I've had it with "Renter's Rights" in Key West

I had probably the most unpleasant showing ever on Saturday. I feel the need to share it with you. I have some buyers that did their Internet search before they came to Key West. They identified properties they liked and then went by them before they called me to set up showings. It is the custom in Key West to have the listing agent present to show his or her listing. Most houses are not on lock box. So advance notice is required. If a place is occupied by a tenant, most agents require 24 hours advance notice. That is not the law in Florida, but it is the practice in Key West. I get it; I accept it; I think it is a bit arcane especially in a time when so many sellers seem desperate to sell.

My buyer identified a particular multi-unit property. They had gone by it and since I had shown it before, I drove them past it to explain the layout and "condition" before I scheduled a showing. The property was in their price range and they liked the style and location. I called the listing agent and scheduled a showing for the next day. The tenants had been notified. In fact all tenants were home at the time. One tenant let us in to see that unit. The other was in the rear doing some gardening. She lived in the other unit and the listing agent told us we could not see that unit because the Property Manager must be present whenever that unit is shown. (We were looking on a Saturday. The Property Manager can only be present on Mondays and Tuesdays.) So even though the tenant was standing perhaps six feet away from us, we could not view her unit. I had seen it before, and it really is cute. But what happened next negated any desire to reschedule a visit later in the week.

We were standing in the rear courtyard where he tenant was doing gardening. We were discussing the location and effect of an easement that a neighboring property had across the property. The tenant then interjected in a very stern voice "Would you go out to the street to talk. I am doing work here." She had a rake in her hand and pawed with it at our feet. I looked at the listing Realtor with a "What the F**k is going on?" look. My buyers looked back at me incredulous. They were looking to make a purchase of several hundred thousand dollars and are being ordered to get out of the tenant's way so she could rake. So we went to the street and talked for another five to ten minutes. The rake "lady" came out and started raking leaves on the nearby asphalt.

Some tenants in Key West act like little brats and if the listing agents let them get away with it, the tenants will do everything they can to screw up a sale. It starts by demanding (not requesting) 24 hours notice to show. I'm not talking about next day, I mean an actual 24 hour or longer notice. Nineteen hours won't work for some and many agents will not push it. There is no Florida law that requires 24 hour notice. But agents seem to think there is. Most agents are cowards in my opinion. They don't want to upset the apple cart so to speak. So they let tenants establish the framework as to how and when property may be shown. That control by the tenant then sets up the potential sale for failure in my opinion. Or at least it defers sale as long as the tenant can make showing the unit as difficult as possible.

Some tenants are just great and treat their apartment, condo, town home, or house just like their own property. Some places are a real joy to show. The "lady" gardener's place is very attractive. But my buyers would never get to see it. The unit next door is the complete opposite. I'll just say it was creepy and leave the details out.

Many places, however, are not well maintained. I have shown rentals with dog pooh on the floor, filthy kitchens with grease stains and low watt light bulbs encrusted with grease and dust, exposed wires and extension cords, and nasty bathrooms and bedrooms that give you the heebie jeebies. That is no accident.

Most buyers really do not like it when the seller is present because they feel awkward in making comments or asking questions about the property. Some tenants take it upon themselves to purposefully be present so that they can interject their comments on the property. Some tenants insist that they show the property instead of the agent. They make representations about the property that could be true or untrue. I wont' go into detail, but I wrote a previous blog about one place where this happens every time I show it. This person shows the property and is as sweet as can be, but this person does not want the place to sell. The tenant says just enough to screw the possibility of any sale.

I get it that tenants do not want to be dispossessed of the place the call home. Sellers who really want or need to sell should instruct the tenants that they must allow the units to be shown upon proper notice and not interfere in showings. And agents need to have some backbone and not let tenants pull the kind of crap the "lady" gardener did the other day. Her behavior was insulting.

I do not know what happened to civility in our society. It seems like like everybody has their "rights" and that a lot of people do not have manners. I have had it with Renters Rights. Agents and owners need to treat renters with civility but renters should not be allowed to control the showing or sale of an owner's property.