When Tenants Offer to Paint, Repair, or Lay Carpet Themselves

Early on in my real estate career, I made a few mistakes that cost me time and money.

One of the most common? Letting new tenants do the repairs.

It always started with good intentions. A tenant would tour the unit and say something like, I can fix the broken faucet or I will paint it myself if you knock off a month's rent. It felt like a small favor at the time, and sometimes I would offer a discount to make the deal work.

Nine out of ten times, I regretted it.

Either the work never got done, or it was done so poorly that I had to pay someone later to rip it out and fix it properly.

One tenant told me he could install carpet. I gave him a 50 dollar monthly discount on his one-year lease. First month, no carpet. Second month, I found him nailing random strips of material to the floor. When he finally laid it down, it looked like a rushed DIY job. When he moved out, the floor had so many holes that I had to pay for new subflooring and patchwork.

Since then, I have changed my approach.

Now when someone tells me they will fix or paint something, I shut it down. I tell them, There is nothing that needs to be repaired. If you notice anything broken, let me know and I will handle it. If they are still interested, great. If not, I would rather lose the deal than gain a future problem.

But here is the flip side.

Over time, I have had tenants I have gotten to know and trust. People who have lived in my properties for a while, who have proven they are responsible, and who I know are genuinely handy.

Those tenants? I have hired a few of them to do small jobs outside their unit. And it has worked out well.

Sometimes I will stop by to collect rent and they will say, Oh by the way, I fixed the closet door and tightened the sink valve. They do not ask for credit, they do not delay rent, and they usually do it right. I respect that. And I appreciate it when someone treats their apartment like their own home.

There is one more thing I have noticed over the years. Most repair requests only come up when rent is due. That is how I usually know whether the issue is real or just a distraction tactic.

So here is my rule today. If I do not know you, no repairs. If I trust you, we will talk.

You learn these things the hard way.