The “Water Cooler” is a feature on Claycord.com where we ask you a question or provide a topic, and you talk about it.
The “Water Cooler” will be up Monday-Friday at noon.
Today’s question:
QUESTION: Have you ever had a landlord who was not nice, and failed to perform the duties that a landlord should perform? Tell us your stories, but please, no names.
Talk about it.
29 comments
No
Good for you. Must be nice.
Years ago, before I bought my home, I rented a small mother-in-law type house that was located in the backyard of a larger house. I enjoyed living there because it was secluded and quiet. The landlord wasn’t a bad guy, but he began storing some of his junk on the side of the house. Old lumber, tires, refrigerators, sinks, kitchen cabinets, and other landlord type junk. At first, it was a small pile of junk, then as time went by, the pile started to grow larger, and larger. Finally, I had to complain, I told him the place was starting to look like the junkyard on Sanford and Son, and he should give me a discount on rent for storage, or remove the junk. He chose the latter.
It’s not that the landlords weren’t nice about it, but we had unusual experiences with both of our California landlords.
Our first house was in Pittsburg, and our landlord was in San Francisco. We had been there for about a year when Loma Prieta hit, but our home was undamaged. Shortly thereafter his realtor called and said we weren’t being evicted, but the landlord’s home had been destroyed and he really needed to sell our house to afford a new place. We showed the house to the couple that purchased it.
Our next house was in the Crossings. After a couple of years, that landlord called and said he needed to sell that house. One thing led to another, and we bought the house from him. He paid our closing costs from the money he saved by not hiring a realtor.
Not a bad landlord story but a bad tenant story. Worked with a guy that owned an apartment building in Hayward. One night he gets a call from the fire department that 3 of his units had been damaged. Turns out a family living on the 3rd floor decided to roast a pig in the bathtub. Well the bathtub was made of fiberglass and the pig and all the hot coals burned through the bottom of the tub and fell through the floor into the apartment below and then proceeded to ignite a fire that damaged 2 units. Ignition source identified as raging hot pig.
Now that IS a bad tenant!
Epic
yeah me.
I have owned where I lived for the most part, since my ex-husband and I bought our first house in 1976. Due to several circumstances, I have been renting the past few years (hope to buy something soon), a few years ago to save up some money I decided to rent a room for a short period of time. I found a place in the area, I paid $800.00 for the room and gave the landlady a security deposit of $500.00, when I moved in, I noticed the window in the room was broken, when I tried to talk to the landlady about it, she brushed me off, “I told you I’m busy all the time”. Really, I just gave you $1300.00, and you are busy, you running a business. When after a few months my finances had improved and I could afford my own place I gave notice. There was another roommate there, and she said the tenant before me never got the security deposit back. So I asked her to sign a notarized statement, saying I would get my deposit back, she refused, so I said she could use my deposit as rent, she threaten to put my furniture out on the street, she didn’t though, she did not loose any money in fact she came out about $50.00 ahead. On top of that there was animals in the house that they didn’t take care of. Fortunately after I moved out the other roommate convinced them to find a new home for a bunny, that almost died due to it was left without food or water for days. I found the cute bunny a nice home in Petaluma. I was so glad getting out of that house, and if I drive in that area I almost get anxiety attack thinking about the nightmare it was living there.
Grandson and his family were renting 2 bedroom 1 bath 1920s house for $2,000 a month in Martinez. Called over to unclog toilet after landlord ignored them for week, then dryer motor bearings froze and that took 90 days to be replaced.
Kitchen ceiling fan jumping around like helicopter with one blade, took it down to find SHALLOW octagon box with cloth covered. Took one look, told em I’m not touching it. Don’t think it ever got fixed.
Landlord sold house out from under them. Stressed them out really bad, so told em you can live in my 4 bedroom man cave with all the pinball machines for free.
The Landlord always gets the blame for everything O G. That is why I became a mountaineer. The bigfoots are much nicer to me.
@OG…..I’m pretty sure the pinball machines would be a win, win deal for me, even at this age. I guess it would depend on what kind of machines they were, old school or modern ones.
nytemuvr, …
Electromechanical
Playtime, 1957 United Manufacturing Co.
OXO, 1973 Williams
Solid state
Supersonic, 1979 Bally
Jungle Lord, 1979 Williams
Xenon, 1980 Bally
@OG…..Those’ll work!
