Landlord Question and Answer Forum

Hi, over the Thanksgiving my tenant had an issue with the water pipe by the garage. There was water leak & they ended up call some company to come out to fix it. My problem is they are suppose to call me first when it happens. They say they called but didn't leave me any message. I found out through an email from them few days later. Now I got this bill for $450 for someone to fix the damage... I was upset that the tenant never notified me regarding this issue. Every winter I have to remind them to cover the faucets for any cold damage. Do I have to refund this $450 to my tenant? I could have someone fix it much less...

Unless they're absolutely fantastic tenants that you wouldn't want to lose, I wouldn't pay it. If they take it out of their next rent payment, you could either take them to court for failure to pay rent, or you could take it out of their security deposit. A lot of people talk a big game, but when it comes to actually taking it up in court, they back off.

Posted by Renee R, MD on Thursday, December 2, 2010