This landlord kicked a mechanic out thinking he’d make more money. Spoiler, it’s only going to make his life more difficult.
Here’s why.
Mechanic gets his revenge on landlord
In a viral video with a whopping 6.4 million views, a mechanic who goes by @geyservillespeedshop online shares how he’s pettily, but still legally, handling a bad situation with his landlord.
“So I got kicked out of my shop, basically out of nowhere,” @geyservillespeedshop shares.
He says the landlord told him that he rented it to someone else. And, the mechanic says, the landlord gave him 30 days to clear out.
“Which makes sense, makes a lot more money. But the guy was so stupid,” @geyservillespeedshop says. “He didn’t realize that I put in all of these walls, insulation, the compressor, the electrical.”
@geyservillespeedshop points out that he paid for all of these upgrades to the very large space himself.
“And when I did it, I made it so I could take it all with me,” @geyservillespeedshop says.
He adds that when he first took over the space, the building was “basically condemned and had nothing in it.” Now, in his remaining days in the space, for which he technically doesn’t even have a lease, he says that he plans to tear down all of the custom work he did.
If he really did put up every wall in that space, then it seems like it would revert back to an open-air shed. It would be interesting to know if the new tenants are aware of this or if they’re expecting a walled-in space like what @geyservillespeedshop created.
“Now he won’t be able to rent it to the new person because it’s due the day I leave. But they won’t have the ability to upgrade the shop,” @geyservillespeedshop says.
“We always win in the end. So always have a backup plan, team,” @geyservillespeedshop says.
While viewers are anxiously awaiting updates, @geyservillespeedshop has yet to post a follow-up video. It will understandably take time to not only get his supplies out of the space, but to physically tear it down too.
What is malicious compliance?
Malicious compliance is when a person follows an instruction or rule, knowing that it’ll undermine the intended outcome and likely lead to a negative result.
Basically, it’s a way to be petty while being protected by the fact that you technically did exactly as the person asked you.
Can the tenant do this?
Yes. Unless the lease (which they don’t have anyway) states that improvements are to be retained, or the landlord and tenant come to an agreement, the result is that a commercial space be returned to its original condition, a real estate law site explained.
“It is essential to clearly outline in the lease which alterations must be removed and which can remain. Ambiguities can lead to disputes if the tenant removes fixtures the landlord expected to stay or leaves behind modifications the landlord wanted removed,” Hollander Real Estate Law continues.
Commenters weigh in
“‘Why are you going out of your way to be petty; me ‘it’s literally on my way,’” a top comment read.
“You’re contractually obligated to leave the premises in the same condition you received it. Malicious compliance,” a person pointed out.
“The upgrades are why the new tenants were willing to pay more. Please get a video of their reaction when they move into a bare bones shop,” another theorized.
“The landlord is gonna watch this and reach out to you like ‘w-wait let’s work something out,’” a commenter expected.
@geyservillespeedshop nyah nyah
♬ original sound – FKAgeyservilleSpeedShop
The Daily Dot reached out to the mechanic for comment via TikTok comment and direct message.
Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.
