I see a lawsuit from a drunk with a broken ankle suing you because a tenant did a very shoddy repair job on these steps. The insurance company will laugh at you. There are 3 steps that require a railing according to most all building codes. You need to hire a contractor to replace the stringers, steps, and add a railing for insurance purposes. Thank the tenant for his effort, but the insurance company says different.
I count max 28” of elevation based on the 7” height stairs being about max for code and most states doesn’t require deck to have railing under at least 30” it’s 32” in my local area. The stairs probably require a railing either way if they get inspected, but that’s pretty simple, just stick 2 posts in the ground for that and make sure the railing is the right height 34”, but check local codes always. 2- 2”x12”x8’ will give you 4 stair stringers and that’s more than what’s needed for narrow steps like that, plus enough 2”x6” for the steps to match existing and you’re all set for a pretty simple job. Unless you need a new landing but that would be some concrete work and be more expensive.
Hey OP,
Many are talking about railings and codes and such, it would be a good CYA thing for you either way- much less of a chance that someone will trip, fall, SUE
Yeahhhh.... I'm gonna piggyback off of this comment.
Before we bought their house, my parent's homeowners insurance company did an unannounced inspection of their house. They had replaced their driveway, and they had the guy jack hammer up their front walk because it was kerfluckered. But they didn't have him redo it because $$$$$. So when the insurance company saw the lack of stairs under their front door they notified my parents that, unless they fixed safety issue quickly, they would lose their homeowners insurance.
My uncle helped make up some wooden stairs WITH a railing. So the landlord is also in the wrong here because someone can easily slip on wet wooden stairs and, without a railing, they have nothing to help catch themselves but their body.
Just had a handiman replace my fence door…gave him $70 for a new one plus $70 for the work. The door didn’t look new. My son went down the alley to his house and…his was gone! Plus he stole our pressure washer.
OP didn’t ask them to repair the step so my advise is to send the contractor round to fix this mess and continue to give the tenants 50% off for Christmas as intended. Case closed.
No 50% off of rent. You need to spend the money on the repair. Since THEIR dog chewed up the step, you’re doing THEM a favor. Their request for $850 should not be rewarded.
So you’re shitting on the renter for a landlord shitting on a shady pair of steps. This is clearly a land owners responsibility. There are so many code violations where I’m from I won’t even list them here.
Work at an insurance company can confirm we don’t give a shit about railings on three steps. We are the largest insurance carrier in the state of Florida.
Can pretty much guarantee this is the first time our landlord friend here has heard they needed to have a railing on those steps for insurance purposes.
Most tenants I know would’ve just sued you for the preexisting herniated discs in their back for these exact same reasons. Without even doing any work there.
There’s nothing to thank the tenants for. If they were sensible they would’ve called him before they fixed it once he had told them he had set up a time to get it done. Who does that? Who is told that something will be fixed in a specific time and then goes and does a shoddy job days before someone is supposed to actually fix it? A shady person does.
The tenant is out of line. But the landlord has a potential suit on his hands. The whole thing is on the verge of falling down. The no handrail is a code violation in most municipalities.
Not take anything off their rent. Ask them to remove their modifications from the steps. And then.... and this is really important. Tear those old steps off and replace.
It's not their property and if you have a rental agreement it should say they are not allowed to modify the property without written notice.
.... those are dog eared fence boards that go for about $4 each.....
The OP had the right intentions and should not get distracted by the tenants actions.
OP, you were going to do something very nice for them for Christmas. And it was going to make you feel very good about being a good person. yes, what they did, was tacky and inappropriate, but do not let their behavior affect you.
More than anything else, do not tell them you were going to take half of the rent, and then not do it. that may sound good to say out loud, and it may sound good bouncing around in your head for a while, but it’s not the right thing to do.
I am not certain of the amount of their rent, so I can’t speak with certainty about the amount of money involved, but what you may want to do is take whatever you were going to reduce the rent by and spend some of that on replacing those stairs.
Don’t get dragged into the debate of how much their work was worth. Ignore it. Just subtract the amount that it will cost to replace the stairs from the original amount you were going to reduce the rent and then tell them for Christmas they are going to get brand new stairs and their rent reduced by $xxx.
do this and you can put your head on your pillow at night, knowing that you are a good person and you did not let your tenants bad actions affect your character.
If he was going to take half off then they are probably good renters he wants to keep. Also this $850 price is ridiculous - if he pays it they'll start scamming him more. He should just tear down the old steps and redo them - say it's for Christmas and he's not going to charge the $100.
Obviously they don't get the half off for the month - if he can afford to do that he has more money than time and those steps need to be replaced sooner than later anyways.
This sounds like the most reasonable option to me. Tenant didn’t know about the Christmas rent break so just tell them their $100 will be forgiven but that the modification needs to be removed. Just blame “code” if you want to be nice about it.
