Do we threaten Residents with Non-Renewals too often?

… and “that is why non-renewal is a beautiful thing!” a recent post in a Facebook Group.

“My resident just lost his sh*$ with the Maintenance Supervisor over the right way to fix the faucet drip in his bathroom. Now my tech says he won’t do any work orders for him again since the guy got all up in his face and it almost went to blows. What should I do?” …. Non-Renew him!

Paraphrasing here: “One of our residents suggested for a resident event that we have a mechanical bull!” In the ensuing Facebook conversation, the Manager stated that the guy was well below current market rent and he had decided his lease would be non-renewed. When I asked why he would non-renew the guy for suggesting a resident event the Manager felt was classless and not to the standard of this newly acquired Class A property, he replied that he wouldn’t want to “embarrass” the resident since he moved in under a different manager at a reduced rate. While I agreed that he may have moved in on a special deal well below market value, I failed to see how he could indiscriminately non-renew the resident. I went further saying it seemed his personal opinion was coming into play, since he said that was NOT an event his residents should be subjected to, which seemed snobbish to me. One might be right, or one might be surprised that people could have fun at such an event. Be careful when making fun of residents in an online post.

You get a Non-Renewal! You get a Non-Renewal! You get a Non-Renewal!

It made me ask myself, “Under what circumstances should a non-renewal of a lease take place?” At what point does someone decide that a resident is no longer worth inviting to stay in the community? A non-renewal letter should be a LAST RESORT based on a set, specific Company Non-Renewal Policy. It shouldn’t be used as a form of discipline or act of retaliation because a resident is opinionated, or unreasonable sometimes, or seems angry a lot of the time, or posts a negative online review.

In the instance with the Manager of the Class A property, would it not be better to call the resident who moved in on a greatly reduced Rent Special and explain that at renewal he will be asked to pay Market Value, and for his apartment that would mean a significant increase of well over a thousand dollars. How does the Manager know the resident did not win the lottery over the year, or hadn’t received a sizeable inheritance, or got a different job and can now afford Market Rent? The way we as Managers interact with our Residents should frankly be fair and equitable. Of course, most people would not be able to take on another $1200 in rent, but isn’t the fair thing to do, be to offer the renewal and let the resident decide for himself?

Most Company Policies will have a couple of hard and fast rules on non-renewing leases. One, renewals are not offered to those residents who have had evictions initiated during a 12-month period, and two, residents who pay late more than three times in their 12-month lease term will not be offered a Renewal without the Regional Property Manager’s written Approval. That’s it. Plus, it is easily documented.

For instances where Residents who engage in threatening behavior toward staff, vendors, other residents and/or Guests, those resident may be issued 3-Day Notices (as well as for those engaging in illegal drug manufacturing, distribution and/or use). When Residents are hostile to staff, or not following the terms of their leases, Managers should deal with it during the actual lease term and not arbitrarily issue a Non-Renewal Letter. Gray areas produce the most likely losses in Eviction Court. Judges are individuals, too, and as humans they may judge the case very differently from onsite staff or even the property’s attorney. I’ve certainly experienced outlandish rulings in Eviction Court. Why get embroiled in that kind of battle? Just stick to a couple of hard rules set forth in a written Company Policy and learn to manage your residents in other ways. *Obviously, in extreme situations, when there is a direct threat, that is a whole different situation handled in a different way. However, that is also why we issue 3-Days and take immediate legal action.

As Celeste Headlee, radio host, wrote in her book, We Need to Talk, “We must learn to talk to people we disagree with because you can’t unfriend everyone in real life.” Nor, should you non-renew them without solid documented reason.