All Forum Posts by: Richard Redding

Home warranties .....it's like insurance, but not subject to the same laws and regulations. I often wonder how much money they must spend lobbying to avoid falling under the insurance umbrella.

So the companies vary wildly...I actually have one I like a lot right now on all my rentals...Not sure I can say their name in this forum, but it rhymes with 'voice' ( i don't work for them or get paid by them in anyway). 

But your question pertains to selling. No one's going to make you an offer because you have one. It won't sell your property faster or at a higher price. If they want one, the buyer will simply ask for it .

Instead, save your money and put a $1000 buyer agent bonus for a "full price offer and 30 day close". I think you'll find this very effective. 

Your lease should define abandonment. Here's what I do:

First, as soon as it's clear I'm not getting rent, I'll post '3 day notice to vacate' letter to their front door (1st step of eviction process),and I'll also follow up with an email. I make it clear, I want them to stay and this is just the 1st step and as soon as I get the rent it all goes away.

I'll continue to try to stay in contact over the phone. Stay polite, but be persistent. Offer to assist in moving out and/or finding a new place. 

They usually stop returning my calls or texts after a few days, at which point I leave them a voicemail and send an email stating I will be conducting an inspection in a couple days. Generally, leases allow you to do an inspection with 24 hours notice. I try to give a little more notice so they have time to move their things. They think they're being sneaky by moving out before I come by, but it's the ideal outcome for me.

If upon my inspection the furniture if gone, I'll post a 'notice of abandonment' to the front door, and send the same doc to them via email. The standard lease here outlines the procedure, but from here I only need to wait another 2 days, and then I can change the locks. You want to document everything you can. Take pics of empty unit, pics of document taped to front door etc.

I guess a shorter version of this answer is get to know your lease very well. 

Richard C, holidays here in Texas also buy you an extra day. Not sure what the other 'crap' you're referring to. 

My point is that this tenant has been late before and is making excuses (bank issue, holiday, etc) for why they are late. If they wanted to be on time they would be and if you don't train this habit out of them it will become the norm.

Some other people have commented about it's just a few days, so don't upset the tenant. I agree with that if this is a long time tenant with a good payment record. If it's someone you've only had a few months, they have not earned that courtesy. 

Focus on screening tenants (credit, criminal, rental history) and mitigating probability of an eviction. Also, if you have any concerns about a prospective tenant after reviewing their application, tell them they're approved with an double or 2.5x deposit. That way, if you do kick em out you're less likely to take a loss.

In 13 years of renting, I've never had to evict anyone. 

Now, I've had some people that didn't pay and I asked to leave. I wasn't a jerk to them but it was pretty clear to them I'd be calling them at least every other day to check in on the status of rent or their move out. I also offered to set them up with an agent who will find them a new place ( at no cost to either of us). In all three cases the tenants simply abandoned the property within a week or two.

My leases (TX standard promulgated form) state the tenant are responsible for rent until I find a replacement tenant (within the lease period, of course). That's where the increased deposits help out. 

Give him a pass on this one but make very clear, verbally and in writing,  that going forward, it's his responsibility, no matter what, to get you the rent on time.

He can start mailing you a check or sending the transfer earlier. It is his problem, do not let him make it yours.

Holiday weekend, banks fault, etc, it's all an excuse. If you told him he got $500 off rent every time he paid on or before the first, he'd be a week early every time. Your tenant has consciously decided it is not important to him if you get paid on time.

Again, be nice and give him a pass this time, but get your tenant trained early or this will continue.

I'm not sure you're at a stage where I would recommend investment.

Forget credit for a moment, but you should focus on paying off debt, starting with the credit cards. You'll feel less anxiety, and feel better about yourself, and ultimately be able to make better decisions. Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University might be a good class for you to take.

Also, don't dispute legitimate credit issues, as suggested by another poster. Ethics are more important than money.

I'd also suggest selling your cars and getting a beater to free up some cash.

But if you absolutely are determined to get into real estate investment, sell your house and buy a duplex in cash. Live in one side and rent out the other. If you can't buy an entire duplex in cash, look for one owned outright and ask if they will owner-finance it to you. You'll surely have enough for a very enticing down-payment.

Good luck!

I have two single family residences next door to each other and another just around the corner.

It has some of the same advantage that I see with my duplexes. The tenants can report on one another to you, which might sound annoying, but it's actually very helpful.

When you go take a look at one, you can take a quick glance at the other and see if you need the trees trimmed, or that the shingles are loose, or that a dog not on the lease is barking from inside, or that there are more cars in front of the house than people on the lease, etc

Another advantage, and it's not easy or always a good idea, but my best handyman lives in one of them. It's really convenient for him (and more cost effective for me) to work on their houses and they like him since he's a neighbor.

In conclusion, it has slight management advantages but the numbers need to work.

My wife/realtor says it's basically a non issue.

All the contract really says is that if this agent shows you a specific house and you end up buying that specific house, he gets the commission. You can fire him or work with other agents simultaneously....but if he brings you the house you end up buying, he gets paid, regardless of who you are currently working with.

My wife doesn't use these, fyi. 

Way more important is: does this agent own investment property themselves? Would you follow the advice of stock broker who didn't own stock?

I did my fist 4 flips while I had a full time job. Though, my wife, who also worked full time, helped a lot too.

You should always expect to make money. We always run our numbers conservatively (round down the ARV, round up repair, holding, sales costs) and estimate we'll make 20k, or we back away. What happened so far was : +32k, +38k, -8k , +39k .

Time per week... I'd guess 6-7 (my wife and I combined) hours per week on site maybe another hour or two on the phone per week.

My tip is meet the neighbors and give them your number and ask them to call if anything is wrong. They can really mess things up for you if they want to... lonely people like to cause problems for others.

Good luck and have fun. You're asking the right questions.

You have to determine what you're goals are.

Mine is to get paid my rent in full at the beginning of the month, have a tenant that doesn't damage my property and keeps my expenses minimal, and avoid vacancies by keeping the tenant happy enough to renew at a higher rate each year.

What will you accomplish by enforcing a late fee on the 3rd when the 1st falls on the weekend?