When you have problematic tenants, it feels like you’re the one stuck in a lease with them. With ever-changing laws and red tape, protecting your property may seem impossible. So, explore what your options are when you have problematic tenants.
Who is a Problematic Tenant?
First, let’s meet who you’re likely to encounter.
Missed Payment Molly – This tenant type is someone who either misses the due date consistently or just misses the rent payment completely. Either way, this isn’t the way to make money.
Destructive Danny – When the tenant takes “make it feel like home” to a whole new level. At the end of the day, it’s your property and your tenants should respect and take care of it, not damage it.
Illegal Activity Isaac – Your property isn’t the hub for the next Breaking Bad series. If you suspect your tenant is breaking the law, call the police.
Whiny Whitney – There’s just no pleasing some people. If a tenant gives you a honey-do list of “repairs” that need to be done, like a small scratch on a door or the color of a wall, then take steps that will bring you peace.
Whoever your problem tenant is, there are actions you can take to protect your property.
Update the Contract
Maybe your issue with your tenants can be solved by a simple contract update. To update the contract, make sure you hire a legal professional to get all the expert legalese in there. Once it’s in the terms, you have leverage against them and have an enforceable document. While this is extra work on your part to hire the legal professional and begin keeping written records of everything, it’ll decrease the chance a bad tenant has to dispute a charge or sue you.
Background Checks/Interviews
To avoid bad tenants in the first place, consider conducting background checks and completing an interview with prospective tenants. This increases your chance to have good tenants who care for your property, and there is less a bad tenant can hide if you go through this onboarding process.
While this is great advice, if you’re reading this, the bad tenants are probably already living at your property, so let’s go on to the next option.
Routine Inspections
If you suspect your tenant is breaking the contract, consider routine inspections. This allows you to document any potential issues and diagnose problems early on. Also, there may be opportunities to discover things like damage, unauthorized pets, and illegal activity. Essentially, you get to keep better tabs on your property.
Eviction
Eviction should be a last resort option. If you do go down this road, just be aware that this is a difficult process due to the nature of state laws and how they are constantly changing. Unfortunately, if every procedure isn’t followed precisely, you may be vulnerable to being sued for wrongful eviction. But, if you’ve taken the time to build a case and have documented evidence, it’s not impossible to evict a problematic tenant.
When You’re Out of Options
If you’re looking for a Hail Mary option with the least amount of effort, consider a home-buying team like WCC Properties. You will no longer be the landlord of that property; instead, you’ll be headache-free and ready to move on to your next chapter.
Once you start the conversation at WCC Properties, they work quickly and efficiently to take that problem home off your hands and replace it with cold, hard cash!
