Tenant Breaks Window - wants me to pay for repairs

Thank you all so much for your replies. It really has helped me make a decision.
In answer to a few of your questions No I am not a property manager working for a real estate agent however I have been doing this for a long time and with a number of houses. I follow everything to the letter of the law and treat my tenants with the utmost respect as they do me.
I do know what I am doing most of the time and when I don't I ask on this forum which has been an absolute lifesaver and i thank you all. Do I do regular inspections? Yes I do. In fact I care for the front of the garden and am there quite regularly fixing things. Tenant appreciates this and tells me all the time what a great landlord I am. I am not a great landlord I am just a considerate and fair one who cares about my properties and my tenants which all of us should be. Is my insurance up to date? You bet it is. When I said it's just an old house I guess I was alluding to the fact that the rent is very mush reflected in the age of the house and that not everything is 100% square and squeak free. For this reason my tenant is permitted to live there with a lot of freedom that he wouldn't have in a newer, plusher home eg have his massive bird cages inside, use the front room for brewing his cider and so on. No he doesn't do anything illegal and is the cleanest tenant I have ever known.
Anyway the upshot is I decide to just pay to have the window replaced and for the glazier to check out the other windows on the property. Just as I was about to text my tenant this he texted to say his Mum has found someone who is going to do it for $120 and that they will organise it for Monday. I texted back that I'd pay half.
On reading all these replies this morning I have decided to get my own glazier to do it and check out the other windows as I had originally decided. This way I can be sure of a proper job and the assurance on the other windows.
Brits

 

To me, it's an extraordinarily easy business decision.

1. Good long term tenant
2. No history of constant complaints and grab for cash
3. Small fee of $150.

I would have replied to my PMs email in 5 seconds to say " I'll oblige their request ".

Short and sweet. Then back to my smashed avo.

 

Ha ha. Yes you are probably right but I guess things are not always clear straight away for various reasons.

 

This is the first instance in 6 years that you've had a problem. You've saved probably 6-9k over those 6 years on not paying a PM. What is 150 bucks in the grand scheme of things?

Please don't take offence, but I can't believe you're quibbling over 150 dollars when it's an old house with a window that was warped or stuck.

I'd fix it asap. I've been in slightly similar situations where I probably didn't have to fix something or do something, but I did it without hesitation. It really makes a difference for the renter and they almost always appreciate it.

Good luck!

 

great advice.... for $150, you should fix first then ask questions later....

 

Did you miss what I said about being a landlord that goes above and beyond ?
Of course there have been issues over the past six yeas. Where did you get the idea that there hadn't been? Often it has been quite difficult yet I have always dealt with it professionally and with great respect. I know he was ****** when this thing happened because I know him so don't jump to conclusions please. Despite him being in the wrong so to speak I have decide to pay for it in full. That doesn't mean I don't feel slightly aggrieved as I know you would.

 

I don't think @Brits has 'quibbled' over the $150 based on the cost itself, more so whether Landlord or tenant is responsible.

If there was no other issue with the window- this is tenant responsibility.

In this particular case I think there's a strong argument to be made for fixing it out of good will, but I'm surprised to see so many people here making out like it's obvious that the Landlord should pay. Honestly, I wouldn't, and if I did- I'd make it VERY clear to the tenant that I'd done it out of appreciation for their tenancy and NOT because I was obliged to.

 

Lessor has an obligation to ensure premise is to fit to live in blah blah, so in any event the Lessor always has to pay by default and then claim back via compensation route. If for example, the Tenant said they would organise and pay to fix it, and this took many weeks, and something happened during that time, then the Lessor would be in strife.. /2c

 

What if it was $350? Or $1050? I think it is a completely reasonable question the OP has put forward, and I don't believe IMHO the amount or deductible nature of the expense is particularly relevant.

Likewise. Based on the information provided it seems inevitable you will end up paying for it, but in terms of who is liable for the cost their is strong argument for a tenant cost. I understand there may be an issue with the window that may have contributed to this but it seems the tenant only raised this after the event? I'm not suggesting they are making it up, rather that they are also obliged to report maintenance items as they occur.

