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FAA
This Probably Never Happened
No. 227
Tto You, But...
By C. Finley Beven
he owner of one of the properties we manage called us, and she was quite concerned. She had just received a citation from the City of Pasadena, where her property is located. She had been cited for a “hording” problem caused by her tenants. We were not terribly surprised, as we
had been in communication with her tenants over this issue over the past few months. To put this in perspective, her property is a Single Residence. The tenants had been storing all sorts of “stuff” in the drive-way, and even in the front yard. It was not a pretty sight, and clearly not up to Pasadena standards. The City of Pasadena has a code section to deal with such a nuisance: it will be a code violation “.... where such condition would have a tendency to substantially depreciate the aesthetic environment or property value of surrounding properties”. These tenants were arguably in violation of this code section. Obviously, neighbors had complained.
Internally, we have a basic rule: never touch a tenant’s “stuff”, and never pay anyone to touch a tenant’s stuff. If something goes wrong, and the tenant claims that something of value has been damaged or is missing, we want no part of anything like that. We would not go in and clean up the mess, so we needed the tenant’s cooperation, either voluntary or under threat of legal action. We have the following provision in our lease:
22. A violation of any city, county, state, or federal ordinance, code, or other provision will not be tolerated. No acts, activities, or omission to act shall be permitted which
could place the management or owner of these premises in violation of any law, code, or ordinance of the city, county, or state. If any fine or other assessment shall be placed on or assigned to the owner, management, or the property based on such act, activity, or omission to act by the tenant(s), such fine or other assessment shall be reimbursed by the tenant(s) to the owner, management, or property within 30 days of tenant being notified of such fine or other assessment.
Once notified of the code violation by the City, we sent a letter to the tenants, along with a copy of the citation that more clearly defined both the code provisions and the related violations, reminding them of this lease provision, along with a 3-Day Notice to Conform. Fortunately, they did conform, and the yard and driveway look a whole lot better today. We will expect the tenants to pay the fine, but we’re still under COVID limitations, so time-will-tell.
Dear Readers: This article is the 227th in a series based on the lessons we have learned the hard way. The contents of these articles are merely opinions of the writer. They are not intended as specific legal advice and should not be relied upon for that purpose. Our practice is in constant refinement as we adjust the way we operate to an ever- changing market.
C. Finley Beven has been involved in real estate, property maintenance and property management since 1975. He is a Certified Property Manager (CPM), Institute of real estate Management since 1987. He is also a Certified Community Association Manager (CCAM) and is a member of the California Association of Community Managers. He has a brokers License #00696626 in the State of California. He has a BA, USC; JD, Southwestern University
Beven & Brock Property Management Co., Inc.
99 S. Lake Avenue, Pasadena. (626) 243-4145 Fin.Beven@BevenandBrock.com - www.BevenandBrock.com
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SEPTEMBER 2021 - APARTMENT MANAGEMENT MAGAZINE AMM1/6