Landlord and Tenant Forums: By Landlords For Landlords

How many of you have had completely unreasonable tenants like this?
We have a 5 unit building. Two of the units called to say their toilets were overflowing. At first they didn't think too much about it but once they compared notes they thought it best to call us. Good thing! My husband tried to unclog the drain going out to the street but after 4 hours he had to quit because he wasn't getting anywhere. We called in the city, they did what they could but they discovered that there was indeed a blockage halfway down the driveway, on our property of course! We called in a company that will have to dig up the driveway as that is the final option. This all transpired over the course of 24 hours. I sent everyone a notice that they would have to use minimal water until the problem is fixed and that the company couldn't get there until 7:30 am, so 36 hours after the problem was first brought to our attention, but the notice was given 12 hours prior to the work on the driveway being done. Sorry if I'm confusing you!
I asked that all vehicle be removed from the driveway. First so that the work could be performed without impediment and who knows how involved it will be, second so the cars would not be damaged and third, so that the tenants would actually have use of their vehicles because the work could potentially block all vehicles from getting out.
I had 2 tenants complain to me that I didn't give them enough notice, that they needed to shower in the morning and it was unreasonable for us to ask them to move their cars.
I couldn't believe it. I kind of lost it on the one person. How can we give notice about a blocked drain? The city was surprised that no one said anything before it got to the point it is at now since they said there would have been lots of indications that there was a problem. We got nothing from anyone until the toilets started to overflow.
Anyone else have experiences like this?

Anyone else have experiences like this?

oh yes!!!

many many times!

Fortunately I also have good tenants and they make life as a landlord bearable.

The stupidity of the rental system is your tenants can now start demanding re-rebates for their inconvience and loss of services, (with the help of legal aid from the LTB), for blockages YOUR tenants caused!!!

Will they get rebates.................may be, may be not, but it still puts you thru the wringer.

Many american landlords have a clause in their leases stating all drains were working properly prior to the tenant moving in and if further blockages occur, its the tenant's repsonsibility.

Flushing tampons and kitty litter as well as washing vegetable peelings and grease down the sinks are common problems.

I have pulled pens, toys, toilet paper holder cylinder and rags out of toilets.

It's the culture of 'screw the landlord' in Ontario.

My question is: how did the drain get blocked? They might be responsible! Make sure you get a video of the pipe to see what the problem is.

If its too late to video or photograph, get a written report from the firm to describe
what caused the blockage - better safe than sorry.

I asked that, because the landlord often ends up having to pay if the city/town finds the problem is due to the actions of those in the house!

I only have one bad one left
only working tenants
I know that thoses with large building cant restrict who you rent to , but for now if I cant garnish them
I dont want them

i am now evictin my last tenant
and then selling

would this not be an example of why landlord licensing is a good thing? it kind of looks like if the property was inspected annually it would include the pipes and a situation where the tenants have to go out of there way to accommodate the landlord, unexpectedly and in such bad weather like they did, would have been avoided? just my way of viewing it. i may be off-base.

Sorry Parker but you are way off base. First off, the weather wasn't bad. It was a few hours of their cars being parked on the road. As for annual inspections, this would not have come up during any normal inspection. THe clog was almost at the road. I can't for the life of me imagine any inspection that would include snaking the drains to see if there are any clogs.

Parker wrote:

would this not be an example of why landlord licensing is a good thing? it kind of looks like if the property was inspected annually it would include the pipes and a situation where the tenants have to go out of there way to accommodate the landlord, unexpectedly and in such bad weather like they did, would have been avoided? just my way of viewing it. i may be off-base.

your suggestion may seem reasonable................but here is the situation:

Camera inspections of pipes are usually not necessary even when there is a blockage of the pipe as it can often be augered out (snaked free).

Camera inspections are very expensive. this cost would eventually have to be worked into the rent because HONESTLY, parker small landlords are not rolling in dough and often can barely pay their own bills.

This means that tenants and landlords are paying for inspections that are not necessary.

Even if a camera inspection showed the drains were clear today................that does not mean they will not be blocked tomorrow.

