Frustrated Landlord That Needs To Vent - Landlord Forum thread 245237

Frustrated Landlord That Needs To Vent by Anonymous (MA) on January 12, 2012 @14:12

I am a landlord that owns a two family home in MA that rents out to three people. Me, my wife & daughter live upstairs while they live on the 1st floor.

All of us has been increasingly frustrated with these tenants because they continued to be in violation of their lease. Smoking in a non-smoking unit. Have given them a written warning and three verbal warnings. The third warning was on Tuesday of this week. Now I have an appointment with a landlord/tenant lawyer next week regarding the matter.

Last night my daughter was on the front porch on her cell phone. The two tenants and a friend went into the house and slammed the front door so hard it shook the entire house. My daughter rang the doorbell and ask the tenant not to slam the door because it shakes the entire house especially at night and it wakes us all up. One of the tenants in a rude tone said "Well our bedroom door doesn't shut properly" My daughter asked him is that we hear at night? My daughter told them that by slamming the front door and their bedroom door it wakes us all up and we are trying to get some sleep. This happens throughout the night. My daughter who is an emergency contact for any issues regarding the apartment asked them "Why didn't you tell us before about these problems. This is the first time we are hearing about them" They didn't answer her. These problems were not addressed on the Apartment Condition Statement they signed when they moved in on Sept 10th. My daughter admitted her emotions got to her and her tone was not very friendly when speaking with them. Her frustration has been buildig up and she said that she will not interfere again.

My daughter was taking the trash outside and the tenants were outside. She took the high road and aplogized to the tenants about her tone. This was very hard for her :) She told them everyone in this house works very long hours and we are sleep deprived & pissed because we are woken up each night with all the door slamming. She told them to address their issues regarding the doors in writing. He said he will do that. The tenant whom she had the conversation was very apologetic. The other tenant kept apologizing and said they will fix their wrong doings. The slamming of the doors stopped immediately after her conversation. But of course they will be at it again! Sometimes being a landlord is not worth it :(

We beleive the only reason why they said anything about the front & bedroom door is in retalition from this week because when I opened their front door the smell of smoke almost knocked me over and I was extrmely angry. When I get angry the look on my face is not pleasant!!!

They have been in the apt since Sept 2011 with an lease expiration of Aug 2012. We will not be renewing the lease with them when it expires.

[ Reply ] [ Return to forum ]

Re: Frustrated Landlord That Needs To Vent by Bunny MAGIC on January 12, 2012 @16:59	[ Reply ]

Their smoking is doing damage to your apartment. To allow them to continue is a mistake that you will be paying for after the lease ends, unless you take steps now. Will their security deposit cover all the damages caused by the smoke being embedded in the walls, the window treatments and carpet? You may want to check into what needs to take place in order to get the smell out of the place...if they leave in August at the end of the lease (which you said you will not renew), you'll have 7 more months of "smoke" embedded in the place. Personally, I would not give any verbal warnings. All warnings should be documented and on paper, delivered or posted appropriately. Will the security deposit cover any other damages these people may do beyond ordinary wear and tear? Please be sure to do periodic inspections of the premises. Perhaps these tenants will be more considerate about the door slamming, perhaps not. Please post the results of your meeting with the landlord/tenant attorney. I'm hoping the attorney specializes in this specific area. Hopefully there will be some legal sanctions and options to remedy this situation in MA, even if it means Cure or Quit with the associated follow-through on that--if you wish to pursue it, of course. If the tenants told you/your daughter about the door issue, instead of waiting for the tenant to notify you in writing (which may or may not happen), you may wish to confirm (in writing) that you were verbally told of this, encourage them to put it in writing next time, and fix the door problem ASAP with proper notice to tenants as to when this will take place.

Re: Frustrated Landlord That Needs To Vent

Re: Smoke Free info MA by MrDan (Georgia) on January 13, 2012 @12:30	[ Reply ]

https://www.newenglandrealestateacademy.com/uploads/Smoke_Free_-_Landlords.pdf