First turnover!

[Tess Tari]

Hi Everyone!  It's been a while since I posted last.  

We've been struggling with our inherited tenants, and we're finally at the end of the lease!  I will say that we have learned a LOT through this last eleven months.  I've done pretty much everything wrong, and am looking forward to the future, of doing things correctly!!!

Our lease ends on April 30.  I've sent them the Non-Renewal Letter (though I know they haven't received it yet).  I know their reaction is not going to be good.  They are an extra large family, and when I had to threaten eviction to get March rent, he made a point of telling me that he didn't want to leave.... 

Here's my problem, then my question:  I have been obsessing about what kind of state the place is going to be in when they leave.  I already know that the yard has to be 100% redone; I can only imagine what the inside is going to look like when they're finally gone....  (and no, we haven't done inspections - another lesson learned.  We went inside once for about 3 minutes, before we closed on the house)

My question is : how much to do?  The Denver Metro still has very high rents, and we've been watching to see what's out there, and what's being asked.  I would say that we're solid in the 1800-2000 / mo rents.  I, personally, would like to do some updates.  Everything except the kitchen appliances is either original to the 1970 house, or has been updated with the most inexpensive products possible.  One example is that I know that the tile that the previous owner used in the bathrooms that were completely brand new three years ago, are the cheapest possible tiles (yes, I tile-shopped).  That being said, I don't plan to replace the tile.  What I AM thinking about is redoing the kitchen.  It's builder grade 1970.

My husband says that if it's not ruined, we should salvage the kitchen until it is ruined, and then we can redo it.  I would feel more comfortable asking 2k for rent, if the cabinets were new - or at least redone, for example.

I welcome thoughts about anything and everything.  

[Danielle D.]

Hi Tess,

I'm going to offer another perspective but keep in mind that this is all dependent on where your rental is located in Denver. Last year I scraped and built a new house in the NW Denver/Regis area. It's a 1750 sq foot, 3 bed, 3 full bath. My intention was to flip it but early on in the process, I realized I may be able to rent it for $2500, which would give me a much higher 5-year ROI. So, I put in an Ikea kitchen, white appliances and quartz countertops. All in, I spent $13,600 on the kitchen. I also put in Coretec plus vinyl floors specifically so I could take dogs. Any high end unit that takes dogs is already in high demand. When I listed it, I had a bidding war. I listed it at $2,700 and ended up renting it at $3,000 to a professional couple with three tiny dogs. It's been a cash cow and worked out very well for me. I've attached a picture. Hope this helps...

Danielle