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Landlord: Questions

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Right of reasonable entry. It'll be in your lease - look it up. It should spell out the terms too.

As far as the blinds go - you're screwed dude. You basically signed off on them if they took pictures already. This is why I absolutely hate it when my wife wants to "decorate" a rental. If the landlord doesn't like any one little thing you've done, you just screwed your deposit over.
 
What can I do here? Can I make him pay for the utilities used while the "workers" used them to fix up the house that is NOT mine? Can we refuse the "showings" of the house while we still live there? Can I make him pay us back for the blinds and yard work I did? If not, I am ripping out the blinds and killing off the grass and removing the bushes and plants I put in.....putting it back to the original state it was in.
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You could take him to small claims court for the utilities cost AS WELL AS the cost of your discomfort. Worth the hassle? I highly doubt it... unless you want to pay him back in terms of wasting his time in court. In this instance, unless they actually cut off your power / water completely (like my landlord did years ago when I rented), you didn't experience any discomfort or loss of service. Usually they shoot you 5-10 bucks for this type of thing.

You can refuse the showings if he doesn't give you 24 hours notice. At least in Canada, I have no clue what your tenant protection laws are where you're located.

Blinds and yardwork - your call. Blinds are yours to take; yardwork... meh.

Basically I think all you really have to complain about is not enough notice for the showings.
 
Utilities are your only valid complaint.

You, of your own volition, without any prior expectation of compensation, decided to add blinds and do yard work. If you had consulted your landlord prior to making the modifications and requested compensation then you might have some kind of claim there. If you remove your blinds and don't replace the original ones he could probably charge you for those.

Finally, it is expected that the landlord can show the house to prospective renters while you still live there. You almost certainly agreed to this upon moving in, and it is a reasonable request for a landlord to make.
 
Originally posted by: esun
Utilities are your only valid complaint.

You, of your own volition, without any prior expectation of compensation, decided to add blinds and do yard work. If you had consulted your landlord prior to making the modifications and requested compensation then you might have some kind of claim there. If you remove your blinds and don't replace the original ones he could probably charge you for those.

Finally, it is expected that the landlord can show the house to prospective renters while you still live there. You almost certainly agreed to this upon moving in, and it is a reasonable request for a landlord to make.
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THIS
 
Originally posted by: Patt
Landlords need to give you 24 hours of notice that they're showing the house where I live (British Columbia) and I think that is totally acceptable.
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same here in az. hes being a douche, but you are too about the lawn and blinds. if the utilities was a big issue, you should have told the painters/ repair people to get their own power. the block layers that built the common wall between me and my neighbor plugged in to my porch outlet. i came home and saw that, unplugged them while they were working and told them to find their own power. i felt like a dick, but they were running serious amounts of useless equipment on it. they had a generator in their truck, they were only down for about 8 minutes.
 
Originally posted by: StarsFan4Life
Originally posted by: CPA
I know you definitely can't pull out the grass and shrubs. However, did you happen to keep the old blinds?
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Yes I did...and I sure as hell can take the shrubs/bushes with me. I paid for them...
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No you can not. They are considered a fixture now. You can't take them with you. As for the blinds, swap them out. You are in no obligation to keep the new blinds in.
 
Originally posted by: StarsFan4Life
So I should quit being a little bitch about this and move on.....
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Yes. Utilities used by the painters is close to nothing. Showing the unit while you're still living there is standard practice.

And I can't believe you would do the home improvements you did on a rental.
 
Originally posted by: alkemyst
Originally posted by: StarsFan4Life
My main problem is the use of the utilities that I pay for......
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have you itemized it yet? How much you talking fifty cents, a few bucks?
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Probably a few bucks at most. Even if there were two painters, working 8 hours a day, for the 13 days since the painters first came, and each using equipment that is right at the maximum that trips the circuit breakers, he'd still be at $15-$40 max in utilities (depending on the local utility price). Most likely they used far, far less than that. My best guess is $2 in utilites.

I do believe that it is well worth getting angry and even a lawsuit over that $2. [/end sarcasm]

And the rest is standard lease agreements.
* You probably agreed in writing not to do anything to the property - yet you removed the blinds. The fact that you replaced them doesn't mean you didn't violate the agreement.

* You probably agreed in writing to let the landlord show the property to new tenants. This clearly includes using things like lighting (which is a utility on your dime). That is, you already agreed that the landlord can use your utilities.
 