A superintendent in West New York, NJ had his hand out always. He had his hand out when I moved in claiming a tenet finder would give him that much. He never fixed my window until it was Christmas time. He ran for state delegate and pressed us to vote for him. He offered me a ride to the voting location before work that day. Everyone I knew from the building voted against him. I stayed there beyond my friends so I knew he would dream up a flimsy excuse to charge for something when people moved out. His excuse with me was too lame so I argued. He held up my deposit check for months. The office had written it the day I moved out.
Years ago I was renting in W.C., very nice place that had a large, open backyard that a couple of units shared…The landlord who I liked very much sold the the four units he owned and I had not yet met the new owner.
One day an older Asian gentleman was sitting on my patio furniture in the back of my unit eating a hard boiled egg or something….I went out and told him to get lost…..It turned out he was the new owner. Our relationship never really improved much after that first meeting.
Yes. Sometimes God will bring you people you need for that time. When my landlord wasn’t being compliant with their duties, I met a lawyer who did a pro bono. Sued the landlord and got a nice sum of money. After that, I never saw that lawyer again.
I once had a landlord that required me to make my bed, sweep the floor, and clean the bathroom, DAILY! Every so often, he would drop in and inspect our cleanliness.
Then I got out of the Army.
Made me laugh Professor. I rented a house once and the landlord told me he wasn’t going to return my deposit. I said, “How’d you like me to jerk you around in Small Claims Court for a couple of weeks as I sue you for treble damages (take a tenant law class)?” He came back in ten minutes with my rent deposit check. Good times in 1974.
Years ago i heard if a landlord who objected to a single guy sharing an apartment with two young ladies. Jack had to pretend he was gay in order to be permitted to live with them.
Good topic … Last year I moved up to Lam Dong province to escape the craziness unfolding in Saigon when the first wave hit … the city of 13 million was getting to weird to remain … find a great new apartment in a great neighborhood and move in, get a good contract … all good. The manager, his mom and dad all live there and the place had a great family-run, friendly vibe. I play cards and drink coffee with the mom, and she was delightful. Was there a few months and one morning come down for coffee, the manager said I must vacate the next day because his relative came back to VN and wants my room. So, being there is virtually no such thing as tenant rights (on paper yes, but in reality no) … I packed it all up and returned to my place in Saigon … was a massive fubar situation and experience. Apparently the manager was jealous of my close relationship with his mom. Sigh.
My aunt (as a very naive landlord) rented one unit of the duplex to a tenant. The dude and his crew ran illegal activities (hosting prostitution, slot machines, drug). Long story short, two months later, cops raided the unit and took all the slot machine and made a few arrest. They destroyed the unit!
We found out the tenant has a racket and like to target naive landlord to shuffle is criminal activities from house to house.
Once and only once. My husband called him Paul Bunyan. It’s a great story that led me where I am right now. Hubby retired early out of US Treasury, said you have given up so much so I can get my retirement and traveled with me, so you pick any place you want to live and buy a home. In the meantime, I was renting out our other home in California, so “Paul Bunyan” who we offically met when we arrived at the rental in Northern CA was not what we expected. Fortunately, my tenacious side took over, I got my job and within six months of moving to Concord bought the home I wanted we moved to Concord, as my Uncle had lived in Clayton then on Farm Bureau Road and been here ever since. Paul Bunyan served his purpose and I still get a laugh out of it when I think of what my husband called him.
Paul Bunyan performed no duties. 🙂
Palm Lake Apartments. Horrible landlords, dishonest and don’t follow through.
Concord now has Residential Tenant Anti-Harassment Protection (Chapter 19-50) added to Municipal Code. Plus they have inspections.
Failure to keep the units habitable is in there. The city can now charge scofflaws. If the appellant wins in court, the landlord has to pay all lawyer and court costs. Document, document, document.
@ Steve. I appreciate your post. My and my attorney talked today. I get it. I will be starting to attend Council Meetings very soon. I’m an “In-person” participant so….
Years ago when hubby and I were first married, we lived in an apartment in a quad plex. The landlord (who lived offsite) was a creepy, slimy guy (imagine a chubby Newsome) who would mow the lawn in a speedo. Ick. Then he began showing up unannounced when hubby wasn’t home and worm his way in on some pretext just to hang out with me. Shortly afterward he just let himself in when I was alone. Scared me to death. Hubby told him if he did that again, he’d leave with missing body parts. We ended up moving a few months later because he was just so creepy, and many months later he hit us with a gas bill, which we ignored. Back then I don’t think there was any oversight board to report him to. No wonder the rent was so cheap.
….. left my apartment after 3 yrs or so and asked for my cleaning deposit back – landlord said no… I said let’s go inspect it and you tell me what’s deficient, we did – I got my entire deposit returned…. just trying all angles to make some side $$
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