There’s an interesting news blurb from Canton, Ohio….
Some of us may have already heard about this, but I thought it was interesting, especially since I accidentally encountered this same problem yesterday at one of our properties.
Seems you can actually get arrested for not cutting your lawn.
That’s right, you could go to jail if your grass gets too high.
Of course people across the nation are shocked, but it’s a big problem in Canton. Too many unmowed lawns can make your whole city look bad and can affect your property values at some point.
While we were visiting one of our properties yesterday in a nice neighborhood I might add, we discovered our tenant had not cut the grass either.
We were there because he had called us about an alleged drunk driver running over the mailbox and squishing it to a pulp. The driver did that the night before and is okay, although she totaled at least two mailboxes, and one trash can, plus her own vehicle.
I was really shocked because our tenant hasn’t cut the grass. Funny, he did manage to cut a little path around the doors, so they don’t have to walk through the tall grass.
And he’s in the process of moving. He will be gone in less than a week, but it leaves a bad taste in your mouth as the landlord. He should have done what he was supposed to do.
Here’s my point. People don’t always do what they’re supposed to do. The driver was driving recklessly. Thank goodness no one was hurt, but people could have been killed. She went into the ditch sideways with her right side wheels at a 45 degree angle. I really can’t control that. I wish I could, but I can’t.
But tenants are another matter. Should you threaten them?
Yes, we could get tough with ours, and we could tell him he’s not getting his deposit back, but he’s been a very good tenant. As long as there isn’t any damage to the house, and he leaves it clean, etc. we’ll give him a pass on the grass.
Why?
You need to pick your battles with them. Let some things go. Don’t get riled because that will cause your blood pressure to do up and it will do more damage to you than it will do to them. Besides, if he hasn’t cut the grass so far, chances are he won’t now.
And here's another truth. Just about everybody has it out for the landlord, even if it's a tiny bit of revenge deep down somewhere, there's always that little thing they want to get by with, if they can, just because. Accept that and move on. Don't let it stop you from making money.
The problem with a lot of landlords is they don't stay focused. Don't get sidetracked on junk like this. This may be the single most reason why a lot of people leave property management. Stuff like this can drive you crazy, if you let it.
Here’s our plan. We’ll make sure the next tenant understands he is to cut all the grass right up to moving out time- or he won’t get the deposit back.
We’ll charge him for cutting the grass. And by the way- as soon as this family moves out- we’re going way up on the rent anyway.
Read Canton: New law threatens jail time for not mowing the lawn
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