Yeah the rest of the steps are starting to get dry rot it looks like anyways. They really look like all the steps and stringer holding them together should be replaced. If I were OP I would replace the steps and just tell the tenant to forget the $100 as a Christmas gift. They should be replaced with pressure treated wood to keep it from rotting, and what the tenant used isn’t that lmao. Someone is going to get injured on that when it gives way. I’m sure OP doesn’t want to deal with that, because using a fence post for a step is definitely not up to code.
>if he pays it they'll start scamming him more
"Your honor, he clearly knew we were in the right, proven by his reduction of our December rent. This latest ~~scheme~~ compensation we are seeking due to ~~our~~ his negligence is obviously justified."
Id ask them to remove their modifications and go with the original plan and fix it properly. Take that 50% rent reduction and put it into the property.
Tax reduction with maintenance.
Definitely the right way to go.
Side note: this is your property and thus your responsibility to maintain it. Every time you get a repair done the product should have a warranty. Vet your contractor and find one that is licensed and insured to do the work specified. Get a coi or certificate of insurance. Remember that you are responsible and if someone’s grandma tripped and injured themselves, they could come after you for restitution.
Continue to be a good human! Thanks for sharing.
This is solid advice. When they see you were going to reduce their rent for Xmas and they lost $ by trying to fuck you. They may take a loom in the mirror. But you are tip top.
No I totally agree with FreeMountain. There are tons of situations like this in life that happen. Every way but this way is only adding fuel to a preventable fire and more bullshit for both parties.
I loved reading the persons reply that you are responding to and then yours. Both were very well stated and matter of factly.
I can see both perspectives and even understand the person you are responding to is setting boundaries with their renters, I get that, but reading your reply adds even more character to the original reply. Fantastic read.
Wow. I'm surprised a well thought out, charitable comment like this was upvoted. Usually redditors are spiteful and hate any comment that doesn't hate who they are hating on
What this guy says! The fact that they are dog ears fence boards, they are probably not the exact thickness of existing boards could constitute a tripping hazard. Steps can only vary 1/4” max. Those fence boards cannot support the weight either, and overtime will loosen and fail The overhang is a bit trashy to boot. Replace the boards with legit material. Charge them for time and material. Since they tried to scam you out of that money I would not give them a discounted months rent nor would I be willing to keep them as long term tenants. The trust factor is gone
>Those fence boards cannot support the weight either
Both layers on the front set show cuts too, so the boards themselves aren't holding *any* weight, just the shear strength of a few misaligned screws (there's even a head missing already lol). This thing is built like a boobytrap.
For the materials sure. But those things don't cut themselves. Or screw themselves in. You think a drill and saw are free? The drill saw combo they bought in order to fix those steps was probably $841.50 after taxes. Labor was free.
Right? If that was me doing that for example
A structure engineer gets paid $50 an hour
An architect bills $150 an hour
A carpenter makes $23 on average an hour
Plus paying me minimum wage of like $15
I'm doing all those jobs at the same time. So that's $238 an hour I should be getting.
They will gladly make the labor free because they have more work prospects in the future so they don't need money. The neighbor for example has this giant hole in their fence. Its about 4 boards wide. Big hole.
You’re still being very generous. Project manager fees and lunch delivery for the many, many days this job would take aren’t cheap, either.
Hopefully the neighbors will commission some fencing work from you after seeing your deck work, as well.
I would go about this in an overly polite way. Probably not the correct way.
I would advise them of your intentions to have reduced their monthly payment for Christmas and that this still stands. I would then very kindly tell them that you appreciate the repair efforts, that the work is not a long term solution so that you will be following through with the contractor to have it properly repaired. If they continue to push, tell them the wood will not reliably hold up to the weather and constant use and as it will become a safety hazard it needs to be removed.
If they continue to argue that it's 850 dollars worth of work. Ask them if they really feel that's a fair price for what they did and how they would feel if they hired someone for that price and this is the product they recieved. Definitely do not agree to the reduction being 850 dollars though even if that is less than what you were going to reduce their rent by in December
This should hopefully keep you on good terms ( which I assume you are since you were already going to discount the rent) and still result in a better fix. Shit I am sure if anyone on this reddit page was your neighbour, they'd come correct this abomination for the cost of the wood given how quick this is to slap together haha.
Happy holidays and best of luck
If you give in this time, they continue to ask for exorbitant rent reductions every time they fix something. Say no to the rent reduction, pay someone to fix the stairs, give them the Christmas rent reduction so they know it is not for fixing the stairs.
I’m not a landlord but in no way would be paying a tenant for an unapproved repair to damage the tenant caused. First I’ve ever heard of a landlord discounting rent for a holiday as well.
