probs with tenant

Dear Chennaites,
i have a question to u all....v have a house in chennai,3 yrs'back north indian fl'y came for rent,husband,wife,toddler,baby...last month they gone back to Delhi,becoz they don't like to stay in chennai mainly becoz of language probs....ok,coming to my probs....the toddler scribbled the whole house with pencil & pen v gave him a brand new house for rent after housewarming function....but after 3 yrs' v saw the house & shocked very dirty,scribblings in the house..smelly toilets...so v asked to pay for the paint,i.e he needs to pay half of the paint charge,he refused to pay & scolded us for asking amt',he switched off his mobile while talking,what the manners...he is working with world bank...
he said in chennai it'll b like that only the house owners should pay for that...is it true???? he repaired 2 fans & left our house after that heat argument he paid 3000only...he called my cousin brother in delhi(becoz his uncle is senior to my brother in office)complained....
i really donno what he did was right??? or what v did was wrong?????

Hi,

What the tenant did was wrong.
He must have paid money for the damages.
I have a question though, what about the advance money they paid.Could you not retain a part of it?And did you have a lease agreement, with clause about the damages?

Regards,
Yamuna.

hi yamuna,
s,they didn't paid anything for 3 months rent,they want us to deduct it from advance,
in the agreement v didn't mention abt the painting ..
also one more thing is next month they r going to US,will they tell the same to US ppl' scribbled all over the house,without cleaning anything can they come out easily

Hi,

What they did is absolutely irresponsible. We too have a flat rented out in Chennai.Yes, major repair works are the responsibility of the owner.Universally, the rule of normal wear and tear to the house applies. If the wear and tear is beyond what is normal, then the tenant should share the expenses.

I wonder if the person really works with World bank.....and if so in what capacity...... In western countries, such people are blacklisted. Their Social security number helps in tracking them.I wish there was such a system here in India too.

Regards,
Yamuna.

Hi,

Why dont know serve him a written notice. List down the damages and its extent. Check his reaction. It was worked out for me in the past. But not world bank executive - just indian bankman

Hi vivbass,

But I guess in Chennai, we have to bear the cost of whatever painting and repair needs to be done. Though that is not fair, I think that is what is in practice. Whenever we give a house for rent, we cannot expect them to maintain it as we do. The reason is simple, it is not their own house. So they will not bother to keep it clean, at least 75% of tenants are like that. Esp, when there are toddlers, all this scribbing is expected obviously. Perhaps you could have told them in the beginning itself about the painting job or mentioned it in the contract.

Next time, when you let it out, dont spend too much for painting. Reasonable cost painting would be enough, as they are not going to maintain it anyway. Anyway, howmuchever precaution we take, only houseowners have to bear the brunt. At least your tenant paid the rent properly, my tenant had absconded for more than 6 months leaving the house locked with things in the house and without paying rent. It was a big headache till we traced him and got him to vacate...

Radhee

Hi Vivbass,

Radhee is right.. in Chennai, unfortunately, it's the case. But after living abroad we're thinking of adding an additional clause in the agreement (when our house is ready for renting out) that the tenant should bear the cost of any damages. If you have not done so then sorry it's a tough case! Good luck with recovering anything possible... Latha

Originally Posted by vivbass

Dear Chennaites,
i have a question to u all....v have a house in chennai,3 yrs'back north indian fl'y came for rent,husband,wife,toddler,baby...last month they gone back to Delhi,becoz they don't like to stay in chennai mainly becoz of language probs....ok,coming to my probs....the toddler scribbled the whole house with pencil & pen v gave him a brand new house for rent after housewarming function....but after 3 yrs' v saw the house & shocked very dirty,scribblings in the house..smelly toilets...so v asked to pay for the paint,i.e he needs to pay half of the paint charge,he refused to pay & scolded us for asking amt',he switched off his mobile while talking,what the manners...he is working with world bank...
he said in chennai it'll b like that only the house owners should pay for that...is it true???? he repaired 2 fans & left our house after that heat argument he paid 3000only...he called my cousin brother in delhi(becoz his uncle is senior to my brother in office)complained....
i really donno what he did was right??? or what v did was wrong?????

Well, typically they should do what was agreed in your lease agreement. You can legally handle this to get them paid.

It is not same here in the US,

1. Rent has to be paid by 5th of every month and you are charged a late fee and a warned, otherwise - no deduction from advance. Since these are leasing companies and not individual owners.. it is the "rule"

2. They do an inspection when you vacate the house and deduct the damage cost before they repay the advance. No aruguments and fights.. It is the law for all the leasing companies.

So most people tend to be careful or do the paint job themselves as hiring a person is also expensive.

I think you need to be little more aggressive with the tenants on terms and conditions.

Hope you find a good tenant next time around.!

Unfortunate.

But I guess in the agreement, you could have added all these.

Whether its their house or not, they LIVED in that house... its not a hotel now is it? So how can an owner be bullied into paying all these...

I would suggest don't fall for all his stupid shouts, if its reasonable(as I don't know the condition of the house) and if exceeds the advance amount.. then you can always charge him with it. Tell your uncle the plight of your house as well. There is 2 sides of a coin yeah?

I don't think you are in for to fight till the end, so let it go.. paint it back and bring it back. But if you are renting it again.. please make sure you write up a lease(rent) agreement with help of a lawyer and make sure you include everything. Also, even if they go next month, they had to pay the rent, they cannot have you deduct it. Rent is for every month they stay in your house. Period. Make sure you write that down as well.

If its in the agreement, nothing can be done later.. you are the boss ;)

veedum koduthu kashtamum en anubavikanum illai?