Tenant Turnover: Positive or Negative Stories

[Curt Davis]

So I purchased a nice rental property about 3yrs ago and at the time I purchased it there was already a tenant in the home going on 4yrs.  I never went to the home nor went inside, I purchased it strictly from the pictures ( call me crazy to buy in my own market and not even drive by ).   So I received word about 60 days ago that the tenant will be moving out because she is getting married and they are now able to buy a home.  Now you can imagine how I think the home is going to be left after someone has lived there for 7yrs.  To my shock the home was left in incredible condition.  No garbage or trash, I could see the vacuum lines on the carpet and they cut the yard before moving!!   All I have to do is replace a few burnt out bulbs, take care of one stain in the carpet and paint one bathroom, this will cost me about $500 total!!!!  This is a large home around 3,000 SqFt so it could have been far worse!!  I tell this story bc tenant turnover and repairs are the #1 killer for an investors long term success.  If you have a new tenant every year you will have 2 months of no income and tenant placement fees along with normal re freshening of the home.   This will basically eat up the whole year of cash flow, well almost. 

[Anthony Gayden]

@Curt Davis

I'm sure that you know that there are more bad stories than good ones.

I bought my 4 plex in Tucson and the former owner let me know that one of the tenants was several months behind on rent and owed him over $2000. I guess he figured that since he was selling, he didn't care and that I would handle it. The very first month, she did not pay me, my PM sent her a 5 day letter, and low and behold, she paid the rent. 

Fast forward 1.5 years and she still lives in my 4 plex. She pays me every single month. She is the only inherited tenant left in my 4 plex. I guess she figured out pretty quickly that I wasn't a pushover like the prior owner, and that I was willing to evict her. On top of that, she has had the lowest amount of maintenance in her unit in my entire property.