Unclean tenants. What to do?? Advice needed

Hello everyone,

I am a long time reader of the forums but first-time poster today!

I am looking for some advice please. I have a rental property that has been tenanted for the last two years. I went along to an inspection for the first time to see how everything was looking and the house was filthy!! I am talking black rings in the toilet, in the shower and in the sink in bathroom. Black muck in the kitchen sink, food left out on counter, sticky stuff on floor, toilets unflushed (you get the picture). Garden is not in a good state either. They clearly have not attended to it at all since being there. Despite all this there is no damage and while dirty, the house it otherwise fine. No odours or anything like that.

I am unsure what to do. My agent says that they will be asked to do a proper clean and then re-inspect and see what happens. This is my first tenant ever in the property and it was very disappointing to see it kept in this condition but as it is not structural damage - I wonder whether I might be overreacting. They are on a month-to-month lease at the moment. Not sure whether to continue on and hope for the best or look for new tenants. My agent tells me that they are also difficult to get in touch with - phone numbers disconnected and the like. Any advice would be GREATLY appreciated

 

I'd give a no grounds termination and get them out before it gets worse.

 

Rules differ from state to state, but I would imagine how this will play out is as follows:

Tenant asked to clean properly and agent will return to inspect. If unsatisfactory, a breach notice will be issued requiring the tenant to rectify the issue. If not rectified, eviction proceedings could follow.

If the nature of the uncleanliness can be classified as damage to the property, a breach for damage could possibly be issued.

The important thing is for your agent to be very snappy with issuing breach notices and via the proper means (registered post) and to keep strict file notes so that if it needs to go to tribunal then all your ducks are in line.

As @Propertunity has mentioned, terminate without reason might be an option too.

 

I will consider looking for new tenants, fumigate the place and rent it to better tenants. Where's this IP?

 

Increase rent by $50/week and asked to clean
If moves out- take cleaning fees out of bond
If stays- you got a cleaner house with rent increase
win-win

 

Thanks for your responses everyone. Some good suggestions. It sounds as though most people would not accept having tenants keeping their property in an 'unclean' state. I worry that you can't teach an old dog new tricks and that telling them to clean the place to an acceptable state won't mean that they won't just let it slide again later on.

 

I do not worry about tenants like this, they must hand back place in a clean condition, just watch that it is only cleaning up.

 

We're being a being a bit harsh here, particularly given we don't have a full background context. Although I agree that most tenants who think it's acceptable to present a property in that condition are probably not good news long term, I also don't think it's the right thing to do to just throw them out.

I would have the Property Manager talk to them firmly about cleaning up, and about the potential consequences if it remains in that condition. They need to explain how the filth will affect the condition of the property, because we have no right to dictate how tenants live unless we can draw a direct link to the uncleanliness causing damage or accelerated wear and tear.

With any luck, tenants are shocked and embarrassed, they clean up. The PM drops past in a couple of weeks and the property is far better. There might still be a few areas to improve- many of the these tenants don't actually understand what clean is, but if they are agreeable and willing they can be coached.

If it doesn't improve, you then look at Notice to Remedy Breach or Notice to Leave. Note that it is next to impossible to to get tenants out for leaving the property dirty, which is why you might consider sending a Notice to Leave without grounds. To avoid it being seen as retaliatory, you may consider leaving some time before issuing the notice and coming up with a legitimate reason for needing them out without grounds.

 

Toilet not flushed is surprising at an inspection!

However, many normal people do leave food and dishes on the bench, lots of men don’t flush the toilet every time they wee, and we've all accidentally dripped honey or pasta sauce on the floor and decided to clean it up later as we rush out the door!

It doesn’t sound like there is actually any damage just some surface dirt. You can't make people live like it’s a show home. Though it is surprising that they didn’t do a 'panic clean' like most people would! Maybe they forget about the inspection?

I would expect the garden to be tidied if they are supposed to maintain it though.

 

given how pro tenant the tribunal is in general, I would guess that unless you got lucky, the tenants would never be evicted, as long as they pay their rent, and yes it sounds dirty but not "call the health department in" type of dirty

id recommend the agent keep on pushing pushing pushing to get it a bit cleaner so at least they might change their default level of cleanliness

 

Thanks again for your responses. I agree, I don't feel good about evicting tenants without giving them an opportunity to remedy. However, the problem is that I have been told by the property manager that the tenants speak next to no English and that they have had quite a lot of trouble communicating with them about routine things in the past. I worry then that conversations and education around cleaning might not be successful. However, as pointed out most of the cleaning issues are superficial. Except for the bathroom where they have clearly never used the exhaust fan since being there. As a result there is condensation damage to the wall.

 

if the tenants are fully and properly aware of what the agent has required and they still dont do it

stuff them, dont worry about whether they are non english speakers, do what you got/want to do

 

I have a solution for you for this - get the electrician in to wire the fan to come on when they turn the light on. Granted, the fan won't come on if they don't need to turn the light on, but it should give you enough of a solution to combat the condensation damage.

 

I think you are overreacting. They will clean it when they move out to the same state as given or else bond is deducted.

 

Hubby and daughter inspected a (tenanted house for sale at an open inspection and were horrified to find a lid up, unflushed toilet - and it wasn’t a wee.......

Obviously the agent had just opened the front door and stood there, the smell was reported as quite pungent!
Marg

 

You're right, this is a surprisingly difficult issue. It's not just a language barrier but a cultural barrier as well, communicating these things can definitely be all but impossible.

I agree to get the exhaust fan wired into the one switch. It's a personal pet hate of mine, nothing worse than the WHIRRRRRR every time you walk into the bathroom, but it's a small cost to protect from more damage.

How does the Property Manager feel about it? Have you spoken to them about whether they're confident to enact change?

 

If they want to live like that then its their choice. To buy their own place.

I would never tolerate tenants who show 100% disregard for basic cleaning and tidy yard maintenance. I'm not a charity or a housing commission. It is specifically what an inspection is for. Their lack of english - so what. Cleanliness isnt restricted to english. They either cant afford or dont care....Not a tenant quality.

I would have avoided a tribunal issue and just given them notice to vacate with reminder to make sure its clean when they do.

 

Some of you then would be shocked to see my house !

Last week i didnt wash the dishes for a week , there is still unused hungry jacks wrappers on the table and i think fell on the floor

Working 18 hours a day 3 jobs i havent had time to clean .

Toilets are flushed though......except Saturdays

 

Yes but fastidious cleanliness is a part of your culture.