Why landlord/tenant laws need reform....

[Husker4ever]

I rent out a duplex and my first home I bought when I was 22. I've been a landlord for less than 3 years now and I am amazed at how easy the current landlord/tenant laws make it easy to be a fucking deadbeat in this state.

I rent out a 3 bedroom unit to a married couple with 3 kids. They've been there for 10 months and have paid there rent on time TWICE. I've served them at least two "Three day notice to pay or quit" notices. They always pony up the money at the last minute right before I'm about to give them a 30 day notice to vacate the premises. THese fucks got this shit figured out like a science. They know that anytime I accept 15 cents from them towards rent....the whole process starts over.

In Nebraska they get the 3 day notice followed by the 30 day notice. If they so choose to be a deadbeat after the 30 days....I have to get the sheriff's dept involved (more cash) to have them forcibly removed (if needed) after another 30 days. Like I said, if I accept any rent money.....the process starts over. Since they have kids, they could get some extra consideration (deadbeat time) from the courts I've heard. Something about the welfare of minor children.

I screened these fuckers and they checked out okay. I don't know if they've developed meth habits or what is going on but I can't afford to float this deal much longer. I know I chose to be a landlord but the laws need to some retooling.

Get this....since I pay the water and sewer at my duplex.....everytime I give them a three day notice my renters on the other side of my duplex call me and tell me they are running all the faucets 24/7. The next month's water bill confirms this. Evil, vindictive and downright pathetic!

Last month I offered them 500 bucks cash if they would move out in 7 days. (keep in mind he owes me close to a grand in back rent and late charges) The guy gets a shit-eatin' grin and shakes his head no. "I like it here" And then he shuts the door. Probably cause he sensed I was about to blast his teeth out. I'm glad his self preservation kicked in, otherwise he probably would have owned the duplex after he recovered from his beatdown and sued me.

Anyone got any good legal advice on this shit? These laws blow and need reform. A guy should be able to evict a deadbeat out on his ass no less than 2 weeks after his rent hasn't been paid. Oh and if he does move out and leaves anything behind? I have to store his shit for at least 30 days...at my expense.

[Husker4ever]

How long is the lease?

One year and then it converts to month to month. The lease itself states that if violates the terms (late rent), it is null and void and they could be evicted. The landlord/tenant laws throw a monkey wrench into things, though. I'm afraid that if I tell them I won't be renewing their lease, they will just try to camp out rent-free until they are forced to move. Either that or they will spill some bleach on every rug in the house. I have insurance with a thousand dollar deductible. These people have me pretty worried.

Say I get them out without the place getting trash and they owe me 1500 and I win a judgement against them in small claims court. I'm thinking I'll be told to stand in line because I have 3 different rent-to-own centers calling my phone (he used me as a reference without my knowledge or approval) wanting info on these deadbeats.

I wonder if it would be legal for me to raise their rent 200 dollars a month when the lease expires? THat might encourage them to move?

[Diego in Seattle]

Ya might want to keep a watch on the local Craigslist postings.

[smackaholic]

I'm pretty sure this is a first.....


rack diego.

[smackaholic]

When I moved to Nashville for 3 years, I rented out my house in CT. My first tenant was this dude's brother. Same old shit. Different excuse every month, usually involving kid's doctor bills. My fukkin' kids get sick too and guess what, I still pay my fukking bills. Fortunately, we got a contract on the house to sell it......to another deadbeat that bailed the day of the closing. But, I was still glad as it got deadbeat numero uno out. Next renters, a married couple with no kids were AWESOME. Dude actually fixed stuff up in the house. It was in better shape when I moved back then it was when I moved out.

If you are gonna play landlord, I have a few recommendations.

a. Get the best rental property you can. Not saying that there aren't deadbeats in higher rent areas, but, your odds are better. If you are a slum lord, you WILL have trouble.

2th. Rent to married couples with no kids. If you must rent to folks with chillins, rent to folks who are BOTH biological parents of BOTH kids. My deadbeat renters had two lil' ones. The baby was their's, the older one was her's. If this is the case, walk away. If said bastard has dark curly hair and a nice tan in february, RUN away. Not tryin' to sound all Archie Bunker, just making an observation.

[BSmack]

Husker,

You missed your chance during the winter. The minute dude turned down your 500 dollars, there should have been a horrible accident that disabled the heat in that apartment. They can be as legal eagle as they want, but they can't survive a Nebraska winter without some fucking heat. What's the worst that could happen? They don't pay rent until it's fixed?

Same goes with the water. Don't sue THEM, let them sue YOU to get the water turned back on.

