Newbie From Birmingham, AL and rehabbing my first buy/hold

[Tiffani Baggett]

hi! 

I've been stalking for about 2 weeks now and didn't realize I haven't introduced myself.

I'm on my first deal, which I wish I knew about biggerpockets before I got it but I did it based on what I knew and have learned from purchasing my first home. 

I'm rehabbing the home now, should have estimated repairs, but it was purchased very low, which was good for me.

I used a personal loan from my credit union. 

I graduate this month with my Masters in Engineering and will attempt to get my real estate license later this year. 

I'm hoping to network with others in Birmingham and surrounding areas and gain a mentor. 

Thanks for this platform!

[Denise Evans]

@Tiffani Baggett, welcome to BP! With a buy and hold strategy, make sure you:

1. Are careful in tenant selection. A bad tenant choice made because you are afraid of a vacant property can cost you tens of thousands of dollars. By buying cheaply and rehabbing, you should be able to afford to wait for a good tenant.
2. Have a good lease and you understand each and every clause. Don't just pull a lease off the Internet. If you must, pull several and compare them.  Visit the landlord/tenant forums on BP and read the horror stories that a good lease would have avoided.
3. Have good Rules, Regulations and Fee Schedules.  Rules by themselves mean that if someone violates the rules, you have only two choices. Forgive and forget and hope it gets better, or declare a default and proceed to eviction if you are able. With a fee schedule, there is a price tag attached to every rule. It might be something general such as "Tenant agrees to pay Landlord the sum of $50 per hour plus expenses, including portal to portal mileage for any violation of this Rules for which a specific fee is not associated." For specific things, you might want to say, "An unauthorized animal on the premises shall result in a fee of $20 per day from discovery for the increased monitoring required until the animal is removed, plus a fee of $10 per day for increased wear and tear on the premises due to the presence of the animal."
4. Understand animal related issues and are prepared. Make sure you know the Fair Housing rules about service animals and emotional support animals. They are not pets. You cannot require a pet deposit or charge a pet fee. You CAN have an all-purpose Animal Clause that applies to pets and to disability-related animals. It should have provisions associated with responsible animal ownership. Examples include "no outdoor tethering unless..." and "all animals must be spayed or neutered" and "all animals must be up to date on any required vaccinations. You should also have clauses that protect the property, such as dogs and cats being on flea control medication, and the responsibility to clean up "deposits" from the lawn, and the responsibility to scoop litter boxes daily and clean completely once a week, etc.
5. Inspect often, even if your tenants seem to be "nice people."  I recommend quarterly inspections. In Alabama, you must have a separate agreement, separate from the lease, that allows regularly scheduled pest control, maintenance, and inspections.  If it is in the body of your lease, it is not enforceable. In that case, you will need your tenant's permission before you enter each time. With the separate agreement, you need only the agreement and the schedule.
6. Invest in an inspections app, until you are large enough to need full property management software. I recommend SnapInspect. It does a great job of documenting everything very easily.

Good luck!