All Forum Posts by: Alexander Rodriguez

Quote from @Kevin S.:

@Alexander Rodriguez

This is a pic of my bathroom.  The window is only 18" from floor.  No mold.  Tiles all around the window.  This is cheaper than replacing to smaller window or placing window higher.  

Thanks for the advise. I’m actually considering this. The only thing is that I probably won’t be able to find matching tiles. They are older. Do you know if I do this, can I put a trim on top to hide the non-matching tiles? It’d be decorative only. Also, upon looking further (I went back) I noticed that mold is in other places of the bathroom, like the closet, which is hard to clean. The photo below is a closet.

Quote from @Kevin S.:

Quote from @Alexander Rodriguez:

Quote from @Kevin S.:

Quote from @Alexander Rodriguez:

Quote from @Konstantin Ginzburg:

@Alexander Rodriguez

Do you have anyway to check to make sure the bathroom is getting property ventilation. Usually mold is caused by moisture getting trapped and not being ventilated out of a space. 

I thought this was the issue last year. I can’t think of a way to check though. Last year I replaced the exhaust fan for one that is more than appropriate for that size bathroom and made sure it’s ducted to the outside. Other than that, the window works and the door works as well too.

 The tiles has to wrap around all the way to the window where it is just tiles-caulk-window.  No wood.  No PVC.  Does exhaust turn on simultaneously with the light?  There are exhaust fan that turn on automatically when it reaches certain humidity.  

 The exhaust fan doesn’t turn on with the light simultaneously, it has its own switch. I would assume that it’s her responsibility that it turns in when it’s humid. 

 And you take her word for it?  I believe you can wire the light and fan to one switch.  That may solve the problem.

Hmm you might be right. But what if she showers during the day and they don’t want to turn on the light?

Quote from @Kevin S.:

Quote from @Alexander Rodriguez:

Quote from @Konstantin Ginzburg:

@Alexander Rodriguez

Do you have anyway to check to make sure the bathroom is getting property ventilation. Usually mold is caused by moisture getting trapped and not being ventilated out of a space. 

I thought this was the issue last year. I can’t think of a way to check though. Last year I replaced the exhaust fan for one that is more than appropriate for that size bathroom and made sure it’s ducted to the outside. Other than that, the window works and the door works as well too.

 The tiles has to wrap around all the way to the window where it is just tiles-caulk-window.  No wood.  No PVC.  Does exhaust turn on simultaneously with the light?  There are exhaust fan that turn on automatically when it reaches certain humidity.  

 The exhaust fan doesn’t turn on with the light simultaneously, it has its own switch. I would assume that it’s her responsibility that it turns in when it’s humid. 

Quote from @Konstantin Ginzburg:

@Alexander Rodriguez

Do you have anyway to check to make sure the bathroom is getting property ventilation. Usually mold is caused by moisture getting trapped and not being ventilated out of a space. 

I thought this was the issue last year. I can’t think of a way to check though. Last year I replaced the exhaust fan for one that is more than appropriate for that size bathroom and made sure it’s ducted to the outside. Other than that, the window works and the door works as well too.

Quote from @Theresa Harris:

Does she use the fan (ie turn it on before she start running the water in the tub/shower AND keep it running for 15 min after she's finished)?  She should have told you before it got to that point.

 She said she turns the fan on and leaves the door open after. Which are the things I told her to do last year. Obviously I can’t be sure of that.

Quote from @Kevin S.:

@Alexander Rodriguez

Tiles

 This is what I thought too, but I have tiles and it doesn’t happen to me. Other tenants have tiles and no one has ever complained.

Quote from @Travis Bohling:

Wood + moisture = rot

A window in a shower is a hard problem to solve. At a minimum, I would suggest PVC trim.

 The new trim is pvc.

I bought a triplex over a year ago. One of the tenants, who seems to be clean, the times I have entered their property, had a window trim in her bathroom that was full of mold and kept spreading when she cleaned it. The window trim could not be fully cleaned, so I replaced the window trim and made sure the bathroom was very clean. I fixed the exhaust fan which had no connection to the outside, and her window works fine. Now one year later at an annual inspection the mold is almost the way it was in the beginning! I thought I had done everything I could to fix the issue. To start off, I think the tenant should have let me know sooner before it got this bad, am I wrong? And is this an issue I should fix? Is there anything that is my responsibility that can cause this? Or is this a tenant issue? Please help!

Quote from @Samuel Eddinger:

@Alexander Rodriguez - you get what you tolerate.  I run a PM company in CT and we start evictions between 11th through the 14th of the month (11th is the first day in CT you can start eviction).  With them always paying late, they are going to not pay when they leave.  You have to be firm but fair (tell them you are going to start evictions if it does not happen and then start the eviction like you said).  When, not if, they get to be 2 months behind, eviction will be the only option.  Good luck!

Hello! It’s nice to hear that you do this in CT. So you start eviction on the 11th and 14th if rent is not received for that month? Or if unpaid rent accumulates? Also, I mentioned that I was considering increasing the late fee, but the state new law caps it at $50. Do you know if there is a way around it? I know it’s very new

Quote from @Bryan F.:

Is this the type of tenant you’d expect in the area your property is located? If no, give them notice, recoup what you can from their deposit, fix the unit, and start fresh with a new tenant. If it this is a fairly typical tenant for the area, maybe switch to weekly or bi-weekly payments on a new MTM lease and charge a pet fee.

Frankly, this is my first property and I only get new tenants for one of the units. They are wonderful, always pay before the due date and keep the house very clean. But I don’t know if I will have the same luck if I evict them. I think I have a good chance at getting at least better tenants than they are. How much notice would you say is reasonable, considering they are kind people (despite being dirty and missing payment dates) and will have a hard time finding a place to bring their large dog.