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Tenants from hell turned Richmond house into giant landfill: Landlord

Watch video of the tenants' cat and dog poop everywhere, along with more than 20 bags of stinking garbage

Richmond resident Hui Chen and her husband entered the house they rented out on Williams and No.3 roads last week, after failing to collect rent and not hearing from the tenant for days.

They couldn’t believe what they saw.

“They turned my house into a giant landfill. The whole house stunk,” Chen told the Richmond News.

There is animal urine and feces everywhere – on the floor, carpets, tables and chairs, garbage scattered around the floor.

The sink was full of unwashed dishes with flies circling and the fridge was stuffed with expired food.

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Animal urine was everywhere in the house. Photo submitted

The furniture and walls were also damaged from what appeared to be deep scratches by the tenant’s pets.

And there are holes on the window and door screens that were apparently created so the pets could go in and out freely, said Chen.

And that was not the end of it.

When Chen and her husband opened the garage, they were even more shocked because it was completely taken up by garbage bags – more than 20 of them full to the brim with everything from food waste to dog poop.

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The garage was filled up with garbage. Photo submitted

“They never threw away the garbage and just stored them in the garage…it’s unbelievable someone can live in such a horrible environment,” said Chen, adding that she now understands why she always saw their car parked outside the garage.

“We were absolutely shocked. I and my husband lost sleep for two nights after seeing this. We couldn’t believe this happened to us.”

Tenants have ‘disappeared’: Landlord

Chen posted her property online for rent last summer and was approached by a couple in their thirties with two young children.

“They told us they have a property in Vancouver but they wanted to stay close to their kids’ school in Richmond,” recalled Chen.

She was hesitant at first because the couple said they had a golden retriever but they guaranteed that the pet was very well-behaved and would stay in a cage when it’s inside the house, so it would not cause any damage.

Chen agreed and the couple moved in last August after signing a two-year contract.

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Stains were left on the floor. Photo submitted

​“Last month, I didn’t receive their rent and tried to contact them but there was no response,” said Chen.

“I later found out that they cancelled their accounts on Fortis BC and BC Hydro. I gave them a written notice and then went in to check the place, and found out they just left with such a mess.”

​When checking the house, Chen realized the couple also had at least a cat which they never mentioned.

“What also disturbs me is that they have two young kids and they let them live in such a dirty environment,” said Chen, adding that she saw children’s toys left right next to pet poop in the house.

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The sink was full of unwashed dishes with flies surrounding. Photo submitted

Asking to take responsibility

Chen said she doesn’t understand why they left without notice – claiming that they never had any issues with each other over the past 11 months.

But she is too busy to think of the whys and where now – she has to repair all the damage they’ve made, including replacing the stairs and carpet, repainting the wall, replacing the furniture and having the house cleaned from top to bottom.

“The total cost is estimated to be more than $30,000 – the floor replacement itself is quoted for more than $10,000, way more than the house deposit they left behind,” said Chen.

“And this doesn’t include the money we lose for not being able to rent out the place during this time.”

Chen, who has the couple’s name on the contract, hopes they can contact her and take responsibility for their actions.

She said she is collecting evidence and will have to take the couple to court if they refuse to come out, but hopes it doesn’t go that far.

“We live in a law-based society – you can’t just do things like this and run away. It doesn’t work like that,” said Chen.