What makes landlords so edgy?

Property owners are facing flak for demanding prospective tenants’ professional and educational credentials. What’s their side of the story?

A spate of incidents has brought into focus the fraught relationship between tenants and landlords. In the past week, a house-hunter took to Twitter to vent about a home owner’s bizarre demand — a score of over 90% in school.

On the flip side, the Internet’s attention was also drawn to a landlord’s woes after he had to clean up the mess left behind by a tenant who had occupied his two-bedroom flat for four months. A picture showed scores of empty beer bottles, a dirty mattress and empty plastic packets strewn across a dirty kitchen.

While those seeking houses air their grievances on social media, the difficulties faced by landlords have largely been neglected. Are they justified in being wary about who they let into their houses? And what has led to this level of scrutiny?

Cats on the loose

Swathi G (name changed) had a rude shock when she dropped into her elderly parents’ five-bedroom property in Electronics City after their tenant was dodging their repeated requests for a visit. “The tenant, who claims to be a software engineer, was nowhere to be found. When I opened the door, the stench of urine and cat food hit me. I then realised that he was using the house to breed cats,” says Swathi, adding that she found 30 cats there. The expensive wooden cabinets and cupboards had all been broken, the chimney had been removed and the sinks had been left on the floor. The entire house is in need of renovation and Swathi says the bill could run up to Rs 15-20 lakhs.

While Gloria C’s (name changed) experience was a lot less stressful, it convinced her family to take their house off the rental market. “We have two single bedroom houses on our ground floor. The houses are ideal for two people each. A group of four occupied the two houses, which was fine. But they started bringing in lots of friends and family. They would use up all the water and we would have to bring in extra tankers. When we finally asked them to leave, they poured acid over all our plants in the garden before vacating, just out of spite,” she recalls.

This is why she thinks it is fair for owners to ask for micro details about tenants. “If the occupants create a ruckus, or create problems with neighbours, it is the owner who has to pay the price,” adds the media professional whose house is located in Bharatnagar, BEL Layout.

Filth and fights

Over the years, Shobha Rajashekhar has had a string of difficult tenants. The Koramangala resident owns an independent house, with a two-bedroom space on the top floor. Her worst tenant, she says, was a bachelor. “He wouldn’t let us send our maid to clean the house. When he finally vacated, we were shocked by what he had turned the house into. It was like a cow shed. He had not swept or swabbed the house in the one year he lived there,” she shares.

Another family would purposely keep the taps open to make the water tank run dry after they were asked to vacate the house. “They just wanted to get back at us because we told them to leave,” says Shobha, who came to the decision as the constant fights between the tenant and his mother-in-law were getting out of hand.

A balanced view

According to Vincent Felix, a senior citizen who lives in Hennur, it is important to do a basic background check. “I have never had any major problems but I would find out basic details, such as their line of work and the organisation they work for before handing them over the keys,” says Felix, who sold his two-floor property in BTM Layout recently to move to a flat in north Bengaluru. “There should be a balance. Even the landlord should not be too strict or overbearing. And they should try to maintain a cordial relationship, because after all, it’s their property that’s on the line,” he explains.

Course of action

What should you do if your tenant has damaged your property? First, document it as best you can. In case of non-payment of rent, send them a notice. If they do not comply, approach a lawyer. “You can initiate a civil suit under Civil Procedure Code (CPC) for recovery of rent or compensation for damages,” says advocate Indra Dhanush. The local police can also be informed as an additional safety measure, he adds.