Rookie landlord looking for advice from wise veteran!

Rookie landlord looking for advice from wise veteran!

Investor · Gulf Breeze, FL · Member since 2012 · 41 posts · 3 votes

So... a little personal background. I'm rather new to the REI game and hire a property manager. I have 2 rentals and just recently ended a lease with a family on a pretty large family home. (2000 sq ft, 4bed/2bath).

The renters were are really nice family and did a great job at cleaning and leaving the home in good condition minus a few major issues below...

1. They smoked which was prohibited.(smell is noticeable and burn marks in the carpet)
2. They did a very rough job patching small holes from pictures etc and touched up the paint incorrectly. (lease states no painting without permission)

*Also these aren't just a few scattered patches. Some walls have 10-15 baseball sized touch ups. So its almost requiring a full repaint.

I can tell they had good intentions with the patching of the holes and touch ups but they used a different enough color that it is noticeable. The worst part about the touch ups is that they used flat instead of satin so the patches are VERY noticeable at any angle. Especially with all of the natural light that comes in.

The walls were also just freshly painted prior to me leasing it to them.

My property manager is hesitant to take the entire $1200 deposit. I can personally repaint most of the walls and touch up the rest but that only takes care of all the patches. What about the smoke smell? I've heard repainting the whole house may be necessary as well as carpet cleaning.

I'm interested to hear how you vets would handle the same situation so I can get a different perspective.

Appreciate it!

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Involved In Real Estate · San Jose, CA · Member since 2013 · 2 posts · 1 vote
13y

1. You need to fire the property manager.
2. You need to hire a second property manager.
Always check on them without letting them know you are checking on them.
Follow this step use primer paint flat with color and always use the same color for all your properties.
I use oyster, Swiss coffee, antique white, and last but not least white.
This helps you keep all in order and you will not need to buy special paints. Keep
2 or 3 Paints in order and you will never run our of paint.

See this reply in the discussion

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  • Specialist · Kirkland, WA · Member since 2013 · 1k+ posts · 817 votes
    13y

    Get a specialist in there to quote you how much it is going to cost. They were in violation of the lease by smoking inside and are probably going to forfeit the entirety of their deposit. If carpet pads are going to be replaced in a 2000sqft home well, you'd have to be under .60/sqft (All-Inclusive) to not run over the $1200 deposit. Not to mention the sanding and repainting of the walls ~$600. You might get away with a great cleaner so you dont have to replace the carpets.

  • Investor · Appleton, WI · Member since 2012 · 1k+ posts · 464 votes
    13y

    Smoking in the house pretty much takes the security deposit. I smoke myself but not in the house so if the house seemed not bad smoke wise I would bring someone in who doesn't smoke to see if they could tell. You are most likely looking at a full lainting of the house to remove the smoke stains, residue and smell. As for the carpets if there are burns in the carpet I would most likely replace at least the affected room and then deep clean the good conditioned carpets to remove the smoke smell and residue. The holes and poor patch job are not acceptable either. If I were in your shoes I would obviously take pictures of everything but compare the pictures of the walls bsfore and after with the patch job. This will show the difference to the tenants. For the carpets I would probably discount full replacement costs a little bit from wear and tear but burns and smoke residue are not acceptable.

    In the end make sure to be clear to future tenants that smoking in the house is not allowed mainly because of the damage it causes. You are saving them a lot of money by having this rule.

  • Involved In Real Estate · San Jose, CA · Member since 2013 · 2 posts · 1 vote
    13y

    1. You need to fire the property manager.
    2. You need to hire a second property manager.
    Always check on them without letting them know you are checking on them.
    Follow this step use primer paint flat with color and always use the same color for all your properties.
    I use oyster, Swiss coffee, antique white, and last but not least white.
    This helps you keep all in order and you will not need to buy special paints. Keep
    2 or 3 Paints in order and you will never run our of paint.

  • Contractor · Round Rock, TX · Member since 2013 · 767 posts · 389 votes
    13y

    They smoked and weren't supposed too. That pretty much takes deposit. This is a reason to make quarterly or bi-annual property inspections to make sure stuff like this doesn't get out of hand.

  • Investor · Gulf Breeze, FL · Member since 2012 · 41 posts · 3 votes
    13y

    Good news is that only the 4 bedrooms are carpet and I had every intention of replacing the 3 smaller bedrooms with tile after the lease expired. The master had brand new carpet prior to this tenant. I'm hoping I can clean it because if I need to professionally repaint the house it will eat up the deposit on its own.

    My concern is justifying the costs to the renter. Has anyone been in a similar situation? Did the renter try to contest withholding the deposit?

    Thanks for the feedback.

  • Real Estate Investor · Hampton, VA · Member since 2012 · 562 posts · 109 votes
    13y

    Seems like they are in default of the lease agreement which would forfeit the security deposit. Take pictures of everything (burn marks in carpet and the patch paint job) . In the event that they take you to court for the security deposit.I don't agree with the PM, you may need to look for a new one who would enforce your lease and it's terms and have your best interest.

  • Investor · Cypress, TX · Member since 2013 · 403 posts · 59 votes
    13y

    Don't give them their deposit and send them an invoice for the rest. You have to check on your property every once in a while just to make sure it is all ok.

    I would disagree with your statement about them being good renters and doing a great job at cleaning and leaving the home in good condition. If they were so great you would not be asking these questions on BP.

  • Roy N.Pro Member
    Rental Property Investor · Fredericton, New Brunswick · Member since 2013 · 7k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    13y
    Originally posted by Rich C:

    My concern is justifying the costs to the renter. Has anyone been in a similar situation? Did the renter try to contest withholding the deposit.

    I just had tenants move out at the end of April who basically ruined the finish on the hardwood floors in the foyer and living room in a unit (leaving snow covered boots directly on the floor). They also smoked in the unit, which was no permitted in the lease, {I caught them one day when I was in the unit above them painting ... balloon framed building.}

    I got quotes to clean, paint, and refinish the floors ... which tallied $400 more than their security deposit. I had no issues showing them the cost of repairing the damage they caused and explaining they were getting a deal.

  • Investor · Gulf Breeze, FL · Member since 2012 · 41 posts · 3 votes
    13y

    Just got back from lunch with a flood of new posts from you guys. I appreciate it. I will definitely look into a new property manager. It's a bit tough starting out and not having experience with another PM to compare to.

    Also, Alfonso Villafuerte, Do you find that flat paint is a bit harder to clean vs something with a little more protection? Does it scuff much more? Less durable? I may have to look into that.

  • Investor · Cypress, TX · Member since 2013 · 403 posts · 59 votes
    13y

    Do you not have the time to manage two properties on your own? You could save a lot of money that way and it's really easy to do.

  • Investor · Gulf Breeze, FL · Member since 2012 · 41 posts · 3 votes
    13y

    @Ben Hughes, I chose to work with a PM for multiple reasons really. Mostly because of my hours at my primary job but also because I intend to grow beyond 10+ properties and was looking at building the long term connections.

    A large portion of my day is in corporate level customer service so a PM handling escalations for me is kind of nice to have around. lol

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