Originally posted by: CPA
Originally posted by: StarsFan4Life
Originally posted by: CPA
I know you definitely can't pull out the grass and shrubs. However, did you happen to keep the old blinds?
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Yes I did...and I sure as hell can take the shrubs/bushes with me. I paid for them...
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No you can not. They are considered a fixture now. You can't take them with you. As for the blinds, swap them out. You are in no obligation to keep the new blinds in.
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I'd disagree with you on your interpretation of fixture. According to Statelawyers.com, the definition of a fixture in the landlord-tenant context is:

Fixture: In the residential rental context, a fixture is personal property owned by the tenant, but made a permanent part of the rental property so that removal would be impossible or impractical. For example, a tenant's installation of custom double-paned windows would amount to a fixture. Ordinarily, a fixture remains in the rental property upon termination of the lease or rental agreement, although landlord and tenant may agree to some form of compensation.
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Another site had some discussion of fixtures which discussed a few past court cases. The overall definition, which is apparently fairly fluid, seemed to track with the above definition.

In the OP's case, neither the blinds nor the shrubs should be considered fixtures (the grass would be, however). I will caveat that by saying that if the shrubs' removal would render the yard unsightly, there could be a problem with them. However, the OP could simply remove the shrubs and replace them with some pansies or something cheap to occupy the landscaping "position".

For the blinds, it's very clear. The OP has the original blinds and can simply swap out the originals for the faux wood blinds putting the property back into the shape it was when initially leased. If the landlord wants the new blinds to stay, he has to pay for them. Of course, the OP has to repair any damage to the window frames from mounting the new blinds -- spackle and paint take care of that.

For anyone leasing, ask for approval from the landlord prior to any improvements. If they are permanent improvements, don't expect any compensation unless the landlord approves compensation in advance. If the improvements alter the original materials in the rental unit (drilling holes in cabinets and installing hardware, for instance), you may be required to pay for replacements (new cabinets in that instance) if you didn't have prior WRITTEN approval. GET IT IN WRITING. Did I mention GET IT IN WRITING! Oral agreements are rarely enforceable and nearly impossible to prove if the other party conveniently "forgets" or lies.

If you paint, expect to have to repaint to a neutral color. I'd recommend if you paint over a particularly difficult color like pink, you should do a walkthrough with the landlord at night, with minimal light. 😉
 
the shrubs are a fixture, as they are now part of the real property (you're having to rip their roots out of the dirt). Blinds, if custom, would also be a fixture. Yours do not sound like they are, and if you have the originals just put those back.
 
Sit around in your underpants when the people come over and act obnoxious, only thing you really can do.
 
Originally posted by: shoRunner
the shrubs are a fixture, as they are now part of the real property (you're having to rip their roots out of the dirt). Blinds, if custom, would also be a fixture. Yours do not sound like they are, and if you have the originals just put those back.
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How does removing roots cause permanent damage to the property especially if the landscaping was garbage to begin with, as the OP says?
 
Are you getting your damage depotit back?

If the answer is 'yes,' then your landlord is not a dick and should be treated with respect.

 
Not to fully high-jack the OP's thread, but I have a somewhat related question: Is there a limit to the number of showings in any given week/month/day/etc. that a landlord can hold? My girlfriend is somewhat stressed about her landlord bringing in prospective tenants everyday for the next week or so. He's stated that all he needs to do is give 24 hours notice, and I have a feeling he's right, but I wasn't sure if there existed an upper limit of some sort after which the showings are considered to impinge upon daily functions of living.
 
Originally posted by: Spartan Niner
Originally posted by: esun
Utilities are your only valid complaint.

You, of your own volition, without any prior expectation of compensation, decided to add blinds and do yard work. If you had consulted your landlord prior to making the modifications and requested compensation then you might have some kind of claim there. If you remove your blinds and don't replace the original ones he could probably charge you for those.

Finally, it is expected that the landlord can show the house to prospective renters while you still live there. You almost certainly agreed to this upon moving in, and it is a reasonable request for a landlord to make.
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THIS
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I agree, and the utilities are almost nothing. If you made improvements to the property without a formal agreement with the landlord, that was on your dime. If he was super cool, he'd pay for some of it, but I wouldn't expect that at all. That would be on the same level as Newegg throwing a free hd in your order, just for being a great customer.
 
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