[Terry in Crapchester]

I don't know what the laws are in Nebraska, but here in New York, IIRC*, you can sue for eviction as soon as the three-day period has run. The eviction process is a summary proceeding, and you can be in court as soon as eight days after you file the paperwork. And as long as there aren't any habitability issues or disputes as to payment of rent, the courts generally aren't terribly sympathetic to tenants in that situation. You can have a warrant of eviction issued immediately, which then gives them 72 hours to vacate or the sheriff's office shows up.

So, theoretically, in New York you could get someone out in as little as 14 days for non-payment, although as a practical matter, it rarely happens quite that quickly.

* It's been awhile since I've done any landlord-tenant matters, so my information could be a bit rusty. In the past, I've represented both landlords and tenants (on different occasions, of course). Recently, I was approached in a Town Court by a landlord seeking help in an eviction proceeding. As it turned out, I was representing one of his tenants on a different matter, so I had to decline employment.

[MgoBlue-LightSpecial]

Clog the j-bends under their sinks. That'll stop them from running water all day. Then take the cost from any water damage overflow out of their security deposit.

[jiminphilly]

Does the law specify what form of payment must be accepted... for instance, can you require that he pay with a certified check every month? What about adding on surcharges for a late payment? I'd make it as difficult as possible for him to make the payment to you that he'll either not pay in time or just get tired of going through the trouble of getting the certified check and/or come up with the necessary late fees.

[smackaholic]

Is his OL hot? Or atleast just bangable? Maybe you could negotiate alternate forms of payment.

[Donovan]

Get this....since I pay the water and sewer at my duplex.....everytime I give them a three day notice my renters on the other side of my duplex call me and tell me they are running all the faucets 24/7. The next month's water bill confirms this. Evil, vindictive and downright pathetic!

I would treat this as a noise complaint. Having to hear running water all of the time can be just as annoying as loud music.

And good luck.

[Terry in Crapchester]

Does the law specify what form of payment must be accepted... for instance, can you require that he pay with a certified check every month? What about adding on surcharges for a late payment? I'd make it as difficult as possible for him to make the payment to you that he'll either not pay in time or just get tired of going through the trouble of getting the certified check and/or come up with the necessary late fees.

I think the law allows you to specify terms like this on the lease, and if they're specified on the lease, they'll be enforced as long as they are not unconscionable or contrary to public policy. If he didn't specify them on the lease, though, he's probably SOL on that suggestion now.

[Terry in Crapchester]

2th. Rent to married couples with no kids. If you must rent to folks with chillins, rent to folks who are BOTH biological parents of BOTH kids. My deadbeat renters had two lil' ones. The baby was their's, the older one was her's. If this is the case, walk away. If said bastard has dark curly hair and a nice tan in february, RUN away. Not tryin' to sound all Archie Bunker, just making an observation.

Caution on this suggestion. You might want to check with an attorney before devising such a policy. Pretty much every jurisdiction has laws that prevent housing discrimination, and this policy probably would constitute housing discrimination. At the same time, however, the laws preventing housing discrimination usually only apply to a landlord who rents a certain minimum number of units.

[Mike the Lab Rat]

Since we live in a college town, my wife and I had briefly thought of diving into rental property.

Thank God we didn't.

The village and town keep toughening the codes (# tenants per apt, # of on-site parking spaces per apartment increasing...) and the college is raising the number of years that students are required to live on campus (you used to be able to move off as a sophomore, now you can't until you're a junior, and if the college is granted "Honor" status by SUNY central, they can push it up to SENIOR year), shrinking the tenant pool. So, over the last few years, the cost of creating/converting and maintaining rental property has dramatically increased at the same time that the number of students available is dropping.

On the other hand, as a homeowner with a young family, the shift in properties from rental to single-family use has definitely made the village tidier and quieter...

[MgoBlue-LightSpecial]

Targeting groups of people is a bad idea due to Fair Housing laws.

Most rental complexes have an income verification policy in place that requires the applicant to provide check stubs, direct deposit statements, letters from employers, etc., that prove they earn 3 or 4 times the monthly rent. Any race/age/gender is liable to fuck you over, so the least you can do is make sure they earn decent enough cayshe to afford the rent.

[Dinsdale]

Awwwww....poor little slumlord isn't getting his every whim....


poor baby.


Sorry you decided to take on the job of "landlord" without researching what it entails first, and have failed miserably at a job you had no professional experience or training in. :BIGSHOKER: you fucked it up.


Never ceases to amaze me...

