Landlords, Take the Lead on Hunting Down Critters

Landlords, Take the Lead on Hunting Down Critters

Long Beach, with its sunny beaches and great metro area, is an attractive place for people to live, as well as an attractive environment for bugs and pests! There’s a chance that a property will have some bugs and pests at some point in time. Most of the time, it is 100% the landlord’s responsibility for removing and treating the problem! Natural circumstances can cause some infestations, such as the location of the building, but landlords are still responsible in that case. The landlord needs to have the unit inspected by professionals in order to go about treating the infestation.

Tenants must be notified 48 hours in advance before pest control enters their home. If the the landlord does not control the bugs and pests, the situation will worsen, so it is crucial that tenants tell the landlord as soon as they see critters. The appearance of termites, cockroaches, or bed bugs should all be brought to the landlord’s attention.

The only time the landlord is not responsible for taking care of the expenses would be if the tenant caused the infestation themselves. For example, if the tenant’s dog brought fleas to the building, the tenant would be responsible. This is why it is important for the landlord to keep documentation of past pest problems.

Roaches or ants may become a problem if the tenant constantly leaves food and trash out. So, if the landlord pays for treatment, and the tenant continues living in an unsanitary environment, then the tenant is not complying and will be responsible. Bed bugs on the other hand, are a more serious problem, because they can spread to other units. The infested unit and the surrounding units need to be treated. Bedbugs are very difficult to get rid of! Tenants can bring them in the building in many ways, such as on their clothes, or luggage. If someone has knowledge that the bugs are present, it must be reported immediately. Nevertheless, landlords are responsible for controlling the situation, so it does not get worse.