I had to evict a tennant recently. Talk about a nightmare. And the damage done to the unit was another story. On little tidbit....they filled the refrigerator with food and unplugged it 2 to 3 weeks before they left.
I once lived in a great apt until the landlady passed away. her siblings sold the house to some jerks who fix the place up etc...and then sell it for a lot more money. I had no problem with that except for the fact that the whole time they were in the process of buying the house, they told me how I could stay and they were going to fix it up etc... the day after the closing she turned into a spawn of Satan and told me to get out. Thank heaven I found a great place right away, but I did strip every single thing that was worth anything out of there (since they were redoing the whole place.
the best part was that I took an upper-decker in the toilet. Thats when you drop a poop in the upper portion of the toilet. It must have stank like hell.
I also pissed all over the stairs a few times and of course left the cat litter for them.
trust me--She was a b*tch and a half.
One needs to "profile" prospective tenants quite carefully. I conduct my own informal "depostion" as to who moves into my units. It is very rigorous. Those that get in, however, are very lucky. I am a very generous and kind landlord, in my mind, and rarely say "no" to tenant requests. I am an easy touch. But I want to be an easy touch, for those whom I think of good character, and respect, rather than bounders. Most of my tenants say when they leave, they regret losing me as a landlord. :) Sure, no doubt, with another approach, I could make more money, but life is too short, and I choose not to live my short life that way.
I know of an eviction currently in progress in San Diego Superior Court based on a 30 day notice. Tenants didn't warn the owner of a water leak and waited till the floor tiles were coming up then called the building department to have apartment declared uninhabitable. When the owner sent a plumber and a handyman to fix the unit, they wouldn't answer the door. Owner offered them an identical unit on identical terms in the same building if they would move so he could repair apartment - they refused. At the last court hearing, the judge ordered them to pay the unpaid rent for the last two months til the trial - tenants had several friends there with photos to testify. Who knows what will happen at the trial in Khalifornistan.
If the tenants had the unit (which was in good condition when they moved in) declared uninhabitable, why do they fight tooth and nail to stay in an uninhabitable unit?