There is a new trend I’ve been noticing recently. A land lord calls because his tenant has bed bugs and he’s suing me. Now, I’m not big fan of landlords but I see a disturbing growing trend. After an inspection, we figure out what happened. The tenant had bed bugs at their previous apartment, they leave and throw out most belongings or receive treatment and move them. What ever they did it did not work. It may have slowed down the infestation, but did not eradicate the problem. Now they are in a new apartment, maybe bought new furniture, and all the new furniture they haven’t even finished paying for is infected.
The truth is, most landlords, when forced to, will pay for a cheap and ineffective treatment most of the time. I have even seen them try to treat it themselves and this idea is always a disaster. So what’s to be done? Unless this is a building issue, running away won’t work. Effective treatment is expensive but then again, all the other options usually end up being more expensive. Maybe the tenant and landlord should share the expense of the treatment. Then again, maybe the democrats and republicans should also get along for the good of the people. What can I possibly be thinking?
