Landlord Question and Answer Forum

Our tenants caused a fire in the garage of our rental house by admission and there was structure damage, smoke damage, electrical damage which put the furnace and hot water tank out of commission not to mention the smoke smell and smoke damage all over the home. The fire department should not have allowed the tenants to go back into the home , but they did. At this point they said it was our obligation to have them relocate until the home could be repaired. They absolutely did not want to leave. They wanted the repairs to be done while they were residing in the home. Our contractor we hired to repair the home said that no one can be residing in the home do to chemicals and other dangers. Not to mention no heat or hot water. I made some phone calls and rented a storage shed for 1 month and a hotel room for 1 week for their family just to get them out. I HAVE TO PROTECT OURSELVES ALSO!! LEGALITIES!! Lets just thank God no one was hurt. After moving them out and their belongings, OH MY GOSH! Ive seen dirty before, but, this home was filthy! Not to mention all kinds of stuff that was broken. Cracks in tub and shower,broken doors, broken closet sliders,tore out window screens,carpets destroyed and so much more! They have only been in the home 3 months! I DO NOT WANT THEM BACK IN MY HOME!!!! This is only a month to month rental and they keep calling and want to know when they can move back in. YOU WOULD THINK THEY WERE KIDDING OR SOMETHING! What can we do. There is no way I will ever rent out a home again!!! EVER.

You can not renew their lease agreement. There's a non-renewal notice on this site. In the future I recommend screening your tenants a little better. Pull their credit and criminal histories, confirm their income and employment, and walk through their current residence to see how they live.

Posted by Gregory T, CA on Friday, April 8, 2011