Tenant refusing to move in to rental and fulfilling out lease obligation.

[dinosaur]

Originally Posted by Soundy

So, do you guys take turns at the same computer, or...?

hahahaha...we have separate computers: desktop (Grid's office) and a laptop (mine, usually in the living room).

Believe it or not, we usually disagree on how to handle different tenant situations and usually debate how to handle the problem until one of us says, "Fuck! Fine!! We'll do it your way".

That way is usually my way

[Soundy]

Originally Posted by dinosaur

That way is usually my way

[Hehe]

I'm not legal expert, but from my experience with rentals, unless you were dealing with a company that rent it for their commercial purpose (for their employees, filming... etc), your contract cannot go beyond the law in place. The law applied in this case is what RTB sets and not the contract law.

For a contract law to be in effect, there are certain conditions to be met. I doubt you have a lawyer or notary public to witness the signing of the lease. So, the $750/mth damage clause is virtually pointless because if your tenant claims you made her to sign it without full-disclosure/unfair treatment, you could lose the effect of the entire contract. Don't go that route.

What I'd do is basically prepare a plan. Let's say that you are willing to null the contract if she pays you one additional month (as it might be hard to find a tenant for Oct). Go talk with the tenant nicely about your condition, what you could do in your power and your offer. Then make sure that you let her know that you have every intention to go after all the legal options available to you if she doesn't agree with you. Then get her to sign the plan you presented her.

Because sure there is way to make her to fulfill the lease (legally speaking), but the amount of resources you have to put into to enforce that isn't worth it. You'd first have to go through RTB for everything, tries to re-rent it... etc. And when RTB finally awards whatever amount RTB thinks she owes, it could be a PITA to actually find the tenant and ask her to pay.

[GLOW]

Originally Posted by dinosaur

usually debate how to handle the problem until one of us says, "Fuck! Fine!! We'll do it your way".

That way is usually my way

that sounds a lot like how things go with the wife and myself

[xerograv]

Take the rent and damage deposit, cut your losses while all it is at present is, you needing to find new tennats, and just rent it out. Sure you could sue, fill out forms etc, etc, but at the end of the day, she's not moving in, and you don't want to force her to move in.

Also that "contract" rider you filled would be tossed out, its unenforceable, great bullying tactic, but worthless really against anyone with 2 ounces of common sense and a half decent lawyer, even a legal aid lawyer would get it tossed.

[dinosaur]

Originally Posted by xerograv

Also that "contract" rider you filled would be tossed out, its unenforceable, great bullying tactic, but worthless really against anyone with 2 ounces of common sense and a half decent lawyer, even a legal aid lawyer would get it tossed.

Actually, it wouldn't. It is classified as an addendum attached the the RTA and it is allowable.

Also, you are not permitted to have lawyers or legal aid involved in a branch arbitration case and no lawyer would even touch the Residential Tenancy Act.

I am not saying that the landlord would get a 100% favorable ruling as the judge would most likely decide what is fair compensation (and the landlord is obligate to show effort in solving the problem-also in the RTA), but it would not be 'tossed' out.

[Mr.HappySilp]

Tenants always complain is hard to find a decent place to rent in Vancouver but I blame it on them.

I mean some of them is just plain trouble the moent you see them...... When I was renting out the basement we have tenants who bring thier kids to see the place but would let the kids run wild, grab things and started fighting in front of your potential landlord...... Or I have people who constanly complain about thier pervious landlord..... Buddy do you think your potential landlord wants to hear you complain.

We actually weren't able to rent the basement for one month even though we have tons of people coming by to see it everyday. We rather wait for the right person then to rent it out to some junkie that will not pay rent.

[xerograv]

Originally Posted by dinosaur

Actually, it wouldn't. It is classified as an addendum attached the the RTA and it is allowable.

Also, you are not permitted to have lawyers or legal aid involved in a branch arbitration case and no lawyer would even touch the Residential Tenancy Act.

