I have an applicant who is here for a contract job for 2 years. They asked if I will give them a rent break for signing a longer lease? They asked for $200 monthly.

I’m of the mindset to say yes when I can but more inclined for a much smaller amount. My rent is on the lower side for the area already.

Thoughts?

I use apartments.com for my tenant payment portal and for applications + background checks, but I also have it listed on Zillow since more people use that. I've only had scam inquiries on apartments.com so far, and unqualified applicants on Zillow who just seem to be spamming every listing whether it meets their needs or not. Until today, when I received an inquiry from a person who SEEMS to tick all the boxes - however, I can find no record of this person's name existing in my state. They want to tour the apartment and honestly I'm a little uncomfortable showing it to someone who may be using a fake identity? They filled out the preliminary "renter profile" on Zillow, but I don't know if Zillow requires any form of identification at all for that. It's just their name, number of occupants, a self-reported monthly income, self-reported estimated credit score, whether they have pets, and whether they "need parking." That's it.

I made a Google form "pre-showing questionnaire," basically a pared down rental application without asking for their social security number. It asks for their drivers license or other identification number, but should I ask them to upload a picture of their ID/passport instead? Just not feeling super comfortable with all the scams out there. This could be someone who is moving to California from elsewhere and be totally legit but otherwise, who knows what they're up to. I've had some bizarre scam inquiries so far so I am on edge about meeting in person, as a small, frail disabled person. Thanks for any advice that is legal in California...

My former landlord sent a move-out accounting listing charges substantially higher than the security deposit. The letter says the deposit is being retained, but does not request payment of the difference, provide a payment deadline, or mention legal action.

I disagree with some charges but am not currently seeking the deposit back, and to be honest, it has been a contentious situation ending our long-term tenancy so I'd rather just walk away and be done with everything.

For landlords: do you sometimes send an accounting like this simply to document retaining the deposit, without intending to collect the balance? If you intend to pursue the difference, would you normally make a separate payment demand?

Is there a reason for a tenant to respond when no additional payment has been requested?

My property is in Southeast Michigan/Metro Detroit Would appreciate any recommendations from landlords who have worked with someone they trust in this area. Thank you

My husband and I are first time home owners. We own a multifamily property and want to rent out the second unit. The unit that we don’t live in needs insulation and a bit of other rehab. There is a program in our city that is willing to pay for the repairs to be done, BUT, only if you are willing to accept tenants on HUD (and/or section 8) for 10 years.

Has anyone done a program such as this or simply had a tenant who was on section 8 or HUD living in your home as an owner occupied landlord? We did not sign up for the program yet, but I did request more information because we would really like to get our second unit rented out to help us pay mortgage. We can pay the mortgage on our own, but having a tenant would definitely help even if them being on section 8 means they wouldn’t pay the whole mortgage payment because they said we have to agree to charging based on their income.

I will certainly be learning more about the program before I sign anything or agree to anything, but I want to know what other people’s experiences have been.

When filing taxes, under what expense do you put mortgage insurance? Under insurance or intrest or another catagory?

Hello All,

Looking for recommendations for a reliable property manager or boutique firm covering the LA/OC border (specifically around Whittier/La Habra) for a single family home with stable tenancy.

Mainly looking for someone responsive, practical about maintenance (doesn't push massive vendor markups for minor issues), and owner-focused.

Would appreciate any recommendations from landlords who have worked with someone they trust in this area. Comments or DMs welcome. Thanks!

I recently moved out of an apartment in Texas. I paid a $200 nonrefundable pet fee and a separate $200 refundable pet deposit. The apartment returned my regular security deposit but kept $200, listing one charge on the move-out statement: “Deflea, deodorize and carpet shampoo.”

My animal addendum does say tenants pay for those services at move-out, even if no fleas were found. I’m disputing the amount and accounting, not claiming the addendum doesn’t exist. The statement combines three services into one $200 charge—which happens to equal my entire refundable pet deposit. Management says they charge residents with pets for these services, but hasn’t explained whether $200 is a fixed package price or how they arrived at it.

I’ve asked in writing for that explanation and any supporting service records, and I’m waiting for a response. I’m researching a small claims case in Texas justice court in case we can’t resolve it.
If you’ve gone through a Texas security-deposit dispute in justice court, what was the process like? Did the landlord respond or settle after being served? What evidence mattered at the hearing, and how long did the case take? I’d especially appreciate experiences involving a single combined cleaning charge.

