<p>I am sure if you have rental properties, eventually you will be facing eviction issues. My problem is to evict a former owner of a foreclosed property. Legally, that is not the problem, I did hire a eviction lawyer and the legal process has already started.</p>
<p>My soft question is how to prevent such a tenant from damaging the property so I will face a big repair bill. Not that I have not prepared for it, but just want to keep the damages to the minimum.</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>There is really nothing you can do to prevent. Hopefully you protected yourself with a sizable deposit knowing this persons history.</p>
<p>You pay the guy to get out…</p>
<p>Hope to heck the guy has some homeowner’s insurance. If not, talk to your agent about getting a business/rental policy on the property that would cover damage by tenants.</p>
<p>There was another thread on this. Dstark is probably right, although this is one of those things that makes my gut churn. The guy’s been living there rent-free for 18 months-2 years, you own the property, and you have to pay him to get out. Arggg. OTOH-I’m a landlord. I’ve seen what people can and will do. Best thing to do is get him out however you can do it.</p>
<p>Banks do what dstark has suggested…</p>
<p>Is he actually your tenant or are you trying to remove the former owner of a house you bought in foreclosure? If that guy was foreclosed, chances are he’s not going to have homeowner’s and he’s not going to make a claim for his own actions, if the policy would even cover intentional damages (mine will not).</p>
<p>Agree with dstark–a little green goes a long way in life. A next door neighbor had a rusty trampoline in his front yard that I detested. Finally i gave him $100 for it and paid to have it hauled off. Very happy.</p>
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<p>I think I am clear on who the current occupants are…</p>
<p>With regards to insurance. I’ve bought the insurance the day I closed the deal. However, I don’t think the insurance will pay for occupant inflicted damages.</p>
<p>The current occupant still think the house is hers, that is my problem.</p>
<p>If you bought the house at a substantial discount from market, that is what the discount is for.</p>
<p>Agree that trying to bribe…err… offer the former owner an “incentive” to move is a good idea, but he probably has nowhere to go. As you know, these properties are often stripped bare when the former owner moves. Did you see the place before you bought it? Yes it is theft if he takes the light fixtures and appliances, but it wouldnt be surprising if he tries, or if he trashed the place in other ways. Perhaps your financiual incentive to move could be contingent upon his leaving without any damage to exisiting appliances , fixtures, walls etc. Its a thought.</p>
<p>Ok…I get it now (clueless party of one your table is ready) I was thinking you bought the house in a foreclosure sale but rented it back to the original owner…anyway.</p>
<p>What makes her believe she still owns the property? You may want to offer her moving expenses which could be far less than the damage a bitter person could do. In principal I hate the idea, but we are talking about life.</p>
<p>Offer money. More money than you think you should have to pay. Life is not fair. We had tenants do 20K+ worth of damage in a month. They had let their insurance lapse. It was a nightmare that wiped out our savings. </p>
<p>We were going to offer money, but we waited too long.</p>
<p>OP–I think the reason people were confused was that your post started with a reference to rental properties.</p>
<p>I don’t know the answer to your question, but I am curious as to what advice others give. My father and my sister once bought a foreclosure property for which the light fixtures, light bulbs, and heating and a/c units all disappeared.</p>
<p>I work in the property management business. First thing to try is to pay the person to move out. It isn’t fair but that is usually the fastest and cheapest option.</p>
<p>Bribe money contingent and paid when you walk through with her and inspect the place. Payment a graduated scale; the sooner she’s out, the more she gets. Change the locks as she is pulling away. Then watch the place closely for a while.</p>
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<p>I think buyers need to take that into account when coming up with their bid amount. If you buy a house that should be worth $200,000 for $100,000 at foreclosure, you should be able to make a profit even if you repair $20,000 in damage…or if you pay $5000 in move-out incentives. </p>
<p>This is a good piece that was in the NYT magazine last fall:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/25/magazine/lives-the-closer.html[/url]”>http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/25/magazine/lives-the-closer.html</a></p>
<p>I have some relatives who were once paid to end their lease early. They indicated that the landlords knew that they were hard up for money and wanted to help out with their moving expenses. </p>
<p>I think looking back there was a lot more to that story than nice landlords wanting to help their tenents out!</p>
<p>(Yes, I know he isn’t your tenent.)</p>
<p>If you can get the previous owner to let you in, take pictures of everything with that day’s newspaper.</p>
<p>Make it clear that you will pursue criminal charges if anything is damaged beyond normal wear and tear, or removed from the property. Threaten to call their employer and attach their pay, or take their car if there is any monetary damage. Basically put some fear in them.</p>
<p>Then - offer to pay them something to move out, and put a short time limit on it. Around here it’s called “Cash for Keys”.</p>
<p>^^The velvet glove/iron hand approach…</p>