If you own a rental property but your tenant trashed it when they left, then make sure you read this article because we’re addressing this all-too-common problem that landlords have these days. Landlords are saying, “Help! My last tenant trashed my Dallas / Fort Worth house!”
Do you own a rental property that you’ve worked hard at maintaining over the years? Did you have a tenant that left it in less-than-perfect condition? It happens! In fact, it’s an experience that probably every landlord has faced at least one time in their rental career. Sadly it’s happening more and more. If you looked at your empty rental property and said, “Help! My tenant trashed my Dallas / Fort Worth house” then here are some things you can do about it…
Is it worth going after the tenant?
You need to first assess the damage and decide if it’s worth going after the tenant. When the tenant trashed your place, they probably weren’t thinking that there were probably going to be repercussions for their actions. Unfortunately, it often isn’t worth the hassle to go after the tenant because it may be a time consuming and even expensive effort to get the tenant to pay you back for the damages. However, if the damage is significant enough, then it might be the best option to try to go after them legally.
Is it worth repairing the damage?
From holes in the walls to missing toilets – we’ve heard of just about everything you can possibly imagine! Depending on how the tenant trashed your property, sometimes a little bit of drywall and paint can fix the problem, in which case you may want to fix it up and rent it out again, and just accept the inconvenience as the cost of doing business, which is a tax write-off. However, if the damage is too great and really not worth repairing yourself, then you might be interested in a couple of other options:
You could rent your house to a handyman
One little-known option that people don’t really think about is you could rent your place out to a handyman in exchange for a discount on rent. Some landlords might choose free rent if the handyman is willing to fix up the house for you while they’re living there. You could go from a trashed place to a nice rental property again for someone in the future. Make sure you have a timeline all spelled out and everything in writing, though. You’d want to avoid them staying too long without getting the work done. It should be clear what your expectations are and in what time frame.
You could sell the house
Another option is to sell the house and retire as a landlord. However, be aware that if you try to sell the house on the open market, you may have to fix it up ahead of time in order for the agent to list it. Many buyers are looking for homes that are move-in ready. So selling a fixer upper isn’t usually a good option when working with a real estate agent to help you find a buyer.
Another option is to sell privately to a house-buying team like ours at Madison Lea Homes. (We buy houses in as-is condition, and we fix them up ourselves after closing).