Articles filed under Griswold, Robert

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When do late-payment fees become ‘excessive’? Jun 10, 2012 5:19 AM
By Robert Griswold [No Paragraph Style]NewsQandA with bodyQ. My husband and I rent a townhouse that is privately owned. Per the lease that we signed, the rent is due on the first of the month and there is a five-day grace period. The landlord charges us $35 for the first day if we pay on the sixth of the month and $25 each additional day that we are late in paying the rent. Our monthly rental is $810.
Renters should take action if management won’t enforce rules May 27, 2012 9:40 AM
Robert Griswold Q. I live in an apartment community where there are numerous 60-pound-plus dogs. However, the complex has a 35-pound pet limit, which it advertises on its website and is included as a legal rule on the lease that all tenants sign.
Rental forum: Dealings with roommates can turn hostile May 13, 2012 5:22 AM
By Robert Griswold Q: Although Id been renting a house for several years by myself, I recently got a roommate to help make ends meet after my employer cut my hours.
Rental forum: Bending the rules of rent collection Apr 29, 2012 5:12 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. At the rental property I manage, we always have the rent due on or before the first day of the month. Recently I had a prospective tenant sign a lease to move in on the 10th of the month, and he requested to pay rent each month on the 10th..
Rental forum: Illegal rental occupant faces tough decision Apr 15, 2012 5:06 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. Last year I moved into my friends apartment after receiving verbal approval from the landlord. My friend is on a one-year lease that prohibits subletting without written consent.
Security deposit dispute may uncover dishonest landlord Apr 2, 2012 6:10 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. My family of four recently moved out of a three-bedroom house that we had been renting for more than two years. Unfortunately, the landlord took a while to return my $3,500 security deposit, and he also deducted $518 for "repair and cleaning."
Rental forum: The pitfalls of renting an apartment based on Internet photos Mar 4, 2012 6:28 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. I recently moved into an apartment complex and signed a lease for 12 months. Unfortunately, I found out very quickly that neither the terms of the lease nor the community rules and regulations were enforced.
Rental forum: Drug test for tenants may not fly Feb 19, 2012 12:00 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. A prospective tenant would like to rent a cottage on our property. We would like to know if we could ask the prospective tenant to submit to random drug testing as a condition of tenancy. We have heard about law enforcement seizing property where drug use is prevalent and we just don’t want to take the risk of losing our property.
Rental forum: Don’t involve law enforcement unless situation is dire Jan 8, 2012 12:00 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. I live in an apartment community that is very large. Recently there has been a rather heated discussion between tenants and management over noise complaints. The heart of the issue is determining who is responsible for notifying the tenant causing the noise problem or disturbance, and I wanted your opinion.
Rental forum: Signs you need a better property manager Dec 11, 2011 9:45 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. I own a rental property managed by a property management company. I have had problems with the last and current tenants. The previous tenant stopped paying rent for several months and then abandoned the property leaving it in unbelievable shape. The house had to have considerable work done in order to rerent it. My current tenant is not paying the garbage service bill despite a number of promises to my property manager that they will do so. Some late rental payments also raise my concern.
Rental forum: How to handle tenants who ignore nonrenewal notice Nov 13, 2011 12:00 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. We have an unmarried couple renting a one-bedroom apartment for the past 4 1/2 years. We have always had trouble collecting rent in a timely fashion, and every time we have been there for a repair we found the apartment was dirty and messy. It doesn’t seem like they have any system for keeping the unit clean, as they both seem to be always at work.
Rental forum: Burglary depletes tenant’s security deposit Oct 30, 2011 12:00 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. About a month before the end of our rental lease, the house was burglarized. An outside door, screen door and two inside doors were badly damaged. The police were called. The landlord’s father inspected the property at the time, as the landlord lives out of town.
Rental forum: Tenant cries foul over ‘late keys’ charge Oct 16, 2011 12:00 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. When I was moving out of a condo that I had been renting for nearly seven years, I requested a pre-move-out and a post-move-out inspection from the property management company. It is not legally required where I live, but the property manager agreed to these inspections.
Rental forum: Rent discount for waiting on repairman? Oct 2, 2011 12:00 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. A tenant who rents a house from me is requesting that I allow her to deduct lost wages from her rent. She notified me that her air conditioner was not working properly. I immediately called the home warranty company who sent out a technician as soon as they could that same day. They made the repair, but the air conditioner began malfunctioning again shortly after he left. I then called an air conditioner repair company who came out and replaced another malfunctioning part the next day. I responded as quickly as was humanly possible.
Rental forum: Overnight guest to fight towing charge Sep 18, 2011 12:00 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. My son parked in his girlfriend’s assigned parking space at her apartment complex. The property manager had his car towed claiming he was not the tenant and that parking is for tenants only. The tenants are not provided with parking stickers. There is a sign posted outside the complex labeled “Tenant Parking Only.”
Rental forum: How much is too much carpet cleaning? Aug 21, 2011 12:00 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. Is it reasonable that I have the carpet cleaned every time a tenant moves out? I do it because I see it as part of the maintenance and keeping with the value of my property.
Factors determine whether broken AC warrants immediate fix Aug 7, 2011 12:00 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. I am a new landlord and recently faced a situation that frustrates me. I have a tenant in a moderate-climate area who said his air conditioning unit stopped working, and he wanted me to have it fixed. The next thing I knew, he went ahead and called a technician to the rental house without my permission and is expecting me to pay for the repair. What recourse do I have in this case?
How to ensure security deposit is returned upon move-out Jul 24, 2011 12:00 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. I am subleasing a room from a renter of an apartment unit. She has a lease with the owner of the property and I just rent one room. But the renter did require me to pay her a security deposit. I am very concerned that when I move out, the renter who I sublease the room from will not return my security deposit to me because she irresponsibly spent it. I need to know my rights.
Rental forum: A win-win way to break lease Jul 10, 2011 12:00 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. We have been renting an apartment for nearly two years. When our lease expired last fall, we signed a new 12-month lease that runs through October. Currently, our adult daughter lives with us and is paying one-third of our total rent. She has decided that she will be moving to her own apartment in early August.
Rental forum: Can security deposit cover last month’s rent? Jun 26, 2011 8:16 AM
By Robert Griswold Q. One of my tenants did not pay rent for the month of May, and when I called him to ask where the rent check was, he told me he was giving notice and would be out on or around May 31. I told him I still needed May rent. He told me to use his $1,200 security deposit. The rent is $1,255, and I served him with a three-day notice to pay or quit.