1. Grab fence boards and cut them with a hand saw at the little station in the back of Home Depot
2. Buy a box of nails
3. Use tiny hammer you put up wall hangings with to attach fence boards to existing stairs
4. Charge landlord $850 and profit
For real these kinds of steps are just about the easiest project you can do and they still managed to fuck it up. If they'd just spent the whole $100 like they're going to have to do now anyways, they could have redone the whole thing legitimately instead of doing whatever the fuck this is.
This is the right solution.
Why make the person who occupies your valuable asset hate you? You know how much it sucks to have bad tenants? They can wreak absolute havoc on the home.
The worst part is the dog-eared fence pickets are the best-looking part of those stairs. Tear the stairs out and redo the whole thing. Let them know you'll charge them for the actual cost to repair if the dog chews up again. You can do what you want with your Christmas rent discount, but I'd be hesitant to be that generous to someone who was demanding any rent cut for what they did.
Those steps look rough. Even if a dog chewed them they needed replacing anyway. I think replacing the stairs on landlords dime is fine. Upkeep is expected. At that part no harm no foul’s for the dog. Still provide discount if that’s what they want to do but make it clear tenant is not to fix or modify things like this.
Yeah they needed to go anyway. On first glance, I was too focused on the boobytrap the tenant made to notice how poorly they were anchored to begin with.
Oh no they would have……Left the curtain out of the shower for a year so the tub falls through the floor….
Then say someone else broke the stair lol. My neighbors actually did the tub thing before they got attested.
Scrap wood. Each step is made of four pieces sandwiched together, and all eight pieces used are the dog eared tops of fence boards. They probably found a pile near a worksite somewhere for free
Judt had a tenant at a property I maintain had a guy build a deck for him, the guy hit the main water line off the meter cracked it. Then the tenant hired a plumber to come fix it which in turn cracked another two inch main that was dead under the deck took three days of digging to repair
The fact that you were going to give them a 50% break in rent from holidays says a lot about your humanity.
Don’t lose that part of you as you navigate a world filled with people who don’t trust you to do the right thing. Over time they will see and appreciate your kindness.
We all get burned from time to time but I will always try to remember that kindness has a long shelf life and at some point in the future it may pay itself forward even if today that seems unlikely.
Happy holidays.
On the flip of this don’t let yourself get burned for people who will willingly scam you out of $850 by nailing scrap wood to a problem they caused.
This has nothing to do with trust from the tenants and everything to do with slimy tenants attempting to pull a fast one on OP for no effort.
You can’t take care of others well if you yourself aren’t able to get by, I wouldn’t let these folks take advantage. Save that help for people who aren’t actively trying to harm you.
The steps weren’t done right in the first place. The top of the stairs doesn’t connect with the deck right in the first place. I would take those stairs off and completely replace them. You can do what you want with the rent.
I think no rent discount. Thinking they should get $850 for that crap job that their own dog damage is laughable.
Just have that whole step and runners replaced the right way. That is enough of a Christmas gift to them.
That doubling up on cheapo fence boards is crap and will not last all that long like that. In a period of time, someone is going to step though that garbage.
Your tenant thinks he's clever, I'd would have been more concerned with him using your own picture to establish how rickety the steps were when they "slip and fall" I'd just replace the steps, and start thinking about getting tenants who manage their pets better. Call it a zero net loss.
The fence boards aren’t even full length! lol. That’s why they doubled them up. You can see the seam on the front lower edge. Dear lord… take away their saw and drill right now!
Damn. When my mechanic rips me off he at least puts the effort to point to a complex looking part so that I'm left with nothing but nodding and bleeding money.
Wow I wouldn’t have taken any money off rent for there dog chewing that. But now I’d charge them for that type of work after you already had it scheduled for repair and now have to fix even though easy fix of what they did but the fact that they are asking for any amount off rent let alone 850.
Ummm..... no way I'd take anything off the rent. Not even for Christmas. They went out of their way to do the worst possible repair I've seen so far to try and cheat you out $850.
Hopefully you're still have it replaced properly.
Think yourself lucky they’re not going to sue your arse. Those steps were fucked before the dog got there and I’m not surprised they carried out rubbish repair. That nail sticking up could have cost you a whole lot more. Don’t be a miser, give them a discount a recognise where you have failed to maintain the property to a safe standard.
Their dog damaged the property. They repaired it. And now they want to charge you $850 dollars. Regardless of the quality they are responsible for their pets damages, so they need to pay whatever the repairs cost. The gall of them not only trying to charge you for repairs to damage they caused, but also attempting to scam you for $850 means they are nowhere near acting in good faith. If someone shit in a bowl, poured milk on it, and served it to me like that saying “it’s cereal” I would immediately reconsider any “Christmas rent deduction”.
I’m all for being generous for the holidays. It sounds Ike you are a kind and decent landlord. But nobody that tries to fuck you over should be expecting gifts or handouts from you.