I’ve been using a property management company in Metro Detroit for about 4 years. Earlier this year, some owner distributions were delayed but eventually paid. Since June 2026, I’ve had around $5,000 in outstanding distributions.

I’ve followed up multiple times, and they keep apologizing and saying accounting is working on it. but I still haven’t received the money or a clear explanation or payment date.

Has anyone dealt with something similar? What steps did you take to recover your money? Is filing a complaint with Michigan LARA worth it ?

I’d appreciate any advice, especially from other Detroit area landlords

So... I have tenant. On a Friday some weeks ago, he texted me telling me he has seen evidence of rodents. I hate rodents. I immediately call a pest company, who agrees to go out the next day to start treatment and do an inspection. They perform the first of 2 treatments and also give some recommendations for a contractor to fix some access points. I got that report on Monday.

Monday afternoon, tenant was trying to get out of his lease, effective immediately. We discussed his rights, what we're doing, other concerns. Ultimately I said that he is responsible for rent until we find a replacement, but he's welcome to move out and pay the difference or wait until we find someone to come in. We list the place for rent. After a week or so, he says he's having trouble finding a place and he's just going to stay. I pull the listing.

Then he sends an email with a "report" from a "pest company" showing extensive issues and repairs needed. When I look up the company, they are not licensed inspectors, nor are they licensed pesticide distributors. They are one of those door-to-door pest companies. He wants out, and he doesn't want to pay. He included a report, but it looks entirely ai-generated. And when I called the company, they had no record of him or the address. They also stated elevated moisture in the crawlspace, but the moisture reading photos were well within "normal" ranges.

I don't want to get in a fight, and I don't want anyone in my property that doesn't want to be there... but I also can't afford to just be out rent until we can get someone else in. Any advice??

Hello! I've had multiple people tell me about having good experiences renting out rooms to traveling nurses and doctors.

I was curious what resources are used to search for these types of targeted applicants and list such availabilities? I have multiple rooms in my home I am looking to rent, one with a private bathroom and private entrance, so I think that would be quite attractive. I live in an area with multiple hospitals (VA, private, and non-profit) and also many different medical facilities (I live in Florida in a place that has a rather large retirement community, so the number of medical facilities is quite large). I imagine there are many traveling nurses/doctors that would have assignments here!

Looking on the internet seems to point to a lot of sponsored listings so not really trusting the results I find there, so thought I'd ask in this subreddit. Thanks!

I’ve been using a property management company in Metro Detroit for about 4 years. Earlier this year, some owner distributions were delayed but eventually paid. Since June 2026, I’ve had around $5,000 in outstanding distributions.

I’ve followed up multiple times, and they keep apologizing and saying accounting is working on it. but I still haven’t received the money or a clear explanation or payment date.

**Has anyone dealt with something similar?** What steps did you take to recover your money? Is filing a complaint with Michigan LARA or pursuing legal action worth it?
Is going to small claims court worth it ?

I’d appreciate any advice, especially from other Detroit-area landlords

I have a property in Missouri near Saint Louis and I live in Florida. I’ve had a tenant paying me rent there for about 2 years now. Often pays late but they pay. Unfortunately after a tax assessment, now after my mortgage and 10% PM fee i’m negative about $20 per month.

I’m in between selling the property and getting about $30-$50K and moving on with my life or I’m thinking of going with some kind of third party company to list the property for insurance displacement.

Any advice? Has anyone tried the latter option before? Was it worth it?

I own a two-family rental property in the Bronx, New York, and I'm looking for advice from experienced NYC landlords.

My tenant hasn't paid rent for September or October 2026, totaling $6,900 in unpaid rent ($3,450 per month).

The tenant claims she's experiencing domestic violence involving her husband, although I don't know the full circumstances.

Catholic Charities has been communicating with me and is reportedly working with NYC HRA to obtain rental assistance through a possible One-Shot Deal, FHEPS, or CityFHEPS program.

Meanwhile, I'm still responsible for the mortgage, property taxes, utilities, heat, hot water, and other expenses. The unpaid rent is creating a serious financial burden.

I've never dealt with NYC rental assistance programs or housing vouchers before, so I'm hoping other landlords can share their experiences.

