Does this sound reasonable to you guys?

[Kaervak]

If I'm renting out a house to someone and they have something break, like a toilet or electrical issue and they get it repaired would having them pay for the repair out of their pocket then deducting the cost of the repair from their rent seem reasonable? I'm thinking yes, but some people get a bit iffy when it comes to things like that.

 

[Leros]

You're shifting the burden on to them, which doesn't seem right.

 

[zerocool84]

I'd think that'd be fine. The only people who would care would be if they needed that money asap.

 

[ChaoZ]

Only if they agree.

 

[Kaervak]

Originally posted by: Leros
You're shifting the burden on to them, which doesn't seem right.

I knew I was forgetting something. For huge emergency stuff, them getting it taken care of ASAP and then letting me know about it would be an exception but for everything else I'd have them notify me first that something has broken and then I'd either fix it myself or have arrangements made to get it fixed.

 

[Gothgar]

Originally posted by: ChaoZ
Only if they agree.

 

[Ronstang]

Usually repairs $50 or under are their responsibility. Anything above that it is your responsibility to either go fix it for them or hire a contractor yourself. They should not be paying out of pocket in the middle of the month for your responsibilities.

 

[Kaervak]

Originally posted by: Ronstang
Usually repairs $50 or under are their responsibility. Anything above that it is your responsibility to either go fix it for them or hire a contractor yourself. They should not be paying out of pocket in the middle of the month for your responsibilities.

Good counterpoint. This is all hypothetical as I don't even have a house yet, just looking at foreclosure auctions and contemplating things.

 

[coldmeat]

If you don't have the money to repair the house when it needs it, don't rent.

edit: reading that again it sounds like the opposite of what I meant to say. I meant don't rent out a house if you can't fix the problems for the tenants.

 

[Beanie46]

Originally posted by: Ronstang
Usually repairs $50 or under are their responsibility. Anything above that it is your responsibility to either go fix it for them or hire a contractor yourself. They should not be paying out of pocket in the middle of the month for your responsibilities.

Utter BS. Unless the item in question was broken/destroyed due to my own actions (negligence or whatever), everything that wears out or breaks is the responsibility of the owner to get fixed and pay for it. That's one reason why people rent....everything is the responsibility of the owner to get fixed. The only thing I'd take on as my responsibility is replacing light bulbs and filters, although many apartments I rented over the years were provided replacement air filters for the central air/heat systems every month or two. And on move-outs, the apartment complexes I've lived in surely did charge you for any burnt out light bulbs and deduct their cost from your deposit.

 

[Ronstang]

Originally posted by: Beanie46

Originally posted by: Ronstang
Usually repairs $50 or under are their responsibility. Anything above that it is your responsibility to either go fix it for them or hire a contractor yourself. They should not be paying out of pocket in the middle of the month for your responsibilities.

Utter BS. Unless the item in question was broken/destroyed due to my own actions (negligence or whatever), everything that wears out or breaks is the responsibility of the owner to get fixed and pay for it. That's one reason why people rent....everything is the responsibility of the owner to get fixed. The only thing I'd take on as my responsibility is replacing light bulbs and filters, although many apartments I rented over the years were provided replacement air filters for the central air/heat systems every month or two. And on move-outs, the apartment complexes I've lived in surely did charge you for any burnt out light bulbs and deduct their cost from your deposit.

I see, you are a renter and have never been the owner. You are wrong. We are not talking about apartments but houses. I bet you have never had any experience renting a house you owned have you? I have. Maybe some people cover 100% of the repairs but the contracts I have experience with always had the $50 or under being the renter's responsibility clause in them.

 

[waffleironhead]

Originally posted by: Ronstang


I see, you are a renter and have never been the owner. You are wrong. We are not talking about apartments but houses. I bet you have never had any experience renting a house you owned have you? I have. Maybe some people cover 100% of the repairs but the contracts I have experience with always had the $50 or under being the renter's responsibility clause in them.

First time I have ever heard of that and I have rented houses before. Sounds like a lease that I would not sign.

 

[Ronstang]

Originally posted by: waffleironhead

Originally posted by: Ronstang


I see, you are a renter and have never been the owner. You are wrong. We are not talking about apartments but houses. I bet you have never had any experience renting a house you owned have you? I have. Maybe some people cover 100% of the repairs but the contracts I have experience with always had the $50 or under being the renter's responsibility clause in them.

First time I have ever heard of that and I have rented houses before. Sounds like a lease that I would not sign.

It is simple. It is to keep the renter from being a nuisance. It is amazing what people who rent your house will call you for if you let them. This clause keeps them from only bugging you for legitimate problems. We rented out several houses over the years and no one had a problem signing a lease with this clause in it. One house was rented out for 15 years and several tenants with this clause in the lease. If you don't have a clause like this the lessee will call you for a leaky faucet they could fix for $0.50 and five minutes worth of effort.

 

[mjrpes3]

If you don't have a clause like this the lessee will call you for a leaky faucet they could fix for $0.50 and five minutes worth of effort.

The downside to that is you are assuming the lessee knows what they are doing and won't screw things up. Who is responsible if the lessee screws up and turns the $5 leaky faucet into a $200 problem?

 

[DrPizza]

On the other hand, it's amazing how an incompetent renter can cause you even more headaches by trying to fix things. Kitchen drain was leaking (that means, the little kid was playing with the plumbing and pulled it loose, but they'll never say that.) I went to fix it, "wtf?!" The tailpiece was almost completely unscrewed. Things like that don't just happen by themselves. And, I've *never* seen a case where the leaking joint was the tailpiece. "Someone try to fix this?" "Yeah, Justin tried." "Next time you see him, you want to tell him that I said 'Righty tighty, lefty loosey?'"

Another time, they threatened to call a plumber and deduct the cost from the rent, because I apparently wasn't smart enough to fix a toilet problem. Three times I had snaked out the toilet and got it flushing. After they threatened to call the plumber, I finally decided to remove the toilet completely & wash it outside. (It was disgusting, too.) Ohhhhh look! A little kids ball was jammed inside through hole in the bottom of the tank. How'd that get in there, since the little kid wasn't tall enough to reach in to the bottom & it was too big to fit through without some help. "Ohhhh, that's where his ball went." Ohhhhhh look! An airplane! Then, the problem: someone had attempted to flush a giant hair clip. It got wedged in the trap. A snake and plunger would go past it, and clear out any toilet paper, but as soon as more toilet paper was flushed, it would build up on the hair clip. Had they called the plumber, I'd probably have had to pay $200 for the work. And, I never would have found out it was the tenant's fault.

 

[jagec]

If they get to deduct the full cost of the repair from their rent, then you'll either be paying for primo next-day-service from the most expensive crew in town, or they'll get an estimate from that company and then fix it themselves and stiff you with the bill.
That, or they'll fix it themselves and charge you fair value, but when does that happen?

 

[ahurtt]

If you trust them enough not to rip you off and they're willing to do it I guess there's nothing wrong with it. Personally I'm not that trusting and I'd rather take charge of how my own money is spent. They probably aren't going to shop around for the best deal and probably aren't going to try and find the repair man who will do the best job for the lowest price. You're kind of rolling the dice with your money by just letting them take care of it and then reimbursing them. It's almost like writing them a blank check in fact. I wouldn't do it. I'd handle it myself.

Oh and my parents have had experience with renting out rental properties so just be warned, about 3 out of 4 renters are usually your basic shitbags when it comes to respect and care for your property and your money.

 

[oiprocs]

What do you mean, "you guys"?????