Move-In and Move-Out Inspection Reports

[cmontminy]

Good Day



I made a rookie mistake. When I rented my house in 2009 I didn't complete a move-in inspection report with the tenant. Now 2 years later I ended with a soiled, unusable, damaged house that has more damages than what the security deposit covers. After googling for some answers on what my options are I sadly came to the conclusion that without the reports I'll basically have to cover the damages myself.



Is there any other options? What if I have photos of before and after the damages?



Is there a list of bad tenants in Alberta. I'd like to add a name to it.



I can't believe there's such pigs out there with no repsect for other people property.

 

[Sherilynn]

It is an offense against the RTA for you to make deductions against the security deposit without proper inspection reports. In fact, there is a maximum fine of $5000 for the offense.



You could sue, but you would lose. Your only option is to ask nicely for them to pay for the damages. So basically, you are screwed.

 

[invst4profit]

[quote user=montminy] Good Day



I can't believe there's such pigs out there with no respect for other people property.






Welcome to the reality of being a landlord. Regrettably there are more dishonest, unreliable, untrustworthy and downright disrespectful individuals renting than you can possibly imagine. The reality is that this type of person is not inclined to respect a property that they do not own.

This is where the importance of screening comes into play. Unfortunately the vast majority of landlords are slack in this regard as they see no value in screening. They build their business on trust based on a client pool that can not be trusted.



I'll bet you never received a call from your ex tenants next landlord calling to see what kind of tenant he was.

Landlords that do not thoroughly screen get the tenant they deserve and deserve the tenant they get.

 

[Sherilynn]

A tad on the harsh side, Greg. Only slum landlords deserve scum tenants.



It is a good thing to be willing to give people a chance and take them at their word. However, with tenants you must be a bit more suspicious because many of them lie. Our job is to determine whether the lie is "I always keep my place really clean" or "I'll always pay my rent on time and never punch through your walls and burn your carpets."



Greg is probably correct that the next landlord never called for a reference. However, it is probably because the tenant provided fake references (most likely what he did last time as well), rather than the landlords are simply not bothering to screen.

 

[cmontminy]

Lesson learned. Expensive lesson but now at least I know the importance good screening.