My questions:

1. Has anyone dealt with Catholic Charities or HRA helping tenants pay overdue rent?

2. How long does a One-Shot Deal, FHEPS, or CityFHEPS approval and landlord payment typically take?

3. Should I wait for rental assistance or hire an eviction attorney and begin the legal process?

4. Can I begin a nonpayment case while the tenant is applying for rental assistance?

5. Has anyone successfully recovered several months of unpaid rent through these programs?

6. What documentation should I request from Catholic Charities or HRA to confirm that an application is actually being processed?

I understand the tenant may be going through a difficult personal situation, and I'm not trying to dismiss that. However, I also have financial obligations and cannot afford to go indefinitely without rental income.

I'm particularly interested in hearing from NYC landlords who have experienced something similar.

Any practical advice, timelines, or personal experiences would be appreciated.

In Arizona we typically don't have a huge problem with mold in the bathrooms because it's so dry here.

However, I'm turning over one of our rentals and noticed some peeling paint above the shower. The bathroom has a vent fan, I'm just not sure if the tenants used it.

When given the opportunity during a renovation would all y'all tie the vent to the light switch so the vent comes on every time they use the bathroom, whether or not they are in the shower?

I'm installing a light over the shower so maybe tie the vent just to the shower light instead of the main light?

Or just leave the fan on its own switch and let the tenants decide whether or not to have the fan on?

Advice appreciated.

We had repairs and renovations on an empty unit that were finally finished in early October, unfortunately. We listed on Zillow, Apartments.com (which we use for rent payments and applications + screening), and Craigslist. Our apartment is the same or lower price as similar ones, but unlike most we allow pets, which locals are always complaining nobody here does. It's a constant thing being posted about on the local subreddit and facebook groups. However, the only applicants we've had for this multi-bedroom unit are single occupants without any pets, whose income is well below the requirement posted in the listing. Each of them also has easily searchable fraud and violent criminal records (just googling their names pulls up local news stories about them). This is a newly renovated apartment with lots of professional photos posted, in a good neighborhood. Is it the timing or what?? There are barely any listings here right now, so there isn't a lot of competition either. It's just baffling.

Some of the local listings for college student housing are doing "first month free" ads right now, but those are large corporate rentals and I'm really hesitant to do that as a private local owner. It just sounds like an invitation to squatters, I guess. This is in a building with quiet, good tenants with children who I don't want to lose by renting to someone who's going to trash the place or make them feel unsafe. The rental market here usually isn't so quiet.

I’ll save the long backstory and super specifics.

I have a tenant who I’ve been INCREDIBLY lenient and understanding with during the duration of the lease, probably more than any other sane landlord would have.

I’ve finally had enough of the sob stories for late payment, and issued a 3 day notice to pay or vacate. She received the notice and is texting me begging to give her more time. I didn’t answer. I officially file for eviction online tomorrow, which is the notice deadline.

Am I legally obligated to reply to her begging upon receiving the notice? Once I file for the actual eviction, am I required to communicate with them at all if she reaches out to me again?

Hi all. I purchased my first commercial building in Austin, TX earlier this year, with several suites (some vacant, some with existing tenants in leases). I found a property management firm and have been working with them for several months and my experience has been awful. Just really poor, slow communication and they missed my mortgage payment last month, so I had to manually pay it once the bank informed me of what happened. I'm looking to find another property management firm, but figured I'd post here and see if anyone had any specific recommendations for firms or general advice when dealing with them (things to look for, things to avoid, etc). Thanks in advance.

Helping my dad with this because English is his second language and the court stuff has been a lot. He owns one rental unit. I’ve been making the phone calls and reading the statutes and I’m hitting a wall...

Tenant signed a lease in March, $1,500 a month due on the first. She paid March. Skipped April entirely. Paid $1,500 in May. That’s it. One month’s rent since March.

My dad filed an eviction earlier in the summer and it got dismissed because she made a payment after the notice went out. He didn’t appeal, which in hindsight was a mistake since she still owed for a prior month at the time.

Second time around we were careful. Sent the notice to vacate certified mail, she never picked it up from the post office. So we sent it again by Priority Mail with tracking, confirmed delivered, gave a specific deadline instead of a “three days from receipt” thing. She didn’t pay and didn’t leave.