[velocet]

Dark and lonely on a summer's night
Kill my landlord
Kill my landlord
Watchdog barking
Do he bite?
Kill my landlord
Kill my landlord
Slip in his window
Break his neck
Then his house
I start to wreck
Got no reason
What the heck
Kill my Landlord
Kill my landlord
C-I-L-L
my l a n d l o r d

[Smackie Chan]

The Landlord's here to visit
They're blasting disco down below
Sez, "I'm doubling up the rent
Cos the building's condemned
You're gonna help me buy City Hall"

But we can, you know we can
But we can, you know we can
Let's lynch the landlord man

I tell them 'turn on the water'
I tell 'em 'turn on the heat'
Tells me 'All you ever do is complain'
Then they search the place when I'm not here

But we can, you know we can
Let's lynch the landlord
Let's lynch the landlord
Let's lynch the landlord man

There's rats chewin' up the kitchen
Roaches up to my knees
Turn the oven on, it smells like Dachau, yeah
Til the rain pours thru the ceiling

But we can, you know we can
Let's lynch the landlord man

[orcinus]

velocent forgot to sign a post.

Everybody drink.

[smackaholic]

2th. Rent to married couples with no kids. If you must rent to folks with chillins, rent to folks who are BOTH biological parents of BOTH kids. My deadbeat renters had two lil' ones. The baby was their's, the older one was her's. If this is the case, walk away. If said bastard has dark curly hair and a nice tan in february, RUN away. Not tryin' to sound all Archie Bunker, just making an observation.

Caution on this suggestion. You might want to check with an attorney before devising such a policy. Pretty much every jurisdiction has laws that prevent housing discrimination, and this policy probably would constitute housing discrimination. At the same time, however, the laws preventing housing discrimination usually only apply to a landlord who rents a certain minimum number of units.

obviously, you can't hang a sign out saying "no mulato bastards". All I'm saying is, you can take a good look at prospective renters and get a good feeling for what type of tenant you are likely to have.

Is it foolproof? Fukk no. Playing landlord is a very risky bidness. Ofcourse, the potential reward, if you get a good renter is money for nothing. Once I get most of my projects around my house somewhere close to done, I am gonna look into buying a few multi families. But, first, I wanna wait for the impending real estate bust to work itself out.

[smackaholic]

Awwwww....poor little slumlord isn't getting his every whim....


poor baby.


Sorry you decided to take on the job of "landlord" without researching what it entails first, and have failed miserably at a job you had no professional experience or training in. :BIGSHOKER: you fucked it up.


Never ceases to amaze me...

so, dins is one of them deadbeat mutherfukkers that thinks somebody else oughta put him up for nothing. big fukking shocker there too.

[MgoBlue-LightSpecial]

so, dins is one of them deadbeat mutherfukkers that thinks somebody else oughta put him up for nothing. big fukking shocker there too.

How the hell did you get that from what dins posted?

[Dinsdale]

Ya pay your money, ya take your chances.

[Ken]

2th. Rent to married couples with no kids. If you must rent to folks with chillins, rent to folks who are BOTH biological parents of BOTH kids. My deadbeat renters had two lil' ones. The baby was their's, the older one was her's. If this is the case, walk away. If said bastard has dark curly hair and a nice tan in february, RUN away. Not tryin' to sound all Archie Bunker, just making an observation.

Caution on this suggestion. You might want to check with an attorney before devising such a policy. Pretty much every jurisdiction has laws that prevent housing discrimination, and this policy probably would constitute housing discrimination. At the same time, however, the laws preventing housing discrimination usually only apply to a landlord who rents a certain minimum number of units.

File this in the subforum No fucking shit, Sherlock.

Put down the attorney persona, TiC, and just try... TRY... to be a regular poster for once. YOUR world is black and white. Cut and dry. One that is ruled by laws, amendments, and other 'not-so-bendable' thingamajiggers. THIS world here requires that you throw that shit out the window and roll with it. I know, hard concept to grasp. But give it whirl. Loosen that tie. I'll bet it would make your time spent here more enjoyable. I know mine would be knowing I wouldn't picture this shit behind your keyboard every fucking time I see your nic (and that fucking POS ND av):



If it helps, tell yourself that 'rolling with it' here at T1B is required as per the NY State legislature, article 74, section 14, line 6. For the love of God, DO IT.

[Dinsdale]

Ken makes a solid point, terry.


Couldn't you have just called him a cum-swiller, and been done with it?

[Smackie Chan]

YOUR world is black and white.

Bringing his marriage into this discussion was completely unnecessary.

