For my parents’ house, one contract asked for a termite inspection. Hmm. The inspector came out, said it was a highly unusual request for the area, went inside and asked if the people had even been in the house (of course they had) because the house is brick, the entire basement and main floor joists and even the main floor subfloor concrete, lots of concrete, any exterior wood cedar (which isn’t impervious to termites but not their favorite). Of course he found nothing. People are weird about bugs. And we had to pay for the inspection. Ugh.

One of those high maintenance types, eh? When is their lease up?

I'm betting that by your refusal they will claim that you violated the Colorado warranty of habitability. I think you have more shenanigans to look forward to.

It's been 6 months. I hope they want to leave before then. I would gladly let them out of their lease.

The property manager is asking for photos of bugs in the house. IF...and only IF...he gets any....then he will send an exterminator to spray natural oils...so as not to hurt the cat.

Nicole, it sounds to me as if your tenant is not keeping the property clean enough to discourage/prevent the critters. 😉

It's just finger snapping....

Maybe they think that earwigs enter the ear and then your brain and chew away. Sounds like s/he’s already been infected.🤕

I'm just glad to hear you have a property manager as a buffer between you and them 😁

My mother worked for a married couple who owned multiple apartment buildings in Columbus, OH. She was responsible for overseeing evictions from tenants who didn't pay their rent. She recently told me about one experience that she had to handle - the people who lived in the apartment had taken the doors off of the upper kitchen cabinets and kept chickens in poultry cages. Can you imagine?

A friend rented houses and in each lease, he stated that any repairs/service costs under $X were the responsibility of the tenant. Kept a lot of the nuisance calls away. Like the time the tenant called my dad because the light was out in the fridge. He went there and tightened the bulb!

Given today's climate chances are these people could become squatters. Good luck. They won't have money for a lawyer so I wouldn't spend a lot of worry about being reported for any of this nonsense. It might be hilarious to send them a definition of "infestation" according to the code. I guess you are getting your money's worth out of the property manager. I would be letting them know ASAP you won't be renewing their lease. Bet it happens to them all the time.

Not sure @arcy_gw if it' a good idea to let them know about lease renewal. This might be too much of a heads up - for them to become squatters.

Seagrass-OMG. What is funny is that was once a long time ago a real thing. Kitchen furniture was actually built so chickens could be housed under tables and such. We are talking 16th, 17th century though. Lord. What a mess that would be.

I should be giving our spiders names. I really don't like spiders.

These people must have time on their hands

My GF used to have rentals. She had stories! She did a walk through and the tenant had cages stacked on top of one another in the back bedroom with small dogs in them. It was carpeted. She was breeding them for some side cash. The woman was a "trust-fund" baby. Never late on her rent....but.....that is just gross....on many levels.

Arcy's right....but they do water and mow the lawn. I just need to raise the rent enough to cover the "side bills" I'm accumulating.

We bought and rennovated a small ranch house to offer to my in-laws to live in about a mille away from us. They ultimately declined our offer. We were advised by our tax accountant to rent the property out for a full summer before selling it and so we advertised on "we need a vacation dot com." We rented it by the week for people coming here on vacations for the beaches and the seafood. It was a miserable experience and I would never, ever do it again. My DH was working and was away on business most of the time and I was left holding the bag as the cleanning lady and trouble shooter. I never forgave my in-laws for that. Managed to keep my marriage alive.

Fwif "Note: Earwigs eat live trees, they are borers" is incorrect. Earwigs eat decaying organic material, other insects and plants. They don't bore or eat trees. In a house they are accidental inhabitants and are absolutely no cause for concern. If anything, like spiders, they're beneficial since they eat other insects. Neither requires extermination.

@floral_uk z8/9 SW UK.....This could be Popular borers. The earwigs just live in the holes and eat the dead material the Popular Borers produce. But...as far as the renters need to know....earwigs DO NOT want to be inside your house.

Sawdust created by the borer damage. Systemic we use to treat the infestation. These people want routine maintenance paid for by me...the PM is telling me I'm generous and presenting ME with the bills.

I don't know how you deal with it, Nicole. It's beyond me. I'm sure you're younger than I am.. I trained in audiology and had my own hearing aid dispensing practice before I got breast cancer. People are so difficult - I'm almost a recluse at this point. I don't have the patience to deal with the public anymore, let alone someone living in an investment I own. We have some options in our old age out here to convert part of our house into an apartment and rent to a traveling nurse or other healthcare specialist and may do that not for income but for help to continue living indepentently. It's a difficult decision. We never had children and have no one to rely on - still supporting my 92-year-old mother financially.

@seagrass_gw Cape Cod.....Luckily my mother married a 4th time ...to a retired medical doctor! They lived in an upscale assisted living environment until she passed 14 years ago. It would be a hard life if I had family to care for.

I'm at a point where remodeling homes still sounds "fun".....but renting the properties out....maybe not. I'm trying to stick it out another 5 years. DH reitres in October, he's still fresh as a daisy. 🤐

Nicole - I'm sorry you lost your mother. I panic at the thought of losing mine, and never talking to her again. We are very close. My FIL was a carpenter and a builder. DH learned from him and we have always lived in various stages of construction in all of our homes. That wasn't his profession, but it was an important addition to our bottom line. DH can run circles around me - I call him my Energizer Bunny. Cancer really sucks and has changed my life forever.

I imagine they'd be UNpopular borers. Damned autocorrect.

@seagrass_gw Cape Cod....My mother would be 96 if she were still alive. I'm 64. My DH can run circles around me too....literally. 😂My knees are shot. I'm sorry about your cancer. Yeah...that would be life-changing. I have a neighbor that's working on a faster treatment for chemo cancer patients. I wish they'd just find a cure. I'm so ....so...sorry.

You go through the fear and pain of surgery, chemo and radiation (slash/poison/burn) but then 10 years of drug therapy. I kept waiting to feel like myself again, but I can't even remember who that was. I never look at my body in the mirror anymore. Just had to move on. I'm so grateful to have a good man by my side. My breast surgeon told me she's watched a lot of marriages end when mastecomies happen. WTF?

I'm sorry, I'm sharing too much of myself here.

@seagrass_gw Cape Cod....A cancer diagnosis is not something to be happy about. Being a landlord was my rant. We all get tired of dealing with a "thorn-in-our-side" we can't get rid of. We all need a place where we can feel free to express ourselves.

UPDATE: The tenants are now saying, they just wanted to let us know about the spider and earwig. They were NOT expecting action when they put in THAT work order. What a bunch of baloney these people came up with....huh.

I hope that is a relief for you. I think to be a landlord takes a thick skin.

@arcy_gw....It's a constant battle. It STILL amazes me the things tenants say, then retract. As tho there was some innocence involved. They were just talking, didn't mean to say they wanted anything fixed. Uh...so why'd YOU call in a work ticket?