I own a duplex and rent out half of it to a pair of undergrads. I live about 1.5 miles away from Campus, so I was surprised that undergrads wanted to live there, but they (more or less) have their shit pretty well together, they pay the rent on time each month, and they don't complain unless its warranted. Overall they're pretty decent tenants.
They really pissed me off when they first moved in (August 2016) though, because they'd have people over at all hours of the night, subwoofer going, smoking outside and yelling. I had to yell at them on multiple occasions the first month they were in. Finally, school started up, I guess they got busier, and they haven't been much of a problem. There have been a couple relapses, but overall, if things stay on this pace, I wouldn't mind renewing their lease again.
This year, I was going to add this clause to the lease:
Quiet Hours: The tenant may not disturb the quiet enjoyment of any other tenant in the building or surrounding neighbors. The tenant is responsible for adhering to the building’s quiet hours. Quiet hours are from 10pm to 6am on weekdays and from 11pm to 7am on weekends. If tenant violates the quiet hours policy, a $50 fine will be incurred, payment due within 5 days from the date of the initial complaint. If the tenant violates the quiet hours policy on three separate documented occasions, the tenant is in violation of the lease agreement.
It seems pretty solid. Basically, if I have to ask them to be quiet, I get $50. If I have to do it three times, I get $50 for the first two and then I get to start evicting them.
The tricky thing is that I'm the landlord AND a neighboring tenant. I would have a financial incentive to complain. Does that undermine my lease statement?