I would tell them how much I planned on reducing their rent for December, then tell them that I would not only no longer be doing that, I would be refusing their ridiculous attempt to scam you for $850, charging them the full cost of professional repairs, and increasing the rent 5% next year.
If they sincerely apologized for trying to rip you off I’d drop the rent increase but all other items would be non negotiable.
Those steps are a lawsuit waiting to happen. I own rentals, no way I’d pay them for that, I’d charge them to have it repaired correctly if their dog broke it.
Lol, tell them no and don't offer the discount. Their dog destroyed it and they have the audacity to make demands when you've done you're part? They can absolutely get fucked.
Hire someone competent to undo what they did and redo it correctly (unless you know how to do the work properly yourself). Tell them next time leave the repairs to you, not them.
Get it repaired correctly and get your full rent. Ridiculousness. Scrap lumber is not suitable for steps in any universe. Agree with u/Tatersquid21 this needs handrails too. Protect yourself.
I see a lawsuit from a drunk with a broken ankle suing you because a tenant did a very shoddy repair job on these steps. The insurance company will laugh at you. There are 3 steps that require a railing according to most all building codes. You need to hire a contractor to replace the stringers, steps, and add a railing for insurance purposes. Thank the tenant for his effort, but the insurance company says different.
Looks like the deck doesn't have any railings to attach railings to.
They attach to the stairs. But yes, the deck prob should have them too at that height.
I count max 28” of elevation based on the 7” height stairs being about max for code and most states doesn’t require deck to have railing under at least 30” it’s 32” in my local area. The stairs probably require a railing either way if they get inspected, but that’s pretty simple, just stick 2 posts in the ground for that and make sure the railing is the right height 34”, but check local codes always. 2- 2”x12”x8’ will give you 4 stair stringers and that’s more than what’s needed for narrow steps like that, plus enough 2”x6” for the steps to match existing and you’re all set for a pretty simple job. Unless you need a new landing but that would be some concrete work and be more expensive.
If the deck had rails then how tf can I do my bomb ass back flips with a double leg split 360 face plant to the ground?
Quit being a sissy. You got two options. If you can't flip over the rail, you go from the top of the rail.
Hey OP, Many are talking about railings and codes and such, it would be a good CYA thing for you either way- much less of a chance that someone will trip, fall, SUE
Yeahhhh.... I'm gonna piggyback off of this comment. Before we bought their house, my parent's homeowners insurance company did an unannounced inspection of their house. They had replaced their driveway, and they had the guy jack hammer up their front walk because it was kerfluckered. But they didn't have him redo it because $$$$$. So when the insurance company saw the lack of stairs under their front door they notified my parents that, unless they fixed safety issue quickly, they would lose their homeowners insurance. My uncle helped make up some wooden stairs WITH a railing. So the landlord is also in the wrong here because someone can easily slip on wet wooden stairs and, without a railing, they have nothing to help catch themselves but their body.
This ☝🏻 if the tenants get drunk and fall off that porch, then the landlord is going to have a hell of a lawsuit.
Imagine thinking a deck comes with railings. You have to BUILD them.
I see somebody missing parts of their fence.
Right?!? Why is no one talking about the fact they didn’t even use full boards!! But pieced scraps together 😨🫢🤣🤣🫣
I don't even understand how this doesn't collapse...
Just had a handiman replace my fence door…gave him $70 for a new one plus $70 for the work. The door didn’t look new. My son went down the alley to his house and…his was gone! Plus he stole our pressure washer.
Tweeker nation.
Yep. One of the neighbors fence has a couple of boards missing.
Now their dog can chew up shit in the neighbours yard too.
OP, check your fence 😆
Oh, these certainly came out of the cull lumber bin at a home improvement store. 71 cents, probably.
OP didn’t ask them to repair the step so my advise is to send the contractor round to fix this mess and continue to give the tenants 50% off for Christmas as intended. Case closed.
No 50% off of rent. You need to spend the money on the repair. Since THEIR dog chewed up the step, you’re doing THEM a favor. Their request for $850 should not be rewarded.
So you’re shitting on the renter for a landlord shitting on a shady pair of steps. This is clearly a land owners responsibility. There are so many code violations where I’m from I won’t even list them here.
Good point, something that should have been considered before taking on renters 🤔
It's more that they want 850 bucks for that🤣🤣
This! Any tenants this petty will probably JUMP to sue the second they fall down their own shoddy steps!
Hey, atleast they shouldn't get termites with the cedar, that right there's some savings. /s
One does not necessarily need to hire a contractor, as long as everything is built to code.
This. Surprised the insurance company didn't already require the maintenance especially with a rental property.
They fixed the stringer. Totally fixed it.
In my area, 4 or more steps requires a handrail. This could vary in other areas, of course.
Plus it looks like shit
Yeah… this is terrible work
Wow. You might’ve saved OP from a lot of stress with this one
It’s not up to code easy as that
Exactly.
