Landlord Question and Answer Forum

My tenant likes to complain because my property has an older AC unit and the house will not get below 72-74 degrees when the AC is cranking on a hot day. The tenant says it should go as could as he wants it and wanted me to put in a swamp cooler and I said I'm not willing to do that. He took upon himself to decide and take $50 off of his rent to put towards his electricity bill which he says is way to high (it was 120-150). So I notified him that this was unacceptable and I wanted the $50 and we decided to meet last night. He didn't show and wouldn't answer calls. i notified him that now I am applying late charges to the $50. Can I apply 20/day even though it is not the full rent amount? Someone help please.

AC is generally considered a luxury. Generally your tenant cannot deduct this amount unless it is agreed upon ahead of time. Here is the story....if overall this tenant is a good tenant, you may want to weigh the good and the bad. Depending on the market conditions on where you are, it may be wiser to eat 50 bucks than to have to lose the money to find another tenant.

Posted by Donna , NC on Wednesday, September 9, 2009