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When Eviction is The Wrong Call

Stressed Englewood Cliffs Property Manager on the Phone Evictions are occasionally an unavoidable aspect of the business for Englewood Cliffs property managers and rental property owners. Eviction isn’t always the most appropriate option when you have a tough renter to deal with. Both you and your tenant may have to spend time and money on the eviction process. Rarely does the eviction process benefit either the property owner or the tenant. Hence, it might not be a good idea to evict a renter. You and your tenant would probably benefit more if you find better solutions than eviction in these circumstances.

Your Otherwise Good Renter Falls Behind on Rent

Owning a thriving rental property depends on having a reliable tenant. Even good renters occasionally have financial setbacks, job losses, or other circumstances that make it impossible for them to make ends meet. It should be clear that non-payment of rent is a violation of their agreement. Yet, perhaps it isn’t the best course of action to evict a tenant for neglecting to pay one or even multiple monthly installments. This is usually the case if the tenant has a history of prompt payments, good housekeeping, and property maintenance .

In these circumstances, working with your renter to find a solution to assist them in catching up on late rent payments might be a better option than eviction. As long as the renter’s financial issues are momentary, this might be an excellent approach to avoid the price of evicting and replacing the tenant, while also generating the renter’s appreciation. This option is more likely to help you recover all of the unpaid rent payments and keep a good renter over the long run if you’re willing to endure a small financial cost in the short term.

You Don’t Have Clear Legal Grounds

There are some instances where an eviction can result in more legal issues than it would resolve. These should be avoided under all circumstances. Not having clear legal grounds for eviction would be an example of such an instance. If your tenant has complained about the habitability of the property, either to you or to the neighborhood housing authority, and you haven’t taken action to resolve the complaint, your attempt to evict the tenant may be seen as retaliatory and could be rejected.

Another instance would be if a renter who belongs to a protected class may argue that your eviction was discriminatory. The federal Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing decisions, including evictions, based on a renter’s religion, age, race, marital status, sexual preferences, and more. The renter may bring legal action against you if the eviction is presumed as discriminatory.

Finally, use caution when accepting partial rent payments both before and after attempting to remove a tenant for failure to pay rent. If you take any rent from the tenant, you may lose your legal grounds for eviction and find yourself in a precarious position. This is because taking partial payments forms an underlying agreement between you and your tenant that a judge will likely interpret as a prolongation of your lease, even if it is not in writing. Waiting till the situation is clearer is preferable if you don’t have definite legal justifications for an eviction.

You’d Rather Keep Your Money

The eviction procedure is costly, and not simply because legal fees are involved. What would likely happen is that once your tenant learns that you’ll be attempting to evict them from the rental property, rent payments will stop, and so will any cleaning or maintenance of the property. This often results in missed wages as well as increased maintenance and repair costs.

Try paying your renter to leave instead of going through the price and trouble of eviction. This sort of “cash for keys” arrangement can help a renter who is struggling financially to leave on good terms or persuade a stubborn renter to leave sooner rather than later. It may seem peculiar to give cash to someone who owes you money, but even a lump sum cash payment of several hundred dollars is significantly less than the cost of evicting the renter.

Avoid Eviction with Quality Property Management

Finding a decent tenant with a track record of timely rent payments is one of the easiest methods to fully avoid evictions. Although, it may be challenging to achieve that, especially if you have other things to do. In order to select the best potential candidates for your rental property, Real Property Management Concierge carefully screens each applicant. In the event that issues do occur later, our Englewood Cliffs property management experts can assist in advising you on the best course of action to take. Contact us online today to learn more!

We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy for the achievement of equal housing opportunity throughout the Nation. See Equal Housing Opportunity Statement for more information.

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