Agreed. The best way to protect yourself broadly is to ensure you are meeting your obligations under the agreement regardless of what the "other side" are doing. It is similar to the scenarios of the landlord saying "I will fix the oven when they catch up on rent" or the tenant saying "I will pay the rent once I get my aircon fixed". Doesn't work like that. Get the window fixed asap and work out the compensation issue after.

I'm not qualified to give a legal response but possibly a way to mitigate that would be to immediately issue the tenant an invoice for the repair? That may provide some indication that you do not believe you are liable for the cost of the repair. Again, not sure how that would stand up from a legal pov.

- Luke

 

I disagree. I think when discretion can be used for a sound business decison then it makes sense, as opposed to just defaulting to your standard position .

Good long term tenant . Small overall cost . No history of trying to take advantage of money . Its a no brainer to me.

Have a truely bad tenant and they'll cost you many multiples of $150.

 

If tenant broke it - tenant pays.

If unknown broke it, bird broke it, burglar broke it, or natural forces broke it - landlord pays.

Regardless, if work order organised by the PM, the PM pays the bill (via owners funds and invoices tenant for reimbursement if applicable).

Some compassion, negotiation, discretion etc are all valuable tools though depending on the circumstance of every situation. Don't get lured in though.

 

Will the tenant always it broke itself?

Never had a tenant say I broke . It ALWAYS broke itself.

 

I probably could have clarified it a bit better. What I am suggesting is that the amount in question is not particularly relevant to the OP's question of who is liable for the cost. It may be relevant to what the owner ultimately decides to do.

By default I also write from the "PM perspective". Absolutely an owner can and should use discretion where it makes business sense, but a PM does have to adopt a standard position for the most part. The level of discretion will be different for every owner and is not up to the PM to assume or apply to their own standard as an investor (if they are one).

Hope that clarifies it.

- Luke

 

Not sure who your replying too......

And if you ask for opinion here, you get it

The thing is, a security concern has been raised, you also would have to make good if vacant, unless you have no insurance, your insurance and tenants insurance wont cover if place cannot be secured.

So it is a matter of fix it, he has said he is in hospital, then worry about if they need to re imburse later.

You do have to think at times, how things will look if something further goes wrong and you go to tribunal.

Your idea of a LL that goes beyond is different to me, if you went beyond, you would not be here trying to get support for your belief the tenant is a **** head who has drunkenly smashed a window, you also would not be there doing gardening etc, as this could be seen as intrusive or surveillance, if you always went beyond, you would pay a gardener.

in all of this, it has not been made clear how well this one window operates, if it is at all stiff, you will lose I would guess, but if tenant wanted to be an ass, they would have avoided who broke it too, so I can see the point many others make too, if they have not cost you much & is very rare to have an issue, it may be the best 150 you spent.

Ball is in your court, with us and tenant it seems

 

lol....yeah....

It broke by itself
I dunno how it broke
and
I am broke and cant pay for it however it became broke...

Are the most likely relayed msg

 

Total agree.

I just got a bill for $140 for reattaching a towel rail.,

I asked how it broke? They said weight of towel, I said to agent lets repair it $140 later hahahahha

 

But it wasn't 350 or 1050 dollars. It was 150 dollars. Which as I mentioned, in the grand scheme of things, is a pretty insignificant amount of money. That's not to say knowing who should be responsible isn't worth knowing. I totally agree with you on that.

As it turns out, it seems to have resolved itself which is great news for Brit.

Personally, these types of situations are the reason I have a PM. I'd rather pay somebody to take care of all the small things like that. But for others they may love doing it.

Have a nice evening.

 

Yes which the OP put in as info but it wasn't the basis of the question.

That is what I was trying to get across. I don't see the underlying issue - who is responsible for the cost - as trivial based on the cost or that the OP was raising objections based on the cost.

- Luke