Filed in September. The constable couldn’t serve her in person so we had to get an order for alternative service. Bench trial late September and my dad won, possession plus $6,000 in back rent.

Per the first hearing, the judgment has a line on it that says, under Property Code 24.0053(a), that her monthly rental amount during an appeal is $1,500. Appeal bond also set at $1,500. Five days later she filed a Statement of Inability to Afford Payment of an Appeal Bond, so the appeal went through without her posting anything. She has not paid a dollar into any court registry since.

From what I read, 24.0054(a) says a writ of possession should issue immediately and without a hearing when a tenant appeals and then doesn’t pay rent into the registry. But there’s a second condition, which is that the justice court has to have given her a written notice under 24.0053(a-1) telling her the amount and the deadline.

I called the JP court about this. The clerk told me they don’t require registry payments at all, so they never gave her that notice. I asked again in writing and they confirmed it and sent me a policy memo citing a 2022 order from one of the county courts at law that declared 24.0053, 24.0054 and Rule 510.9 facially unconstitutional, the reasoning being that if you remove a tenant while their appeal is pending the appeal becomes meaningless.

So we’re in this spot where the judgment itself says she owes $1,500 a month into the registry, she’s paid nothing, and the court that was supposed to tell her about it never did, which apparently kills our ability to get a writ.

As of today the case was transferred to a different county court at law. Trial should be within 21 days. She’s at $9,000 owed right now and it goes to $10,500 on November 1.

Has anyone dealt with this JP court policy recently? That 2022 order was against the old versions of those statutes, and SB 38 rewrote all of them effective January 2026. It also added 24.0043 which says only the legislature can modify Chapter 24 procedures. I don’t know if that order is still good law against the rewritten statutes but it seems like a real question.

Has anyone actually gotten a county court to issue a writ under 24.0054(a) in a case where the JP court never gave the notice? A county clerk mentioned that landlords have been filing these, but I don’t know if any of them worked.

Also, can an LLC be represented at a county court eviction appeal by a non-attorney owner under 24.011(b)? The unit is in an apartment building. I’ve read that section a few times and I’m still not sure if it covers us.

And if anyone has a Dallas area landlord/tenant attorney they’d recommend, I’d really appreciate it. We’re willing to pay for a consult, I just don’t know who’s good at this specific thing.

Thank you in advance!

After several late payments from tenants and an eviction, I'm considering one of those security deposit/rent reimbursement insurance policies. Do you have any experience either way good/bad with a particular company? All I see on here are horror stories about "how much security deposit to give back" and "they demanded security deposit back" and "they took me to small claims court for security deposit," so the question is do we do away with security deposits? And all the other horror stories about non-payment of rent -- then the evictions! Oh Lord, the evictions!! I'm looking into LeaseLock and sayRhino from a blog. I can't seem to find another company that covers security deposits and lost rents. I'm looking for any insight or past experiences, please. I'm really looking for a way to get out of these issues besides thousands of emails and attorney fees to get reimbursed for damages to property or unpaid rents.

Recently Tenant has moved in and has put trash cans throughout, including a huge Recycling can in my house. I am starting the see ants. Please advise.

First time landlord and I’ve always paid a one time fee and monthly “pet rent” for my pets. I had a one time pet fee in my lease which I specifically phrased as “pet fee” and not “pet deposit”. The lawyer I had review my lease says that’s illegal. If that’s true that means every lease I’ve had as a renter has been illegal. Was curious to hear thoughts on this

I had tenants that moved out without notice and they left property damage. I hired a PI to find out where they live and she found them. I asked ChatGPT about other options instead of hiring a lawyer and suing them. I know ChatGPT cant be 100% right but it suggested that i turn the debt to Snap Debt Recovery collection agency and they will take care of it and go after the tenants. I’m happy to pay them a monthly fee if i can get the unpaid rent back. We’re not talking about one month unpaid rent, but rather close to $20,000 in 2 months unpaid rent that they were physically living there, 1 unpaid rent because they moved out at the end of the month so they were supposed to pay for the following month’s rent, one rent worth for lease break fee, it took us a month to find tenants. I have an ironclad lease. So im wondering if you had any experience with Snap Debt Recovery or if you have a recommendation of a collection agency that I should use instead-id appreciate the recommendations. Thank u!

How long after my tenant moves out can I remove anything they left? I'm in Dupage county.