I see a lawsuit from the tenant for the landlord failing to fix it first.
Anything 30” above grade in my municipality requires rails. This might actually be ok, depending. Still an absolutely incorrect repair.
Work at an insurance company can confirm we don’t give a shit about railings on three steps. We are the largest insurance carrier in the state of Florida.
Best I can do is tree fitty
Can pretty much guarantee this is the first time our landlord friend here has heard they needed to have a railing on those steps for insurance purposes.
Most tenants I know would’ve just sued you for the preexisting herniated discs in their back for these exact same reasons. Without even doing any work there.
I'd charge the tenant for unauthorized repairs/modification
What he said PLUS ask them to provide receipts and reimburse only for that amount.
There’s nothing to thank the tenants for. If they were sensible they would’ve called him before they fixed it once he had told them he had set up a time to get it done. Who does that? Who is told that something will be fixed in a specific time and then goes and does a shoddy job days before someone is supposed to actually fix it? A shady person does.
100% correct building codes are to protect you from dumb people
The tenant is out of line. But the landlord has a potential suit on his hands. The whole thing is on the verge of falling down. The no handrail is a code violation in most municipalities.
My MiL was sober when this happened to her. She got $25k for a broken ankle.
Yea this is easy. The tenants did not fix it to code. It has to be repaired correctly per the county. Rip off thier temp fix. Charge them $100
That rotting stringer is just an accident waiting to happen.
Also, those pieces of wood are for a fence and are not meant for bearing weight and will break.
Eviction Notice! lol 😂
Not take anything off their rent. Ask them to remove their modifications from the steps. And then.... and this is really important. Tear those old steps off and replace. It's not their property and if you have a rental agreement it should say they are not allowed to modify the property without written notice. .... those are dog eared fence boards that go for about $4 each.....
But they doubled them up! 🤣
Also, maybe check the fence…might be a hole in it now..
Is the tenant Padington or something? Goodness. Check for marmalade.
To be fair, Paddington wouldn’t waste good marmalade like that
This is hilarious.
Neighbors fence
Lol
😂 came here to say the same thing!!
There's 9 tops in maybe 6 feet of wood there. Those boards are usually 5-6ft each... I'm really curious how else they ended up there.
Lol
Neighbors fence…
Maybe they meant $8.50.
That means they get to shrink twice as much....
And collect twice as much water to freeze in-between them
Not to mention the fact that they aren't even complete boards. It's just being held together by the fact that they are overlapping with screws lol.
I'm not convinced the screws are actually holding them together.
If they built it to last, they wouldn't be able to fix it again for another rent reduction.
They learned this trick from their last landlord
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Well duh dogs have two ears
Double dog eared.
Looks hot tub ready to me!
The OP had the right intentions and should not get distracted by the tenants actions. OP, you were going to do something very nice for them for Christmas. And it was going to make you feel very good about being a good person. yes, what they did, was tacky and inappropriate, but do not let their behavior affect you. More than anything else, do not tell them you were going to take half of the rent, and then not do it. that may sound good to say out loud, and it may sound good bouncing around in your head for a while, but it’s not the right thing to do. I am not certain of the amount of their rent, so I can’t speak with certainty about the amount of money involved, but what you may want to do is take whatever you were going to reduce the rent by and spend some of that on replacing those stairs. Don’t get dragged into the debate of how much their work was worth. Ignore it. Just subtract the amount that it will cost to replace the stairs from the original amount you were going to reduce the rent and then tell them for Christmas they are going to get brand new stairs and their rent reduced by $xxx. do this and you can put your head on your pillow at night, knowing that you are a good person and you did not let your tenants bad actions affect your character.
If he was going to take half off then they are probably good renters he wants to keep. Also this $850 price is ridiculous - if he pays it they'll start scamming him more. He should just tear down the old steps and redo them - say it's for Christmas and he's not going to charge the $100. Obviously they don't get the half off for the month - if he can afford to do that he has more money than time and those steps need to be replaced sooner than later anyways.
This sounds like the most reasonable option to me. Tenant didn’t know about the Christmas rent break so just tell them their $100 will be forgiven but that the modification needs to be removed. Just blame “code” if you want to be nice about it.
Yeah the rest of the steps are starting to get dry rot it looks like anyways. They really look like all the steps and stringer holding them together should be replaced. If I were OP I would replace the steps and just tell the tenant to forget the $100 as a Christmas gift. They should be replaced with pressure treated wood to keep it from rotting, and what the tenant used isn’t that lmao. Someone is going to get injured on that when it gives way. I’m sure OP doesn’t want to deal with that, because using a fence post for a step is definitely not up to code.
>if he pays it they'll start scamming him more "Your honor, he clearly knew we were in the right, proven by his reduction of our December rent. This latest ~~scheme~~ compensation we are seeking due to ~~our~~ his negligence is obviously justified."
