All Forum Posts by: Aaron M.

Update:   This time they found more feminine products, wipes, and lots of hair.    

Any suggestions on next steps would be appreciated.   

Thank you @Brandon Sturgill.    Since its a "shared"  sewer line for both duplexes what are your thoughs on charging the unit with the 3 women?  I really think they are the cause for two reasons.  First the issues started after they moved in and didn't occur previously.  2nd,   the side with the 1 woman is the side that it backs up in.  She first hand saw what flushing these products do and i highly doubt she would continue to do it after being notified as its her unit that suffers.

The only other thing to mention is that we did have a water line repaired at the property prior to the issue starting.  The contractor who did the replacement saw a sag in the line and supported prior to back filling.  Other than that he said it looked in tacked.  I mentioned this to the drain company and they didnt see any issue when scoping.

Hello All,

I have a sewer situation i am looking to see how people suggest to handle

Facts

1.)  Duplex side by side with one sewer hook up for property

2.)  Side A - 3 Women living there for about 1 year 3 months

3.)  Side B - 1 man 1 woman living there for 5 + years

4.)  Side B is where the sewer line runs and exits the property.  If it backs up Side B gets in in the basement

5.)  Over last year we have had the sewer backup 4 times

-1st Time   Contacted local  company to snack drain.  They found feminine products which caused the blockage.  We paid bill

-2nd Time a 2-3 weeks later contacted different company and they felt the 1st didn't fully clean.  They found more feminine products.  We paid bill

At this point felt the issue was resolved and roots and such were intiating the blockage and the 2nd cleaning would solve the issue

-3rd Time  several months later.  Called same company to clean AND scope the drain.  They found feminine produtcts.   The scope did show any evidence of issues with the drain line that would be the cause of the backup.    Again we paid the bill.

At this point we notified both sides that no feminine products of any kind should be flushed.  If it happened again they would be responsible for cost.

-4th time again several months later (Today)   tenant on Side B called and said drain is blocked and what were we going to do about it and their clothes that were ruined.  I went to the unit within 1 hour of the call and there were a few SMALL puddles and the line was defiantly blocked.    Each time this happened we were extremely responsive in resolving, cleaning, and notifying parties.

My thoughts are we did everything in our power to resolve and investigate if there was a drain defect that we as the property owner needed to fix.    We notified both parties not to flush feminine products.  I am not sure how to respond to the tenants question on the ruined clothes.    Even though we said they would be responsible for future backups caused by flushing these products how do we prove which side of the duplex it was?    All i can day is that prior to the 3 women moving in to Side A,  there was never a problem like this in the property.

HELP!!!

@Gwen Fyfe Sorry Gwen. My frustration was with others that are suggesting you say it was a “misunderstanding” or not admit that you said ther was central air. All I’m saying is own the mistake and offer to allow them out of the lease and propose a few other optIons as some have suggested (reduced rent, you provide wIndow units) . In business stepping up to the plate and doing the right thing goes along way .

@Gwen Fyfe Sorry to say but you are in the wrong here. By your own admission you told them it had central air. This was NOT a misunderstanding. Suggestions by others to say it was a misunderstanding is irresponsible. Own your mistake and address the issue head on. If that means letting them out of the lease then that’s what you should do. I’m not saying you must put central air in but you need to make it right.

@Asher Carr A lot will be dependent on your loan. Appraisal fee, loan origination, etc. There are also legal, deed prep and filing fees. If you contact an abstract company they should be able to give you an estimated closing clost just check with your bank to add in their requirements Regarding transfer tax and property tax you can structure this any way that you and the seller agree. I have done deals where there was no pro-rated taxes. So if the seller already paid county and school taxes you could either reimburse them for the remaining months Or you could just say what was paid is paid and there will be no reimbursement. It’s all part of the deal structure. You also do the same for transfer tax as long as it gets paid by someone. Typically in PA I have seen transfer tax split between buyer and seller on the settlement statement.

@Asher Carr Usually my transactions split the transfer tax. Also there is usually some pro-rated portion of property taxes that go to the seller or buyer depending on when the taxes were or will be paid.

One thing here is the seller can not loan at 0 percent. They must at least use the AFR ( applicable federal rate).

One thing that has not been mentioned is there is a cost to placing a new tenant. Regardless if he found a new tenant quickly and how well you cleaned the unit, there is still cost. Bottom line it is spelled out in the lease.

@Pascual Torres 

"Double Check your numbers. I ran the numbers and i am getting about a 7% Cap and 9% CoC with 5390 Annual cash flow which is $400 bellow yours."  

Revised 

Your numbers are correct however it looks like you are assuming your financing the closing costs too.   

Again factor in Vacancy, Maintenance, CapEx and Property Management. @Jay Helms said it well:   after you factor these into the equation make sure it meets your investment criteria and will help you achieve your REI goals.