Landlord "trims" 3-year resident's pecan tree for curb appeal, then raises rent by 39%: 'I audibly gasped'

Author image for Remy Millisky
Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
Oct 30, 2025 5:00 PM EDT

This landlord was caught "trimming" her resident's pecan tree, but commenters urged this resident to speak up before she destroyed even more plant life. 

Many landlords have hang-ups about various issues with their residents. Sometimes there are bugs that the landlord refuses to deal with; sometimes they'll ignore leaking pipes or creaky front steps. And sometimes they're the complete opposite, micromanaging their residents by telling them to stop having guests or to lower the volume. This landlord is no exception — she's got a personal vendetta against a resident's pecan tree, and she "trimmed" it without permission!

It's totally bonkers that this landlord thinks that fewer trees will attract potential homebuyers. It's well-known that trees lower the temperatures of the areas surrounding them, provide lovely shade, and just look beautiful. If you're trying to find new renters, why would you take a gorgeous tree and make it look hideous? 

This person noted that alongside their pecan tree demolition project, the landlord is also raising their rent by 39%, which is the kind of price hike that might make someone think twice about renewing that lease. Maybe this person can find a better home where they have more control over their property and will spend less time arguing with their crazy landlord over text messages. Check out the full story below, along with the photos that genuinely will make your jaw drop, and see if you think the landlord or the resident are in the right. 

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  • 01
    Woman with long brown hair looks quizzically at blonde woman with green text message overlaid reading "Was the plan for tree to be trimmed back or cut down to the trunk?" and a reply text in black reading "Trimmed down quite a bit. Why?"
    via Getty Images For Unsplash+

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 02

    'Landlord sent someone over to give the pecan tree a "trim"'

    Yellow house with large bushy pecan tree and 2 white cars labeled from Google and dated July 2022
    via u/Mexican_Texican

    Here's the before photo! What a beautiful, shade-providing tree. 

  • 03

    Here's the awful aftermath

    Front yard containing the remains of the pecan tree, 3 stumps protruding from main tree trunk
    via u/Mexican_Texican

    This thing is butchered. It looks terrible — there's not a single leaf or pecan left over! While some commenters tried to claim this was a proper amount of pollarding, or pruning the tree to encourage fresh growth, this is far beyond that. 

  • 04
    Mind you, the tree wasn't in the way in regards to the driveway or the foundation, and I never once complained about it other than the occasional smacking
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 05
    my head on a singular low hanging branch (I'm five nothing, that's a really low hanging branch) I loved having it there despite it constantly raining unripened
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 06
    pecans because it was at the perfect angle to provide ample shade for my truck year round. Now I have no shade. And it's still 90° outside.
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 07
    Mexican Texican OP This will probably get lost in the comments ( I was NOT expecting such a whiplash of enraged comments in the short time I had this up) but
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 08

    They shared a bit of a text conversation with the landlord before explaining further

    11:41 Was the plan for tree to be trimmed back or cut down to the trunk? Trimmed down quite a bit. Why?
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 09

    That's a LOT of greenery!

    I wasn't sure if this was what you were going for. I think they're planning on removing all of the green Yea I wanted the pecan tree cut down on a lot. That's cool
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 10
    The landlord hates the tree. Pretty much wants it torn out, even though it was planted by her late husband. I don't know what her beef is with it, but she's always had this disdain for it. What's currently got me irked is that the landlord was complaining that she wanted the house to have more curb appeal (HA) and was upset at the condition that we had it in [The dirt is ruined from nutritional deficiency and everything that we have planted in there so far has d_d. Our grass has been sh_all
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 11
    summer, but the neighboring houses also have been having trouble with dong grass due to rainfall being lighter than usual this year] Just last week I mentioned bringing in my mom and her landscaping crew to take care of the front yard, including trimming the trees to let in just a little more light for the front garden and replenishing the dirt to bring in more nutrients for future plants. We've been here for 3 years, and she chose today to send someone over to chop it down.
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 12
    angels_exist_666 I audibly gasped... GIF peacock
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 13
    Meatball2026 OP upset about the treatment of a tree they don't own, maintain, or understand. Just call someone to deal with it for you OK?
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 14
    Mexican_Texican OP ? I've been maintaining this tree for three years just fine, it wasn't until I mentioned to the landlord (who we're related to) that I was planning on cutting it back a bit that she randomly decided to chop it down under the guise as a trim.
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 15
    Even more upsetting is that when we first started renting, it was with the intention to help her with her mortgage so that we could take over and eventually buy the property from her. But three years in and she's still treating us as purely tenants with no input on how the property gets taken care of, even though time and again we've offered to cover the costs and handiwork as a means to show we're serious about keeping the house.
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 16
    Now that she's raising the rent by 39% we're looking into moving yet again, which hurts because we thought this would be the home to finally settle in for a family.
    via u/Mexican_Texican
  • 17
    MainSyllabub4936 I know most people won't like this opinion but if it's not your tree or your property I don't see the issue
    via u/Mexican_Texican

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landlord housing trees pecan house landlords tree resident
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