[MgoBlue-LightSpecial]

Ken,

Thank you for submitting your suggestion. I will take your thoughts into consideration in an attempt to improve my posting style here at T1B. Furthermore, I will prioritize the time necessary to develop a plan and analyze ways to "bring teh funnay" on a continual basis.

-Terry

P.S. On Fridays, feel free to call me the T-Man.

[velocet]

Put down the attorney persona, TiC, and just try... TRY... to be a regular poster for once. YOUR world is black and white. Cut and dry. One that is ruled by laws, amendments, and other 'not-so-bendable' thingamajiggers. THIS world here requires that you throw that shit out the window and roll with it. I know, hard concept to grasp. But give it whirl. Loosen that tie. I'll bet it would make your time spent here more enjoyable. I know mine would be knowing I wouldn't picture this shit behind your keyboard every fucking time I see your nic (and that fucking POS ND av):


If it helps, tell yourself that 'rolling with it' here at T1B is required as per the NY State legislature, article 74, section 14, line 6. For the love of God, DO IT.

That ain't how it works with them, Ken. In their way of arguing from example (i.e. citing cases during arguments) they maintain a dynamic system that isn't the staid world of permanence you describe.

For more info consult :



It's only a little over a hunnert pages, you should fly through it.





velocet

[Enigmabag]

Husker4ever-

you oviously have serious problems and need some help. you got a deadbeat dad that owes you money and is talking shit from inside your own house and you are too much of a puss to beat it the cash of him uin front of his wife and kids. this could be your shining moment and your pissin your pants. heres what i'm prepared to do. me and my bro Douchebag will roll in on that family on easter sunday and beat the cash out of them but good. then well spit the money with you 60-40. you should take your 40 and buy some balls. and if any of teh deadbeats friends or family give us any trouble me and Douchebag will beat them sensless for free. if you are interested in this offer shake like a scared minture poodle.

[smackaholic]

so, dins is one of them deadbeat mutherfukkers that thinks somebody else oughta put him up for nothing. big fukking shocker there too.

How the hell did you get that from what dins posted?

I guess I'm just a little sensitive to this subject as I have been in husker's shoes before. dins' post sounds more like that of a cahksukker who's been in the other fella's shoe's.

btw, all you apostrophe police can go ahead and EAD. I had a few extra laying around to burn

[smackaholic]

sounds like a good offer from the 'bag property management consultants. you prolly ought to take it, husker.

and don't forget the balls purchase.

[Ken]

Ken,

Thank you for submitting your suggestion. I will take your thoughts into consideration in an attempt to improve my posting style here at T1B. Furthermore, I will prioritize the time necessary to develop a plan and analyze ways to "bring teh funnay" on a continual basis.

-Terry

P.S. On Fridays, feel free to call me the T-Man.

T-Bag, I'd build a little more priority into your timeline, dammit.

The parents of the other posters have said nothing to me about your posting style. However, they do want this place to be the best board on the internet, and cost to them is not an issue. Only the posting style and the ability to bring it is. As I see it, you're bringing the rest of the team down. Their whispers are telling me the same.

If you don't pick it up, REAL soon, you'll be cleaning the keyboards and mouses (mice?) of the rest here. Perhaps a 'gavel accident' will be in order. For now, head back out to Trots there in right field and think about it for a bit. Nooo, check that; Drop down, gimmee twenty and run a few laps around the board first.

-SoCalTrjn

[XXXL]

My most recent eviction was a buzzkill for the client. Stranger upon stranger was moving in while the tenants were moving out, all unknown... I worked my magic and engineered their removal, but the douchebags owe and that will require effort to collect, if possible...

My suggestion is to load the security deposit with enough padding to cover the loss of rent when said deadbeats contemplate short rent.......;

[Husker4ever]

sounds like a good offer from the 'bag property management consultants. you prolly ought to take it, husker.

and don't forget the balls purchase.

Balls aren't a problem. I've always tried to stay on the side of what's legal. Sure, I'd like to go beat the cash out of him, fuck his wife in the ass for good measure, and then evict him anyway......but, I'm relatively new and this is my first deadbeat. I've been pretty cautious in who I will rent to. These fucks are good.....real good. They rolled in with a 710 credit rating and had the first month's rent and security deposit caysh money upfront.

I'll consider it a lesson learned no matter how this ends up. I'm sure I'll take it in the ass to some degree. In the future I'll avoid reformed pole-smokers from Washington who think it's funny to get over on their landlords. The faux marriage to a wife with 3 bastard children by 3 different heroine addicts will no longer fool me when I see a guy out in the rough with a putter. 'sup Dins.