Tenant performed an at home drug test on property

Tenant performed an at home drug test on property by Brittany on January 19, 2020 @14:16

My husband and I own a duplex, we live on one side and rent the other. Our most recent tenant is a nightmare, she had reached out 11 times from Jult '19- Dec '19 with complaints ranging from the fan making noise when on asking for it to be replaced to the toilets backing up causing us to spend over $1,000.00 in 2 months on plumbing repairs which have come from them flushing items that should not be flushed or large amounts of paper down the stool backing up the lines. In November I offered to let her out of her lease early because I was fed up with the complaints and the number of plumbing calls were were making, she declined. At the beginning of the year she gave notice that they were moving out, requesting to be let out of her lease early due to them testing the home with an "at home meth test" and the results coming back positive. They claim they were experiencing health issues that made then question if meth had been made or used in the unit. At no time were we made aware of these apparent health issues or their concerns. What options do I have with this? We purchased the home 2 years ago and to our knowledge it has never been used for that purpose, we have had two other tenants here prior with no issues, and Michigan does not require home drug tests prior to purchasing or renting and with no prior knowledge the idea of testing never crossed our minds.

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Re: Tenant performed an at home drug test on property by Garry on January 19, 2020 @14:58	[ Reply ]

So what are you complaining about? You said she was a pain-in-the-a, and you were willing to let her out of her lease early. She declined at the time. Now, because she found a new "problem" with your place, she wants out. You should immediately say : " YES, we will let you out of your lease. How soon can you be out?" Sign a new paper with her that says the rest of the lease is cancelled by both parties, and she will never owe you any rent again. It goes into effect the day she is totally moved out, and has returned the keys to you. Don't worry about how clean she will leave the place, or what "stuff" she leaves you. Just get her OUT! The returning of the keys-in person if possible-is critical, as it signifies to all landlords that the tenant has given you possession back. If she leaves it dirty, with some damages, and some stuff left, at least you have possession and control back, and NO "pain-in-the-a" to deal with. Now you can get it ready for the next tenant. The only "drug" tests I know of, are for Radon, and Lead. The Radon test you can do yourself, but for lead, you would need your county health dept to do it. On the lead side, I would not have it tested, but just make sure all surfaces,both inside and outside, are scraped and painted before moving a new tenant in. There are way to test for "Meth" but the county would have to do the, also. As long as your state, county, or city laws don't require testing, don't do any.

Re: Tenant performed an at home drug test on property

Re: Tenant performed an at home drug test on property by Marita on January 31, 2020 @06:45	[ Reply ]

Sounds just like a woman I rented to with her previous landlord OK, now I know just to get her out of their apartment. She complained about smelling drugs. (Complained about everything). It just so happened I found out she moved her son in, that was on drugs, and this was her cover-up, blaming other unit for drug odor. No wasted time, she and all occupants, were evicted!!!

Re: Tenant performed an at home drug test on property by LAMAC66 on February 14, 2020 @11:26	[ Reply ]

Get an attorney and tear up your current lease and prepare another one with specific wording regarding maintenance and tenant is responsible for repair costs that resulted from their actions.

Tenant performed an at home drug test on property - Landlord Forum thread 360177