Fire! Now What Do You Do?
Well, have my first difficult test as a landlord. Handling tenants has been something I could handle, but now we have a crisis. The fire appears to have been an accident, but now I have a displaced tenant, two insurance companies to deal with (yep, it was a condo, so this will be an interesting test) and a community that now has to look at my boarded up and semi-charred unit every day.
Guess my question is, any good tips or experiences to share that I might not be thinking about?
Thanks!
Chance in Indy
get yourself a good public adjuster. These guys will help you deal with the insurance companies, arrange contractors to do the work. They get paid a percentage of what you collect from the insurance companies and will probably make your fire a profitable if not a pleasant experience
I had a fire the first night my tenant moved in. Their TV over heated.
Keep your cool. Handle yourself as if the tenants are going to sue you. Make no accusations. Speak to the tenant, but do not engage in long conversations. My tenants were hostile so I kept my conversation to "thank god noone was hurt". My lease also said that if the unit became uninhabitable the lease was terminated. You need to find out from a tenant/landlord lawyer what is going on with your lease and how to get out of it.
I refused to give the tenants back their security deposit, even after the lease terminated. Your insurance company might make a claim to it. Eventually I did give them some money after they signed an agreement to hold me, my insurance, the world harmless.
After the tenant thing calmed down, the insurance was not so bad. I went over the adjusters list with a fine tooth comb and got several thousand dollars added. Got a handyman to do the work and made several thousand dollars plus upgraded the unit. The handyman could not do any of the work that required permits. After a fire the code department will be watching you closely.
Brenda