All Forum Posts by: Alecia Loveless

@Annie Chien I’d recommend starting with a property that doesn’t need major upgrades. It’s a big issue trying to upgrade units with tenants in place especially if they have pets that will be disturbed or have an increased opportunity to escape while contractors are going in and out of the units.

I just installed gas heating systems in 2 buildings and we’ve probably had to go into each unit 25 times during the course of the install and the inspections that followed. (Gas company, insurance company, building inspector).

And 25 times was just one renovation. Now multiply it times the 6 or so upgrades you’re talking about. It’s also not as cost effective to just upgrade one unit when it’s vacant because then you lose economies of scale and in the instance of materials things may not be available over an extended period of time and you may end up with mismatched windows or something.

Normally we only try to go in units 2X per year unless there is a maintenance issue.

@Fareen E. I do not have a problem with my pets in my units and have found accepting them to be a big selling point.

I’ve only had one prospect attempt the ESA dogs and then found out that they are a breeding pair and just had puppies. Which was a hard no. There were other issues with this prospect as well.

With the prices of my units which are upscale I’m looking to get all the applications I can.

You might want to reconsider the pet thing.

@C Rutherford I, too had a single in her 60’s year old tenant who spent the first year after I inherited her calling and texting, sometimes as many as 50 times per week.

I finally got fed up and told her by text and in person that if she was unhappy she could move. I followed this up with a text that stated she could continue to contact me for actual problems with the unit but that I would no longer be entertaining multiple contacts throughout the week about issues that had nothing to do with her unit.

The situation improved significantly after this.

I do still get texts about things that just really aren’t issues but I can usually deflect them with a short response.

As for the issue with the trash cans I try not to get involved in bickering between my tenants. Unless they are paying for their own trash by volume it doesn’t really matter whose trash goes where.

At times I have even suggested they call the police if they have significant issues with another tenant. This may not be the most ideal answer but for ridiculous things the police departments in my area will inform the tenants not to bother them and it usually ends the situation.

In my area you can’t Submeter. And in most of the towns the water and sewer has to remain in the landlords name. It’s typically just a cost that we factor into our rent amounts. 

@Matthew Wright Check to make sure your town doesn’t have any zoning restrictions on how many units you can have in one building. In my town you have to get a zoning variance if you want more than 5 units in one building.

@Ellen Feiss I have a 4-unit that shares one set of coin op machines. I just took the past 12 months worth of funds from them to the bank yesterday and had $244. You will not make much money from coin op machines.

So far in 5 years I’ve had one repair and with the parts it was about $275.

Personally I’d go to Lowe’s and buy a set of machines that only has dials for controls, no electric, digital panel. These are generally easy and cheap to repair and should last for at least 15 years. A set can usually be bought for $1200.

Assign one set to the tenants and keep the second set for you.

I have my first Section 8 applicant. Their voucher covers the entirety of the rent but I’m curious what type of income I should require for approval as what they report for their monthly income is so much less than I would normally require which is 3X the rent.

Is it just not my worry what their income is since the voucher covers the rent, or is my concern that if they only have about $950/month then they won’t properly be able to maintain their pets and their standard of living valid?

Rent is $1700, reported income is about $950.

I haven’t marketed the unit yet, I fell into this applicant by chance so I’m sure I can get an applicant that will meet my 3X requirement. But obviously if my rent is covered there has to be some other standard I should have.

@Mitchell Kosek I prefer to invest locally. I think you have a HUGE advantage when you are familiar with the market.

The one thing I wish I had known on my first deal was to find the pickiest most thorough inspector you can. It will pay off in the long run. Most problems can be fixed. Don’t be afraid of a scary inspection report.

I’m not my first deal the inspector missed a huge problem with the electrical in the attic where we ended up having to move all the blown in insulation after closing and replace all the electrical to the lights in the whole house. This was about 5 years ago so costs are different now but at the time it cost me about $20,000 I was not expecting to spend.

@Andrew Katz I’d continue to house hack. You can continue to get low money down loans for a new property every 12 months or longer if it takes you more time to save up the next down payment.

I would 200% be doing this if my current partner wasn’t so averse to moving frequently.

It’s one of the best ways to expand your portfolio.

If possible buy 3-4 unit properties as you should be able to apply 75% of the income towards your DTI to qualify for the loan. Most banks will require leases to be in place first as opposed to month to month tenants. But you can always ask for new leases to be signed.

@Tasha Smith I would try to do the same rent for inherently similar units. If one unit is superior you could then charge more.

I just bought a 6 unit property with rents that are grossly under market. ($550 when it should be $1400).

To avoid a situation where everyone moves out at once I sent a notice of rent increase to the unit that had the biggest discrepancy in the amount I needed to reach. I immediately received an email questioning my decision and why I had only raised the rent on the one unit. At this point in my response I outlined what actual market rents were for similar properties.

I would not ASK the tenants what is fair. When I do it I prefer informing them what current market rents are and then just give my new rate.