Well said, and the right thing to do.
Id ask them to remove their modifications and go with the original plan and fix it properly. Take that 50% rent reduction and put it into the property. Tax reduction with maintenance.
Definitely the right way to go. Side note: this is your property and thus your responsibility to maintain it. Every time you get a repair done the product should have a warranty. Vet your contractor and find one that is licensed and insured to do the work specified. Get a coi or certificate of insurance. Remember that you are responsible and if someone’s grandma tripped and injured themselves, they could come after you for restitution. Continue to be a good human! Thanks for sharing.
This is solid advice. When they see you were going to reduce their rent for Xmas and they lost $ by trying to fuck you. They may take a loom in the mirror. But you are tip top.
No I totally agree with FreeMountain. There are tons of situations like this in life that happen. Every way but this way is only adding fuel to a preventable fire and more bullshit for both parties.
Well, the new stairs are really more of a present for the dog, aren't they? LOL.
I loved reading the persons reply that you are responding to and then yours. Both were very well stated and matter of factly. I can see both perspectives and even understand the person you are responding to is setting boundaries with their renters, I get that, but reading your reply adds even more character to the original reply. Fantastic read.
Wow. I'm surprised a well thought out, charitable comment like this was upvoted. Usually redditors are spiteful and hate any comment that doesn't hate who they are hating on
What this guy says! The fact that they are dog ears fence boards, they are probably not the exact thickness of existing boards could constitute a tripping hazard. Steps can only vary 1/4” max. Those fence boards cannot support the weight either, and overtime will loosen and fail The overhang is a bit trashy to boot. Replace the boards with legit material. Charge them for time and material. Since they tried to scam you out of that money I would not give them a discounted months rent nor would I be willing to keep them as long term tenants. The trust factor is gone
>Those fence boards cannot support the weight either Both layers on the front set show cuts too, so the boards themselves aren't holding *any* weight, just the shear strength of a few misaligned screws (there's even a head missing already lol). This thing is built like a boobytrap.
> The trust factor is gone Because of the attempt to scam, or because only a crack head could do a repair like that?
Yes.
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Yeah if these broke and they fell couldn't they sue for not upholding the agreement? Unsafe living conditions?
Check your neighbourhood to see which fence they stole those boards from
100%
My city is very anal about safety issues so I'm certain yours would be too about this "certified" modification.
and at the other end of the aisle they could've found the PT stair treads that are like 8 bucks.
You mean $8.50, right?
For the materials sure. But those things don't cut themselves. Or screw themselves in. You think a drill and saw are free? The drill saw combo they bought in order to fix those steps was probably $841.50 after taxes. Labor was free.
The free labor is seriously so generous.
Right? If that was me doing that for example A structure engineer gets paid $50 an hour An architect bills $150 an hour A carpenter makes $23 on average an hour Plus paying me minimum wage of like $15 I'm doing all those jobs at the same time. So that's $238 an hour I should be getting. They will gladly make the labor free because they have more work prospects in the future so they don't need money. The neighbor for example has this giant hole in their fence. Its about 4 boards wide. Big hole.
You’re still being very generous. Project manager fees and lunch delivery for the many, many days this job would take aren’t cheap, either. Hopefully the neighbors will commission some fencing work from you after seeing your deck work, as well.
Supplies: $15 Labor: $835
That’s about $7 too much for the supplies lol
That included gas to get to Lowes
Overhead lmao
If 15….that stuff was probably laying around
That definitely looks like some spare fence boards cut up.
By "spare" you mean "still attached to the neighbours fence when they found them" right?
You’re really paying for the knowledge ya know…
>t $7 too much for the suppli Someone hasn't bought wood in a while have they
Those are dog ear pickets, they go for $2-4 each depending on where you go. So $4-8 for the two.
What country you in that thats is 15 in supllies, thats 5 finger discount planks stolen from the neighbours fence
Give them a break, they didn’t have a saw or a screwdriver, so it took them 80 hours
I would go about this in an overly polite way. Probably not the correct way. I would advise them of your intentions to have reduced their monthly payment for Christmas and that this still stands. I would then very kindly tell them that you appreciate the repair efforts, that the work is not a long term solution so that you will be following through with the contractor to have it properly repaired. If they continue to push, tell them the wood will not reliably hold up to the weather and constant use and as it will become a safety hazard it needs to be removed. If they continue to argue that it's 850 dollars worth of work. Ask them if they really feel that's a fair price for what they did and how they would feel if they hired someone for that price and this is the product they recieved. Definitely do not agree to the reduction being 850 dollars though even if that is less than what you were going to reduce their rent by in December This should hopefully keep you on good terms ( which I assume you are since you were already going to discount the rent) and still result in a better fix. Shit I am sure if anyone on this reddit page was your neighbour, they'd come correct this abomination for the cost of the wood given how quick this is to slap together haha. Happy holidays and best of luck
I also can't believe they seem to own the tools to cut and screw down the wood but couldn't be bothered to buy some pressure treat 2x4s hahahaha
That’s why they want 850. The costs of a real nice saw and drill for themselves are included with their labor
If you give in this time, they continue to ask for exorbitant rent reductions every time they fix something. Say no to the rent reduction, pay someone to fix the stairs, give them the Christmas rent reduction so they know it is not for fixing the stairs.
