Memphis Turnkey Tenant Turnover Costs

[Daniel Z Fang]

Hello bp community,

After closing on a SFH turnkey property with a well-known provider in Memphis, my tenants stayed for a full 2 years. I collected about $300 / month in cashflow with relatively few repairs/maintenance issues. At the end of the 2 years, they are now moving out with plans to purchase a property of their own. During turnover, the turnkey provider quoted me a repair cost of $3100, including a 15% markup. There were pictures included and everything looked to be cosmetic. To offset the $3100, we were able to collect about $700 from the security deposit. That leaves me with a bill of $2400 which is 33% of my cash flow for the past 2 years. Obviously this doesn't include principal paydown or appreciation. Is this a fairly common scenario? Turnover cost breakdown below. Some of the prices seem ridiculous (e.g. $100 to program two garage doors? That's a $20s from Amazon).

I started with turnkey to get into REI, but now with a little more experience under my belt, I'm considering selling my turnkeys at a loss and moving on to something with more meat on the bones.

Exterior - $225
- pressure wash
- remove damaged/torn window screens
- remove all stickers from all windows
- repair hole in soffit to the right of chimney
Main Interior - $825
- repair/replace damaged sheetrock
- wipe down and clean all walls throughout house
- wipe down and clean all doors, trim and baseboards and throughout house
- touch up paint on walls
- touch up paint on trim and doors
- replace missing/broken blinds
- replace missing/broken doorknobs
- replace missing/broken light switch and outlet covers
- replace missing/broken light bulbs
- make sure all doors open/shut properly
- make sure all windows open/close properly
- replace air filter
- replace batteries in the smoke detectors
- remove all trash from attic
- clean and paint all bars and shelves in closets
- clean all AC vents and return vents
- make sure all drawers and cabinets open and close properly
- make sure to clean out all drawers and cabinets
Living Room - $10
- clean and paint fireplace with black high heat paint
Kitchen - $55
- wipe down and clean all cabinets, inside and out
- touch up paint on cabinets
- paint under sink
- tighten loose cabinet hardware
- caulk sink, floor, counter
- replace broken trim on ends of countertops
Laundry Room - $10
- clean and paint inside washer box
- clean out dryer vent
Half Bathroom - $25
- wipe down and clean all cabinets, inside and out
- touch up paint on cabinets
- paint under sink
- tighten loose cabinet hardware
- caulk toilet, sink, tub, floor
- tighten door handle
Master Bathroom - $75
- paint cabinets inside and out
- tighten loose cabinet hardware
- caulk toilet, sink, tub, floor
- fill in missing grout in shower
Hall Bathroom - $35
- wipe down and clean all cabinets, inside and out
- touch up paint on cabinets
- paint under sink
- tighten loose cabinet hardware
- caulk toilet, sink, tub, floor
Stairs - $20
- paint handrail
- paint banaster
Garage - $25
- pressure wash garage floor
Locks - $300
Yard - $175
- cut, edge, weedeat
- trim bushes
- trim up trees
- clean up fencelines
- haul off all trash
- Remove grass from cracks in concrete
- remove all loose limbs and debris
- clean out flower beds
Flooring - $275
- clean all carpets
Carpet Cleaning Estimate: $275
Garage - $100
Program two new garage door remotes
Pest Control - $85
- pest control needed: General pest spray
Trash - $350
- remove trash at the curb
Cleaning - $120

[Will Fraser]

Hi @Daniel Z Fang, my initial judgement was that "something must be bloated in these numbers" but having run through the list of charges the only thing that seems askew is the $300 lock charge. However, that may be because of the procedures they use in lock changes and rekeying.

That said, I think this provider is giving good rates for this work and I'm actually surprised to see so detailed of a breakdown.  They basically sent you a SOW as an estimate, which is above and beyond what most would do.  Thanks to that, though, I was able to compare that with local rates and I'd say you're on par with the lowest reasonable rates you could expect a business to charge and still be in business.