- Joined
- Sep 23, 2007
- Messages
- 191
I had a couple that were long-term tenants (3+ years). Rent was always on time, very friendly, just generally good people that I was happy to have as tenants.
They started renting a 1 bedroom unit from us and later decided they`d like something bigger. We had a 2 bedroom suite come available about a year ago so we moved them into the larger unit. 12 months prior, this larger unit had been completely reno`d. New paint, countertops, flooring, etc.
At the end of July, the tenants call me to say they`re giving their notice and are moving to a new apartment. I put the suite up for rent and start getting interest right away. After my wife performed the first viewing, she came home and told me that there was a problem with the flooring. When I performed the next viewing, I could see what she was talking about. The 3-year old laminate in the unit had obviously been washed frequently with a wet mop and a large portion of the floor was not only damaged, but destroyed. While the rest of the suite wasn`t impeccably clean, they hadn`t caused major damage anywhere else in the suite.
There`s still a very good relationship with the tenants. They say that they damaged the floor and they understand they`re responsible to pay for repairs and they signed the move-out report and a statement to that effect. They move out, we hold on to the security deposit, and we have the floors repaired. In the end, the laminate in the suite had been discontinued so the entire floor had to be replaced. The final bill was many times the security deposit.
My wife puts an invoice together and forwards it to the former tenants at their new address. They called tonight to say they`re happy to pay the bill but need to do it in 12 equal payments. After some difficult negotiations, my wife worked that down to ten months.
Here`s my dilemma: Do we work with these tenants and allow them to make equal payments? Or do we demand payment in 30 days as per the invoice and then go the court/collections/lawyers/ugly/painful route should they fail to pay? My concern is that they`ll make the payments for a few months and then, for whatever reason, they`ll decide that they don`t have to pay the debt in full and we`ll ultimately end up going the less desirable route anyway. My wife makes the argument that we still have a cordial relationship with the tenants and that we have no reason to doubt they`ll pay what they owe us. If it does come off the rails, we`ll take the appropriate steps at that time.
I`d love to hear your thoughts and opinions. Have you ever faced a similar situation? These tenants have always been very good. Am I overreacting and should I just be happy that we`re still civil with each other and work with them to ensure they pay off the debt over time?
Thanks in advance for the insight.
They started renting a 1 bedroom unit from us and later decided they`d like something bigger. We had a 2 bedroom suite come available about a year ago so we moved them into the larger unit. 12 months prior, this larger unit had been completely reno`d. New paint, countertops, flooring, etc.
At the end of July, the tenants call me to say they`re giving their notice and are moving to a new apartment. I put the suite up for rent and start getting interest right away. After my wife performed the first viewing, she came home and told me that there was a problem with the flooring. When I performed the next viewing, I could see what she was talking about. The 3-year old laminate in the unit had obviously been washed frequently with a wet mop and a large portion of the floor was not only damaged, but destroyed. While the rest of the suite wasn`t impeccably clean, they hadn`t caused major damage anywhere else in the suite.
There`s still a very good relationship with the tenants. They say that they damaged the floor and they understand they`re responsible to pay for repairs and they signed the move-out report and a statement to that effect. They move out, we hold on to the security deposit, and we have the floors repaired. In the end, the laminate in the suite had been discontinued so the entire floor had to be replaced. The final bill was many times the security deposit.
My wife puts an invoice together and forwards it to the former tenants at their new address. They called tonight to say they`re happy to pay the bill but need to do it in 12 equal payments. After some difficult negotiations, my wife worked that down to ten months.
Here`s my dilemma: Do we work with these tenants and allow them to make equal payments? Or do we demand payment in 30 days as per the invoice and then go the court/collections/lawyers/ugly/painful route should they fail to pay? My concern is that they`ll make the payments for a few months and then, for whatever reason, they`ll decide that they don`t have to pay the debt in full and we`ll ultimately end up going the less desirable route anyway. My wife makes the argument that we still have a cordial relationship with the tenants and that we have no reason to doubt they`ll pay what they owe us. If it does come off the rails, we`ll take the appropriate steps at that time.
I`d love to hear your thoughts and opinions. Have you ever faced a similar situation? These tenants have always been very good. Am I overreacting and should I just be happy that we`re still civil with each other and work with them to ensure they pay off the debt over time?
Thanks in advance for the insight.