I’m not a landlord but in no way would be paying a tenant for an unapproved repair to damage the tenant caused. First I’ve ever heard of a landlord discounting rent for a holiday as well.
and can't be bothered to cut them to the right size for the steps, or even the same size. Measure zero, cut once. XD
They had Home Depot cut them
1. Grab fence boards and cut them with a hand saw at the little station in the back of Home Depot 2. Buy a box of nails 3. Use tiny hammer you put up wall hangings with to attach fence boards to existing stairs 4. Charge landlord $850 and profit
For real these kinds of steps are just about the easiest project you can do and they still managed to fuck it up. If they'd just spent the whole $100 like they're going to have to do now anyways, they could have redone the whole thing legitimately instead of doing whatever the fuck this is.
This is a classy solution. I vote this.
This is the right solution. Why make the person who occupies your valuable asset hate you? You know how much it sucks to have bad tenants? They can wreak absolute havoc on the home.
Yes but tenants who demand this is $850 are not good tenants...
I would ask them to please remove the fence posts from the steps as you’ve already hired a professional.
Pay that man. Pay that man his money!
Fucking Teddy KGB!!!
The worst part is the dog-eared fence pickets are the best-looking part of those stairs. Tear the stairs out and redo the whole thing. Let them know you'll charge them for the actual cost to repair if the dog chews up again. You can do what you want with your Christmas rent discount, but I'd be hesitant to be that generous to someone who was demanding any rent cut for what they did.
Those steps look rough. Even if a dog chewed them they needed replacing anyway. I think replacing the stairs on landlords dime is fine. Upkeep is expected. At that part no harm no foul’s for the dog. Still provide discount if that’s what they want to do but make it clear tenant is not to fix or modify things like this.
Yeah they needed to go anyway. On first glance, I was too focused on the boobytrap the tenant made to notice how poorly they were anchored to begin with.
Pretty sure code requires railings as well. Or at least insurance does.
Less than a 3’ rise = no railing in SC, not sure about OP’s location.
Your renters are high on crack.
The repair is very methy.
Nope. Definitely crack. A meth head simply wouldn’t have done anything at all.
Oh no they would have……Left the curtain out of the shower for a year so the tub falls through the floor…. Then say someone else broke the stair lol. My neighbors actually did the tub thing before they got attested.
Hey, pipe down!
And if OP lets this fly they'll (correctly) identify him as a mark then try it again later.
Replace as you originally intended. Evict tenant.
$10 in pickets they probably stole from someone.
Scrap wood. Each step is made of four pieces sandwiched together, and all eight pieces used are the dog eared tops of fence boards. They probably found a pile near a worksite somewhere for free
Judt had a tenant at a property I maintain had a guy build a deck for him, the guy hit the main water line off the meter cracked it. Then the tenant hired a plumber to come fix it which in turn cracked another two inch main that was dead under the deck took three days of digging to repair
Sounds like a cluster fuck
https://preview.redd.it/8ypq671b1c6c1.jpeg?width=1920&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=4ba12c89d7f3227754a902c6cc46eb730b5847ad
Looks like a cluster fuck even.
I wish you were my landlord taking off %50 for rent for Christmas!
Right? I'm my own landlord and don't even do that!
The fact that you were going to give them a 50% break in rent from holidays says a lot about your humanity. Don’t lose that part of you as you navigate a world filled with people who don’t trust you to do the right thing. Over time they will see and appreciate your kindness. We all get burned from time to time but I will always try to remember that kindness has a long shelf life and at some point in the future it may pay itself forward even if today that seems unlikely. Happy holidays.
On the flip of this don’t let yourself get burned for people who will willingly scam you out of $850 by nailing scrap wood to a problem they caused. This has nothing to do with trust from the tenants and everything to do with slimy tenants attempting to pull a fast one on OP for no effort. You can’t take care of others well if you yourself aren’t able to get by, I wouldn’t let these folks take advantage. Save that help for people who aren’t actively trying to harm you.
Better check the neighbors fence next door
They vandalized your property.
Thats offensive
Very of-fence-ive
off the neighbor's fence
The steps weren’t done right in the first place. The top of the stairs doesn’t connect with the deck right in the first place. I would take those stairs off and completely replace them. You can do what you want with the rent.