I am not saying that the landlord would get a 100% favorable ruling as the judge would most likely decide what is fair compensation (and the landlord is obligate to show effort in solving the problem-also in the RTA), but it would not be 'tossed' out.

I guess the laws here a very different than in Ontario, cause there it'd be tossed, I was under the assumption there were certain things federally that couldn't be overridden provincially. Oddly I thought it was pretty much similar everywhere, guess not.

[dinosaur]

Thats pretty much how Grid and I are.

Yes, we do a credit check and yes, we do a reference check but most of the time we have a pretty good idea of what those two things are going to say...it just confirms our suspicions.

I can usually tell within 30 seconds of meeting a potential tenant if I want them to live in a property we manage. Just yesterday I have a chick want to view an apt. Her first question was, "do you do credit checks". To that I responded, "yes, why?". She says she "just got out of rehab and her car was possessed" while she was there and now her credit is shit....can she "use her father's credit for the application?"

Um...can you count how many red flags there were in that 15 second conversation!?

We do not rent to anyone to fill the void....I don't care if the place sits empty for a month and our owners feel the same way. $800+ in loss of rental revenue is nothing compared the the loss you may have with a terrible tenant. It is never worth it.

[dinosaur]

Originally Posted by xerograv

I guess the laws here a very different than in Ontario, cause there it'd be tossed, I was under the assumption there were certain things federally that couldn't be overridden provincially. Oddly I thought it was pretty much similar everywhere, guess not.

Absolutely, they are different. Tenancy Laws differ so greatly b/w provinces, you would think it was a different country. This is a big issue as it is obvious that many people move from province to province often.

It really should be the same across the country, but seeing as they differ drastically, I don't think there would ever be able to be a consensus.

The only time it become a federal issue (iirc) is when as order of possession is obtained and the tenant attempts to fight it. an order of possession, if executed to the full extent of the law, is given by the Supreme Court of Canada. To my knowledge, there are no federal tenancy laws.

[xerograv]

Originally Posted by dinosaur

To my knowledge, there are no federal tenancy laws.

I was referring to the addendum/rider thing, there's a couple of cases where you're not allowed to do so, but thats just off the top of my head, doesn't matter though, BC is kinda wacked, wee. The cat thing annoys me more than anything, in Ontario landlords can't even say "no pets" within certain parameters, but here, omg, I offered one guy a $1000 deposit for my cat and he declined it, I was pissed, great place, wouldn't even take 6 months rent up front either. People are nuts.

[Gridlock]

Originally Posted by xerograv

I was referring to the addendum/rider thing, there's a couple of cases where you're not allowed to do so, but thats just off the top of my head, doesn't matter though, BC is kinda wacked, wee. The cat thing annoys me more than anything, in Ontario landlords can't even say "no pets" within certain parameters, but here, omg, I offered one guy a $1000 deposit for my cat and he declined it, I was pissed, great place, wouldn't even take 6 months rent up front either. People are nuts.

We're not allowed to take rent in advance. I wouldn't anyway. Honestly, people take it as a red flag. Makes no difference to me if I take it now, or take it over 6 months. I still get it Oh, and you can get fined for taking more than a legal deposit. The owner of my building tried to do that with someone at her building...I quickly nuked that plan.

I can't emphasize it enough for people how different the laws are from province to province.

In Halifax, for example, I, as a landlord can just end your tenancy. NO reason. After 3 years, you are 'tenured' and get mostly the same protections as here. There are no gov't mandated percentage rent increases either. So guess what? Tenants behave.

So, what finally ended up happening with Miss Feng Shui?

[xerograv]

Originally Posted by Gridlock

We're not allowed to take rent in advance. I wouldn't anyway. Honestly, people take it as a red flag.

See that I just don't get, and I was actually refused by 15 places before someone accepted me, and I'm like, I have good credit, no criminal record, I don't smoke, I drink on occasion and I've only been here 6 months and either it was the unemployed because I just moved here (but willing to pay 6 months up to the entire 1 year lease up front) or the cat. Made me mental. as it is, the place I'm living in is just temporary, I really need to find my own pad.

also, +1 for halifax, lived there (actually my license is still from NS) up til last year, and I've been on both ends of that stick.

