Criminal Charges for Landlord After Tenant Trashes Rental

by | Nov 29, 2010 | Rental Property Management Tips

A Pennsylvania landlord has just been assessed $8,000 in fines, and faces criminal charges after his tenant trashed his rental unit.

The landlord claims he was not aware of the poor condition of the property until he was alerted by local officials that there was a problem.  

Police were dispatched to the rental when neighbors complained of trash visible outside, and foul odors coming from the rental property. After doing a walk-through, the police filed a criminal report, citing the landlord for public nuisance. Local authorities have since condemned the unit.

Authorities also conducted an inspection of the property.  The landlord attempted to explain to the inspectors that he was still working on cleaning the place up, but they proceeded to recommend he be fined.  A civil court judge has affirmed the town’s position with respect to the assessment of $8,000 against the landlord.  

Possible consequences of the pending criminal charges could include paying for clean up and odor mitigation if town officials decide to contract the work out rather than allowing the landlord to complete the job.

This post is provided by Tenant Verification Service, Inc., helping landlords reduce the risks of renting with fraud prevention tools that include Tenant Screening, Tenant Background Checks, (U.S. and Canada), as well as Criminal Background Checks, and Eviction Reports (U.S. only).

Click Here to Receive Landlord Credit Reports.Disclaimer: The information provided in this post in not intended to be construed as legal advice, nor should it be considered a substitute for obtaining individual legal counsel or consulting your local, state, federal or provincial tenancy laws.

shiftsuite
Property management software for Canadian Condos.

Property Boss

Property management software for single family, multifamily, and student housing.

TVS

Screening services for property managers and landlords. Select a market below.

USA

Canada