11-30-2009, 02:40 PM
This matter really hits home for many of us landlords. There is a real need for tenant screening. The way property management is done here (other than a rare few good managers) is nothing short of criminal. The legal system heavily favors the tenants. There was a case we heard of which went like this: An elder person had an empty apartment and thought it would be nice to have some company. The person rented the place to a tenant who only had to pay their own utilities and kept their own space clean-that was all-no rent!
Apparently this was not good enough-this tenant almost immediately violated the terms of the agreement and created a mess. The owner asked them to leave-the tenant decided to go immediately to the court house and got a TRO (Temporary Restraining Order) for 3 years against the owner and had the owner removed from their own property. The TRO was granted solely on the basis of what the tenant had stated-no questions were asked of the owner's position. This began a nightmare-the owner is required by law to pay all the tenant's utilities and house payments-even though they are banned from their own property. The only recourse is through the court system-and the tenant can have continuations that drag the case for the full term of the TRO.
I hate to make this sound negative but there really needs to be a "Tenant Black List"-and "Good Tenant List". Tenant screening for criminal,credit,past evictions,etc. would be a great step forward. The tenant would be responsible for paying a modest fee for this screening by an independent 3rd party service.
One more thing-we have also heard from several landlords about tenants who have stolen all the appliances-stove,refer,washer,dryer,dishwasher....-and act as though it was a complete surprise-someone else would fence the merchandise. It looks like some type of a theft ring because the same situation has been repeated many times over. When he called the police they asked "where's your proof?" On top of that, the police do not like to get involved with Tenant-Landlord issues. This really needs to change.
Apparently this was not good enough-this tenant almost immediately violated the terms of the agreement and created a mess. The owner asked them to leave-the tenant decided to go immediately to the court house and got a TRO (Temporary Restraining Order) for 3 years against the owner and had the owner removed from their own property. The TRO was granted solely on the basis of what the tenant had stated-no questions were asked of the owner's position. This began a nightmare-the owner is required by law to pay all the tenant's utilities and house payments-even though they are banned from their own property. The only recourse is through the court system-and the tenant can have continuations that drag the case for the full term of the TRO.
I hate to make this sound negative but there really needs to be a "Tenant Black List"-and "Good Tenant List". Tenant screening for criminal,credit,past evictions,etc. would be a great step forward. The tenant would be responsible for paying a modest fee for this screening by an independent 3rd party service.
One more thing-we have also heard from several landlords about tenants who have stolen all the appliances-stove,refer,washer,dryer,dishwasher....-and act as though it was a complete surprise-someone else would fence the merchandise. It looks like some type of a theft ring because the same situation has been repeated many times over. When he called the police they asked "where's your proof?" On top of that, the police do not like to get involved with Tenant-Landlord issues. This really needs to change.