[Gridlock]

I actually was helping a guy through pm's that was asking a similar question, saying, "in my family's situation, are we going to have problems getting an apartment?"

Here's what I say to everyone...depending on the building, as there are different 'requirements' for each, but in general...the decision has been made when I see you at the door. I'm worse for that than Dino. Basically, I come down to the door and I take a look, are we doing well today, or do you get the short tour. When we actually start talking, it either tanks your good impression, reinforces it, or occasionally someone that I would have been a no on comes back to the yes camp.

A few examples:

1. We had a goofy guy come in and take a look at a fairly decent apartment pre-reno. He brought his cousin with him. The cousin was weird. One weird dude. But we weren't renting to him. The guy we rented to tells us that he was rejected at so many places, some, they didn't even show the apartment, just straight off at the door. I've never done that, I will at least hear you out.

His place was spotless, he paid his rent on time every single month and he was an excellent guy that even helped when I was working on the front lawn one day, not for money, but just to hang out and do something physical. I call that a win. We wrote him a glowing reference to help out on his next place.

Dino saw it, I didn't. I was wrong.

2. We had a girl the other day that was asking about apartments. Dino is talking to her and in 15 seconds we get: was in rehab when her car was repo'ed tanking credit, can she use her father's social insurance number?

First impression without talking to her? Was good. Normal looking chick.

3. My favorite is we had one guy that was full on bankruptcy at 23. He is one of the best tenants...clean neat freak, super friendly. Denied all over town. We were both an instant yes. Rent has never been late and I'm serious, his apartment is spotless. I call that a win.

The problem I see is people have a very small window of what they view as acceptable. A lot of the problem is property management companies. The difference between what they do and what we do is almost night and day. We worked for a pm company-once. Hated it. We showed an apartment, and then sent the application off to the great black void that was their office and they made the decision. They never met you, or cared to. The decision making ability on anything was pulled away from us, which was annoying as we were the people at our other buildings. Even worse, the decisions they made were stupid, convoluted and mostly wrong. So in that case, if its a no cat building, it doesn't matter what you say...you aren't moving in. You can be martha fucking stewart with an OCD complex with a bad credit score and...no dice. It's just not the person's decision that you are talking to.

So in turn, they'll take a shitty tenant just because on paper, you meet some numerical requirement and find someone to fake a reference. Fun process to watch play out.

[sh0n]

Originally Posted by Gridlock

We're not allowed to take rent in advance. I wouldn't anyway. Honestly, people take it as a red flag. Makes no difference to me if I take it now, or take it over 6 months. I still get it Oh, and you can get fined for taking more than a legal deposit. The owner of my building tried to do that with someone at her building...I quickly nuked that plan.

I can't emphasize it enough for people how different the laws are from province to province.

In Halifax, for example, I, as a landlord can just end your tenancy. NO reason. After 3 years, you are 'tenured' and get mostly the same protections as here. There are no gov't mandated percentage rent increases either. So guess what? Tenants behave.

So, what finally ended up happening with Miss Feng Shui?

Update on Miss Feng Shui.

She has yet to contact me since the day of her scheduled move-in. As such, the ball is in her court as I'm moving on.

Thank you everyone for all the suggestions and comments.

[subordinate]

Originally Posted by sh0n

Update on Miss Feng Shui.

She has yet to contact me since the day of her scheduled move-in. As such, the ball is in her court as I'm moving on.

Thank you everyone for all the suggestions and comments.

I couldn't help but read and blurt out laughing when I continued reading on until the signature, "ATTACK"

[sh0n]

Originally Posted by subordinate

I couldn't help but read and blurt out laughing when I continued reading on until the signature, "ATTACK"

What's funny about the signature?

I had it since 9/11