What to do about laundry/washers/dryers in Tacoma

Question

Another question for fellow Tacoma investors!

What do you guys do about laundry? It's an issue I'm sure in every property, weather to have them or not. The property I'm buying (tri-plex) only has laundry in the 5 bed unit. Other tenants use a laundromat, which I think would be super annoying for them.

I am considering renting a coin operated set of washers/dryers from a local company.  Does anyone do that here in Tacoma? If so, has it worked out for you? Or is it just better to bite the bullet and put washers/dryers in each unit? Or just buy them myself and charge tenants $40 bucks a month or something to use them?

How much does it impact renters to have in-unit washers vs. on-site coin operation? What are your experiences? Any insight is welcomed!

Background of this question:

I am in process of buying a tri-plex in South Tacoma. Three units. Two one-beds and one 5-bed. There is a "mudroom" kinda thing in the 5 bed that has it's own entrance (that is right next to the entrance of the 5 bed). It could easily be closed off from the 5 bed, and then turned into a laundry facility for the whole building. BUT that means that the 5 bed loses their private laundry. It also means I have to buy/deal with laundry machines. Is it a bad idea to offer a 5 bed WITHOUT private laundry? Am I shooting myself in the foot?

Randy Steele · Answer

I have seen coon op units at sears scratch and dent for sale at times. I own a duplex with similar doors to yours in parkland. One unit has an inside door that opens into the mudroom. This tenant can access the laundry from that door without going outside. The other 2 tenants walk around the building to the exterior entrance to the mud room to access the machines. It has worked ok since i bought the place 3 years ago. my machines are really old, i figure if they stop working the tenants can always go to a laundrymat, not a huge crisis, so i would recommend you purchase new or used coin op units and keep the profit.

You also need to be upfront with who pays the power for the dryer, i give that tenant $10 per month break on rent since the dryer is tied to his power meter. Best of luck.

Curtis Bidwell · Answer

@Elisa Zhang For $500 I'm assuming you bought new.  For a nice SFR I might buy new, but generally I'm getting good looking used units.  Most used dealers that have a store front will give you at least 30 days warranty, and that should be enough to make sure it's in good working order.  I found my last dealer from Craigslist.  He's a retired vet that works out of his garage in Lacey.  I also use Welch's in Olympia.  There used to be a good shop in Tacoma but they recently closed (or moved and I haven't found them: ReNew Appliances).

I would go in to a used shop and ask if they have landlord pricing.  Tell them your looking for a laundry set in the $300-350 range.  If you don't like what they show you, go to another.

Elisa Zhang · Answer

@Curtis Bidwell Thank you for the tips! Any reference you can give in terms of "local reputable used appliance dealers"? We have been able to get 1 single machine for around $500, which sounds like nowhere near your cost. This is through a private connection from Portland. Other appliance places will charge more than that per machine. If I can get $300 for a whole set, this will significantly reduce our cost for our multi.

Curtis Bidwell · Answer

@Erin Caldwell where I don't have coin laundry machines available I make it an add-on.  I generally pay about $300 for a washer/dryer set and rent them for $45/mo.  I get my $ back in 7 months and it covers the cost of extra water/sewer.  I'm going on 4 years with one set ($45x48 mo =$2160 on a $300 investment!). Typically they are low maintenance. If they go bad I get another one rather than pay for repair fees.  While i will sometimes buy them off Craigslist I have a couple reputable used appliance dealers that will give me a 30 day warranty and will deliver for cheap.

I personally don't like leasing machines as the split can eat up any potential profit and sometimes doesn't even cover the added water/sewer bill. I have 3 sets that avg about $200/mo per set in 2 locations. When I leased I netted $50/mo per set. If you go that route be sure to negotiate your rate.

Erin Caldwell · Answer

@Jonathan Clark -- Thank you for the reply. if you don't mind,  do you have a recommendation for a company who does laundry rentals in the Tacoma area?

Jonathan Clark · Answer

HI Erin,

There are services in the area that rent and maintain coin-op laundry.  I am closing in a couple weeks on a 4-plex in Lakewood that has a small shared utility room with coin-op laundry which is provided by such a service.   There is no charge.  They own/maintain the machines and share the profit. win-win!

I think you'd want to start with cost analysis, but I'd think if you could make laundry available to all your tenants it would bring in a little extra income and make it easier to market your units.

J