspect of them.
That's my plan Rational. One last chance with the process server, then 5 day notices to pay rent or quit. Any time that process fails I'm headed to a lawyer.
If the tenant is in default it speeds up the process... month to month in good standing you need to follow the procedure with either a 30 or 60 if required.
Lease in good standing simply opt not to renew.
If this were in my rent control city and I felt as you do it would be an easy choice to turn it over to a firm that specializes in evictions and represents exclusively owners...
For a fee the firm will take over the entire process... when the tenant reaches out to you don't answer or simply refer to your attorney.
The battle is already lost if the tenants are dodging you... don't lose the war.
Thanks 'Runner. That's my plan too.
I think my next move is the notice I'm not renewing the lease conversion to month-to-month, and then beginning next month the 5 day notice to pay rent or quit.
I should know shortly if they want to take it the easy way or the hard way. If the hard way I guess I'll have to get a local lawyer.
It would be nice if there were a Terminex for lame tenants.
It's Arizona. There is no rent control. AZ is a landlord friendly state. That's why I picked it.
I still don't understand how good tenants for 18 months could turn into the tenants from hell in 6 short months. As everybody must realize, you can screen your tenants PRESENT but you cannot screen for their FUTURE.
I have no idea why they turned into tenants from hell. All I know is everything I have tried to get them back to their old good tenant days has failed.
I'll have the non-renewal notice posted by a process server next week. That will be plenty of notice to meet ARLTA and our lease notification requirements.
........I still don't understand how good tenants for 18 months could turn into the tenants from hell in 6 short months. As everybody must realize, you can screen your tenants PRESENT but you cannot screen for their FUTURE........
A couple of reasons. They discovered that you don't do anything when they pay late, so they have zero motivation to pay on time. They pay their other bills first and spend to party, because you do nothing when they don't pay you.
Maybe they are planning on leaving at the end of their lease., That means they don't need you any more. It is very common for tenants to only show their true colors after they decide to move out. They will turn uncooperative or even rude. They stop taking care of the property, which makes no sense because they are thinking they will get their full deposit back. I don't understand that, but many of them do it. They are people who are only polite when they need something from you.
As for carefully screened tenants who change into bad tenants in the future, as soon as they do that, I kick them out. That's the only way to deal with it.
Tenants can turn bad when there is a divorce or a job loss, and (this one is a biggy) when they move in a new girlfriend or boyfriend
OWS, I agree with all. From my end all I know is I screened them properly and they were perfect tenants for 18 months, and then something changed. From my point of view it doesn't matter what changed. I can't help them fix it. The only thing I can do is get rid of them.
I'm going to hire a process server on Monday to serve them that they are going bye bye at their lease expiration. Furthermore I'm going to serve them 5 day notice to pay rent or quit notices each month, beginning next month for the late fee they didn't pay this month. My lease says I can charge them $50/service which covers most of my cost, and we'll see what happens. One way or another they will be either gone in about 3 months or in the middle of an eviction lawsuit.
Does anybody know if the landlord has to be present in court if it comes to that? Or can my lawyer appear on my behalf as long as I supply the necessary documentation?
I sure feel stupid. I decided to read the lease again. It's the standard AZ Board of Realtors lease. Lines 250-253 state:
Quote:
Notices: Unless provided for by statute or by agreement between the parties, all notices herein shall be in writing and shall be delivered to Landlord at the address set forth herein and to Tenant at the Premises and shall be sent by registered or certified mail, or personally delivered. Such notice shall be deemed received on the date the notice is actually received or five (5) days after the notice was mailed by registered or certified mail, whichever occurs first.
Reading that it appears to me that I don't need any process server at all. All I need is to mail their termination of tenancy notice via certified mail, and they have been officially notified when my tracking shows the notice was delivered. -- No signature required!
Does that make sense to everybody? Just notify them by certified mail and I'm done?
and at this point I just want them out of the house and to put the property up for sale.
We've been there and have that t-shirt.
Being a landlord these days is tough regardless of whether you are a good one or a bad one. Perhaps it always was but we sold our rentals a few years ago and have not looked back except to peer into this forum every now and again and remember how bad it really was.
These days I would not wish a landlord's job on my worse enemies.
PS: We were landlords in Texas but whatever you do, if your Arizona tenants speak Spanish, make sure your notices are in Spanish and in English.
The biggest "problem" I have is that I want to be a nice guy, I want to treat my tenants well, I want them to be happy in their home, I want to get any repairs done as quickly as I'm notified, I just want to be a good landlord.
And from my experience at least 3/4 of my tenants have been equally good tenants.
It's that damned 10% or 20% who for whatever reason will take advantage of the situation, will act in bad faith, will cheat or lie or steal if they can get away with it.
The problem is that most people in the world (I hope) want to be good people and treat their fellow man fairly. But in the real world there are selfish, spoiled, vindictive people who don't care about their fellow man and will take advantage if at all possible.
One of the reasons I'm sad I became a landlord is because my faith in the goodness of my fellow humans has been lessened, I've lost some of my optimism in the goodness of people.
At this moment I'm thinking of sending the termination letter tomorrow via certified mail, AND hiring a process server ($60-$70) just to have a backup, kind of belt and suspenders ya know? I think with both types of services I should have an eviction case pretty much nailed down. I'm hoping to put enough psychological pressure on the tenants that they will realize they can battle if they want but that it will be a losing battle for them.
I hope they will just give up and start making plans to move out by their lease termination date.
p.s. My lease has a clause that in the event of arbitration or litigation that the loser will pay the winner's legal fees. Collecting on a judgement I don't know.
Being in business most definitely affected my perception of people in general... it's mostly from being blindsided...
My very first leasing experience went very bad and I thought I was done... the property owner decided I had potential and didn't accept my resignation.
The school of hard knock, learning from mistakes all factor going forward.
My simple rule that has served me well is it's over when a tenant starts Dodging you...
Does that make sense to everybody? Just notify them by certified mail and I'm done?
Duh Sherlock, you were told that a long time ago by several others, you just (once again) decide to make things as complicated and unnecessary and as messed up as you can instead of doing it the simple and right way.
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