Back to: Landlord Success: Proven Strategies & Practical Advice for Stress – Free Property Management
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GETTING RID OF ANNOYING TENANTS: Every once in a while, you may need to get rid of a bad tenant that has NOT had any substantial BREACHES. To prevent this problem all together, select your tenants carefully. This means that you want to select people that you believe are fair, meek, and mild that will not cause you extreme hassle IF you must end the tenancy early. You can not just say move out I do not like you. Depending upon the type of lease you have in place the rules will vary. These Rules are different in all different jurisdictions. These rules are for Alberta only.
- For a Fixed Term Lease.
- The fixed term lease comes to an end on the last day of the lease.
- Technically either party does not have to give each other notice. Do not show up at noon on the last day of the month and expect them to be moving out.
- Call them at least 45 days in advance give them verbal and a written notice that you do not intend to renew the lease. This way, if it is a surprise to them, they will have time to find a new property to move to. You don’t want to hear “I can’t find a new home in this tight market”.
- If you do decide to not renew the lease for what ever reason, you simply tell the tenant “That you will not be renewing the lease at the end of the tenancy term” and there is no need to give reasons. You will not be renewing…. end of story.
- Also, give them the cleaning list as well as scheduling a time to do a final cleaning walk through on the last day of the month at noon (or earlier).
- Let them know you are willing to give them a great reference if they leave the place clean and make it easy for you to show the property to new prospective tenants.
- If it becomes apparent during the term of the fixed term lease that I do not like these tenants for what ever reason (delayed rent, smoking, vehicles, mess in the house, minor disturbances, pets, garbage in yard, asking for unrealistic requests, and many, many other reasons) Just do not Renew the lease. Life is short we do not need tenants that are a pain in the neck. This is simple. This is why we use fixed term leases.
- Other general notes for fixed term lease:
- If you DO want them to stay, call them 45-90 days in advance and make sure they want to stay. Also arrange a time to meet at least 30 days in advance to have them sign a new lease.
- Get a new lease signed in advance; if you are one day after the lease ends the lease then turns into Periodic Tenancy and it may be more difficult to get them out of the property should you need to.
- If you want them to stay and you are going to increase the rent give them at least 3 months clear notice of the rental increase that will be coming into effect on the new lease.
- For a Periodic Lease.
- The Periodic lease has a start date but no end date. It is sometimes referred to as a month-to-month lease but in Alberta it is correctly called a Periodic Lease and is bound by specific rules.
- Either party can give each other notice to end the lease. The tenant must give the landlord a minimum of 1 month clear notice and the landlord must give the tenant a minimum of 3 months notice (clear notice means the notice must be delivered and dated the month before). For example, if you give notice on July 31st then the 3 months are August, September, October, move out date is noon on the last day of October. If you give notice on August 2nd, the move out date now becomes last day of November.
- The tenant does not need a reason to end the tenancy.
- If the tenant tells you they are moving out, get it in writing. Have them sign a notice saying they’re leaving (see section 13 Resources and Links). Do not take their verbal word for it; if they change their mind and you have noting in writing you will have no recourse. On the first of the next month, you could have another family trying to move into a house that the previous tenants have not vacated.
- The landlord must only ask the tenant to leave for specific reasons if there is no breach of the lease and they are as follows:
- (a) If the landlord or a relative of the landlord intends to occupy the residential premises of the tenant (Relative meaning by marriage, blood, adoption, or common law relationship)
- (b) If the landlord has entered into an agreement to sell the residential premises of the tenant in which all conditions precedent in the agreement have been satisfied or waived and
- (i) the purchaser or a relative of the purchaser intends to occupy the premises, or
- (ii) the agreement is to sell one detached or semi-detached dwelling unit or one condominium unit, and the purchaser requests in writing that the landlord give the tenant a notice to terminate the tenancy.
- (c) If the landlord intends
- (i) to demolish the building in which the residential premises of the tenant are located, or
- (ii) to make major renovations to the residential premises of the tenant that require the premises to be unoccupied.
(Major renovation does not include just, painting, flooring or typical maintenance)
- (d) if the landlord intends to use or rent the residential premises of the tenant for a non-residential purpose.
- (e) in a case where the landlord is an educational institution and the tenant is a student of that institution, if the tenant is no longer a student or will no longer be a student when the notice period for terminating the tenancy has passed.
- The Landlord does have the ability to raise the rent once every 365 days with 3 months clear notice. There are currently no rent controls in Alberta. Some landlords have used rental increase to facilitate the tenants moving out. I would recommend using caution with this strategy. In general, keep all rent increases in line with market rents or slightly above. Document all comparable rents that you have researched.
PROFESSIONAL BAD TENANTS
Yes, there is such a thing as a professional bad tenant. These people prey on rookie landlords. Always do your credit checks and screen your tenants well to prevent this from happening. They will do everything possible to make your life miserable.
- Early warning signs:
- They will not pay the rent on time or at all.
- They change the locks on you
- They will damage the property.
- They may be hoarding junk and garbage in the property or in the yard.
- They will make it difficult for you to inspect the property.
- They will probably have more people living in the house than they should.
- They will probably have more pets living in the house than they should.
- They will request that you do everything by the book.
- If you try the standard eviction processes and these people continue to stonewall and block or ignore you; do not play their games. Immediately call for professional help from one of the bailiff companies listed in the resources section.
- The longer you leave them in the property, the more mess and damage they will cause and the more rent you will lose.
- The bailiffs are professionals and may even know your tenants. They evict bad tenants everyday and they understand the court and RTDRS processes. This is your fastest way to evict them if you are not entirely familiar with the process.