I did not want to say this.................but a very common problem is used tampons being flushed down the toilet. In fact it is so common there is even an expression for it: "white mice".

all the inspections in the world are not going to PREVENT a future clog caused by flushing items that should not be flushed.

Parker the last thing we need is more armchair experts with soft hands like you telling us what to do. I doubt you have never owned rental or swung hammer. Leave the land lording, repairs and renos to landlords with experience! The last thing we need is to pay for a license and more lazy city employees, to simply continue what we're already doing. RUNNING A SMALL BUSINESS AND MEET EXPENSES!

Shessh you're almost as bad as Tags!

What a joke!!

Seriously, a poster with an opinon posts, in what he/she thinks is a good course of action and you lose it??

I dont think that licening is the answer but its a valid opinon regardless.

In terms of the situation and unreasonable tenants, ill give you my perspective from a tenant point of view.

I would be upset if I am not able to take a shower in the morning but would live with that. In terms of parking and moving my cars, the problem is simple, if I am not home, no worries, ill move my car. BUT

What happens if I park on the street and get a ticket? are you going to cover that? Lots of landlords do not understand the various problems in the neighbourhoods there rentals are. Parking is a common issue and just about every city in Ontario has 3 hour max parking limit, the enforcement is either very rigourous or lax (city of toronto- unless someone complains)

Did you offer to cover the parking tickets? or is that the tenants problem?

Some of you guys need to seriously look at things from the tenants point of view.

Tenants are your clients and your making a profit depends on them, yet you guys have such contempt. YEs the landlord business is tough and yes the laws are on the tenants side, BUT you knew this before getting into the business.

The whole "tenants are clients" thing is propaganda and untrue.

So save it!

Clients in normal business can't do what can be done (and is done regularly) to us.

We are more like 'state controlled investors who take all the risk with no support."

Renters are "the unhoused which the state wants us to shelter, while being state controlled, in return for un-guranteed payments."

You want to be treated as a "customer." Open up the market, get the government sucking us all dry out of the picture, with landlords being treated and protected as true "businesses"...then you will be treated as a customer. As of now, you are pleb.

I read there is some tenant activist who raves about the rental market in Texas. Wonder why it's good for renters (lots of nice places/good prices) and owners...?? Take a look.

Do tenants compensate LL's when their rent is late? Have you? When their actions cause an inconvenience or trouble for their landlord or other tenants? No...

All of us have been tenants. We have this perspective. Like most we were responsible and paid our rent on time and didn't cause our LL's or other tenants any trouble.

The OP is right to be displeased. Not to cooperate with your LL in an emergency situation that effects everybody is foolish beyond belief. Not to mention under the RTA the LL need not give notice to tenants to enter or perform when reacting to an emergency.

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Ditto, a well written articulate response

Boo hoo for you poor landlords. LOL

All risk no support-- no buddy thats what CMHC does on behalf of your lender when all u needed was 5% down (read 95% leverage) to become a landlord. Up until they changed the rules regarding 2nd properties.

Thats the reason there are so few good tenants left, every brought houses as credit was easy and a ton of people got into the landlord business as there was no other busniness in the world were with 5% leveraged you can finance 95% of a "business" and that loan is underwritten by CMHC- a govt lobby. So now you guys are competing against each other for lousy tenants, wll the while crying about govt regulation. Sorry folks, but without CMHC-- govt regulation, at least 50% of LL would not be in the business or would not have as many rentals as they do. Thats why there is so much downward presure on rents in the GTA.

Seriously, landlord tenant act has been slanted towards tenants for the last 20 years, so if you purchased in the last 20 years, you knew full well what you were getting into. The reason the laws are the way they are is because in the past, landlords have proved (or the bad apples anyway) they cannot self regulate.

The attitude dispalyed here really bothers me, I always give the benefit of the doubt but you guys are the most jadded bunch of folks I have come across, ever.

Its a business, if you guys dont like it then sell and get out, but dont cry about it like a little baby. Th

Always attacking the reasonable, so as landlords, do you agree or disagree that in this case, if the tenants receive parking tickets while removing cars the landlord should pay?