All Forum Posts by: Beth L.

@Andrew Michael I have been wanting to go to the Hub City meeting. I was invited to go by someone I met at the Landlords and Property Owners Association of Washington County meeting. Have you been to the Hub City meetings? What do you think?

@Andrew Michael 

@Devonte Dinkins 

I just PM'd the info to Devonte' that Andrew sent to me. Hope that's OK, Andrew. We must have been replying at the same time. :-)

@Joel F. I use www.tenantbackgroundsearch.com, and I choose the highest option so that I get the most info available. The application fee I collect doesn't cover all of it so I end up paying a little more out of pocket. It does need verification from the tenant so that they give permission. I don't know of any that don't require verification from the tenant. It hasn't been a problem for me though. Usually within a few hours, they have responded to the email. With this service, they email a permission request to the tenant, but then only I get access to the report. I am willing to give them a copy if they request it.

I don't see a problem with the "email the tenant" approach. They had to have signed in their application stating that they give permission for background checks, before you can do one anyway. And they most likely at this point really want the unit if they have gone through the process this far.

I like Tenant Background Search because the information is clear and easy to read, very extensive (I even get a credit score), provides past addresses and criminal info. The option I choose is $28.50, which I believe has come down in price since I used it last. They also have a basic option at $19.95, and one at $22.95.

@Marylynn B. No I don't know if they also cover WV or VA. But you can always ask them and if not, I'm sure that they can refer someone.

My pleasure. Have fun with your new ventures. I'm sure that we'll hear about them here on BP. :-) See you around.

@Carrie Pledger 

I just went through this with one of my tenants. The boyfriend who at lease signing only stayed "occasionally" was there anytime I drove by or stopped to inspect. Even the neighbor thought the boyfriend had moved in. I addressed it with the tenant and she assured me that he has his own place and does not live there. Only her and her daughter live there and I had adjusted the asking rent down knowing that they would be easier on the wear and tear and utilities than more people.

I let it go until lease renewal and told her that I would like to add the boyfriend since he is there all the time. Since I do background checks on all my tenants, I like to know that I have good people living there. I feel that it also makes the neighbors feel safe knowing that as well. She did not want him listed on the lease. I even gave her the option of listing him as a temporary guest on the lease and have him provide proof that he lives somewhere else, and do a background check. She didn't go for that either. She decided to move out. That's fine. Obviously, they were trying to hide something.

I also would be concerned about the dog. If she didn't get permission to even have the dog on the property, even for a short time, then she is breaking the lease.

@Carrie Pledger Red flag!!! Not sure about Virginia, but in Maryland you only need to give 24-hour notice to enter. They don't need to give permission and they don't need to be home. I would send them notice to enter ahead of time by mail, email and post it on the door, and then go open up for and accompany the handyman. Don't go alone...never know what you'll find.

@Marylynn B. 

I have used both William Wantz and Russ Robinson here in Hagerstown. They are both knowledgeable in real estate law and LLC formations.

I would think that it would be best to hold the real estate investments in a separate LLC (you can always chose a variation of your current LLC name). I actually hold each property in a separate LLC for liability protection. But the lawyers can answer these questions best.

@Lisa Doud I currently don't include a list of damage repairs and costs for my tenants but that sounds like a good idea. How did you go about compiling this list and estimating the charges? It sounds like a nightmare to start a list like this from scratch. If you know of a good one available free online or are willing to share yours, please let me know. :-) Thanks!

I take an application for each family member over the age of 18 and each one is then listed on the lease and is responsible,  in whole or part. This way if the daughter should move out, the other two are responsible for the entirety. 

@Joe Mulcahy 

Sherry, we have duplexes, and at first we said NO PETS. But we found some good tenants that had 2 well behaved cats, and since these units only had wood floors (no carpeting) we were OK with that. We specified in the lease that only 2 cats max are allowed and no dogs. We also collected a $200 pet security deposit. We will never, NEVER allow dogs. We are remodeling another duplex where each side had dogs and the smell in there from dog urine is horrific, plus all of the subfloors under the carpets need to be sealed now with Kilz to block the odor. The yard was always FULL of poop and smelled really bad just to walk up to the property. (These were inherited tenants and fortunately are no longer there.) Plus I've heard too many horror stories.

But this is just my opinion. I am sure that there are many renters with dogs who take good care of the property, but I am not willing to take the risk to find out.

Also, just a side note...if the person has dog for a certified medical problem, you cannot turn them away for the reason of having a dog. These animals are not considered pets and this is a protected status.