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Good advice. At this point, there probably isn't time to force him to stop through legal means. Even though he's removed his property, his lease runs through the end of the month. So we'll just let his "repairs" happen, then reopen the walls that he's covering, and bring in a licensed contractor to review the "repairs". We want to be code-compliant, so we don't have a problem bringing someone in to review the property. Also, it's a simple property - sheet metal building - with not much to it.
The tenant is now actually damaging the building. Ex. He pushed a wall far out of alignment. He tried (key word) to straighten it, then made holes in the concrete floor to secure it.
We should have enough material to defend our position in court. This tenant has broken the lease in so many ways. Yesterday, we received a piece of mail: the tenant, a sole proprietor who went out of business, has apparently formed a corporation listed in his spouse's name and home address, but he is operating it out of our property. A background investigation may yield useful information for any legal action. Does anyone have experience with these?
Also, this tenant is threatening to make trouble for us if we don't refund his entire deposit. How would you handle that?
Go in and take pictures. (you have that right under your lease, or you should have) Put in writing why you are not returning the deposit and send copies of the pictures with the letter. BESURE THEY HAVE TO SIGN FOR THE LETTER. I just went through this and spent almost $4,000.00 on repairs. The tenant asked me what I was going to do if the repairs cost more than their deposit and I told them I would be billing them for the difference. They wouldn't give me the address they were moving to or their new phone number. Do not let them make any repairs. That too should be in your lease.
Well, the latest is that the tenant refuses to leave, is doing his own repairs, has gotten a city building permit (not sure how, since he's not the owner) and has inspectors crawling all over the premises. The inspector seems very hostile to us as landlords and is approving everything. Keep in mind that there's a difference between "to code" and "aesthetic".
The lease does specifically state that any alterations / repairs must be preapproved in writing. That hasn't stopped the tenant. The tenant is also telling us what he's not going to do.
Well, the latest is that the tenant refuses to leave, is doing his own repairs, has gotten a city building permit (not sure how, since he's not the owner) and has inspectors crawling all over the premises. The inspector seems very hostile to us as landlords and is approving everything. Keep in mind that there's a difference between "to code" and "aesthetic".
The lease does specifically state that any alterations / repairs must be preapproved in writing. That hasn't stopped the tenant. The tenant is also telling us what he's not going to do.
Are we truly helpless to do anything about this?
I think you need to take your lease you have with this guy and see your attorney, it will probably save you alot of money in the long run.
Well, the latest is that the tenant refuses to leave, is doing his own repairs, has gotten a city building permit (not sure how, since he's not the owner) and has inspectors crawling all over the premises. The inspector seems very hostile to us as landlords and is approving everything. Keep in mind that there's a difference between "to code" and "aesthetic".
The lease does specifically state that any alterations / repairs must be preapproved in writing. That hasn't stopped the tenant. The tenant is also telling us what he's not going to do.
Are we truly helpless to do anything about this?
Wow, most tenants do not go through all that trouble. In a way you should be glad that he's attempting to do the repairs, even if the motive is to get the refund. Could I ask how much the deposit is?
I mean is fighting him worth the amount of the deposit?
Are lawyer fees worth the amount of the deposit?
While he still is violating the law, you might always find a judge who simply doesnt care and might side with the tenant..
Phg, Your comments are spot on. Even though property is an investment and therefore very personal, it's important to stay grounded. A legal fight is expensive (far more than any deposit) and no guarantee of success. The problem I have right now is that I don't know what's in this tenant's plan, so I'm contacting city officials - as is my right. My concern is that it appears that the tenant appears to be planning to change things that have been grandfathered.
Regardless, I'm trying to stay grounded - which is difficult when someone states "I'm going to do what I want to your property and you can't stop me."
It's losers like these that give innocent tenants who do right a bad name. I really hope you get this resolved pronto. People like that you just want to go ape**** on with a bat.
Phg, Your comments are spot on. Even though property is an investment and therefore very personal, it's important to stay grounded. A legal fight is expensive (far more than any deposit) and no guarantee of success. The problem I have right now is that I don't know what's in this tenant's plan, so I'm contacting city officials - as is my right. My concern is that it appears that the tenant appears to be planning to change things that have been grandfathered.
Regardless, I'm trying to stay grounded - which is difficult when someone states "I'm going to do what I want to your property and you can't stop me."
Have you even tried to talk to him and voice your concerns? Then if he doesnt listen, put them in writing?
I find most disagreements I've had with people would have been resolved had people on one side or the other arranged a meeting (take a witness if you have one).
Last disagreement I had with a guy, cost me $40,000 in legal fees, where I ended up winning a judgment against them for $450,000. They didnt have the ability to pay so they went out of business. We both lost but I made a point. Was the point worth $40K.. I believed so at the time, I knew they couldnt pay and I knew that they would be pushed out of business. Now looking back, I should have just called them.. I feel bad that the guy spent 5+ years building up a business and I destroyed it because we both failed to make a call. A Judgment for $450,000 against a bankrupt company is worth what? ($0 we know that.. )
My advise at this point might be to try to setup a meeting with him, and since he called the City in.. have them attend. I'd be happy if a tenant was at least trying to repair damages, most of them chuck up the deposit as a loss and move on. Perhapse there is some middle ground in there, or it might be worth giving him back his deposit to "get lost".
I appreciate the suggestion. Unfortunately, this tenant isn't looking for discussion or compromise. The original inspection list was met with yelling (his). Further written communications have been met with written rebuttals, one for one. Since he's gone out of business, it could be that he can't be rational right now. The majority of city personnel have beeen defensive (hostile, not returning calls, etc.) since we're questioning how a building permit was issued to a non-owner without owner knowledge. So we can't count on the city to be objective either.
As we expected, the tenant's repairs are poor (sloppy workmanship, cheap materials). We'll just have to make up the difference out of pocket. And if the tenant files in small claims court, we'll bring an assessment by a licensed contractor and our receipts.
I appreciate the suggestion. Unfortunately, this tenant isn't looking for discussion or compromise. The original inspection list was met with yelling (his). Further written communications have been met with written rebuttals, one for one. Since he's gone out of business, it could be that he can't be rational right now. The majority of city personnel have beeen defensive (hostile, not returning calls, etc.) since we're questioning how a building permit was issued to a non-owner without owner knowledge. So we can't count on the city to be objective either.
As we expected, the tenant's repairs are poor (sloppy workmanship, cheap materials). We'll just have to make up the difference out of pocket. And if the tenant files in small claims court, we'll bring an assessment by a licensed contractor and our receipts.
Fairly similar to the situation I was in.. He topped talking to me.. so I had no choice but to bring in lawyers.. Not sure if I made the right move or not.. but I sleep good at night knowing that he cant do to anyone else what was done to me..
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