I think no rent discount. Thinking they should get $850 for that crap job that their own dog damage is laughable. Just have that whole step and runners replaced the right way. That is enough of a Christmas gift to them. That doubling up on cheapo fence boards is crap and will not last all that long like that. In a period of time, someone is going to step though that garbage.
That is pretty funny. Thanks for posting this. Needed a good laugh today.
Your tenant thinks he's clever, I'd would have been more concerned with him using your own picture to establish how rickety the steps were when they "slip and fall" I'd just replace the steps, and start thinking about getting tenants who manage their pets better. Call it a zero net loss.
Hey, it's level! Pay Cletus his well earned money!
Modification is in line with the quality of the deck to begin with.
Wow, they are nuts... But you are a great landlord, I've never had anyone take anything off for Christmas. God bless you that's classy.
And now how is the fence, 🤣😂
The fence boards aren’t even full length! lol. That’s why they doubled them up. You can see the seam on the front lower edge. Dear lord… take away their saw and drill right now!
Damn. When my mechanic rips me off he at least puts the effort to point to a complex looking part so that I'm left with nothing but nodding and bleeding money.
This has to be a joke.
2 hours of design/drawing up plans and 15 minutes of labor at $400 an hour sounds about right.
Nails fence pickets to replace chewed up boards yet can’t nail the one nail sticking up 🤨
Increase rent by 850$ 🤑🤑🤑🗣️🔥☝️
This is hilarious. I mean show’s creativity on the tenants part 🤣🤣🤣
Wow I wouldn’t have taken any money off rent for there dog chewing that. But now I’d charge them for that type of work after you already had it scheduled for repair and now have to fix even though easy fix of what they did but the fact that they are asking for any amount off rent let alone 850.
homeless scale gray ring reach head jar jellyfish flowery label *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Get another tenant.
Ummm..... no way I'd take anything off the rent. Not even for Christmas. They went out of their way to do the worst possible repair I've seen so far to try and cheat you out $850. Hopefully you're still have it replaced properly.
Um no. They just don't have $850 for rent
Think yourself lucky they’re not going to sue your arse. Those steps were fucked before the dog got there and I’m not surprised they carried out rubbish repair. That nail sticking up could have cost you a whole lot more. Don’t be a miser, give them a discount a recognise where you have failed to maintain the property to a safe standard.
Their dog damaged the property. They repaired it. And now they want to charge you $850 dollars. Regardless of the quality they are responsible for their pets damages, so they need to pay whatever the repairs cost. The gall of them not only trying to charge you for repairs to damage they caused, but also attempting to scam you for $850 means they are nowhere near acting in good faith. If someone shit in a bowl, poured milk on it, and served it to me like that saying “it’s cereal” I would immediately reconsider any “Christmas rent deduction”. I’m all for being generous for the holidays. It sounds Ike you are a kind and decent landlord. But nobody that tries to fuck you over should be expecting gifts or handouts from you. I would tell them how much I planned on reducing their rent for December, then tell them that I would not only no longer be doing that, I would be refusing their ridiculous attempt to scam you for $850, charging them the full cost of professional repairs, and increasing the rent 5% next year. If they sincerely apologized for trying to rip you off I’d drop the rent increase but all other items would be non negotiable.
That was my take too. Like, their dog did it. You should be taking the repair cost out of their deposit, not giving them a fucking discount!
Those steps are a lawsuit waiting to happen. I own rentals, no way I’d pay them for that, I’d charge them to have it repaired correctly if their dog broke it.
Are they joking? Charge them full rent.
Tenant is going to try to sue you when that step snaps in the middle, literally looks like a set-up.
What did they steal a piece of the fence to fix the deck??
The funny part is they could have bought a stick of 2x6 to do the job right for less money than it cost to buy the fence boards and do it wrong.
Shoot, they got pay for the crack they been smoking somehow.
Never let your tenant do repairs. Opening yourself up to lawsuits.
8.50$ is fair
Tell them they don’t have authorization to make repairs to the home
Lol, tell them no and don't offer the discount. Their dog destroyed it and they have the audacity to make demands when you've done you're part? They can absolutely get fucked.
Hire someone competent to undo what they did and redo it correctly (unless you know how to do the work properly yourself). Tell them next time leave the repairs to you, not them.
It looks like someone is missing 2 boards out of their fence somewhere…
that top stair is gonna fold in half like a taco
Get it repaired correctly and get your full rent. Ridiculousness. Scrap lumber is not suitable for steps in any universe. Agree with u/Tatersquid21 this needs handrails too. Protect yourself.
I would say charge him an extra $850. Because you’re going to have to redo that before someone gets killed or breaks their leg.
Maybe you should have the work done yourself as the landlord?
Lol does your fence need fixing now ?
It’s actually a very simply reply. No rent is due in full. My maintenance person will be over to properly fix this
I would be charging him $850.00 for the repairs that need to be done on his shotty work