All Forum Posts by: Richard F.

Aloha,

Are you negotiating blind, or have you already done your background and credit check on the applicant? There is no good reason to reduce the rent just because someone is waving hundred dollar bills at you. Next they will want to change the due date. Then they want to paint a bedroom. It never ends. Better to stop them now. If you feel you are over priced based on responses, change your ad prices, or upgrade the unit to be competitive.

Quote from @Scott Rovner:

 I am not looking to sell right away. I have spoken to a few professionals and they recommend waiting until closer to the end of the lease to put things into motion. I don't anticipate any trouble form the tenants they have been extremely good thus far. With zero issues. I was planning on offering them first and then going from there. 

 Don't wait to inform the Tenant and try to delay putting on the market. Much better if Tenant is given a longer time to relocate, knowing they will not be forced to "settle" for something less desirable due to LL imposing a penalty for breaking the term, or only having the 30 day (or whatever local law provides) period to find something.

Also, don't give it away to the Tenant to "save" a commission. You need to properly evaluate the true market value, including the "after" value if you were to follow my earlier advice of freshening up the place with minimal updates that will give you a great "bang for the buck". The "hassle" of doing this can make you tens of thousands of dollars.

Aloha,

Have multiple sources advised the line must be replaced, vs. installation of a liner system?

Aloha,

If you plan to invest in condo/HOA properties, you first need to understand the rules of a particular project, and most importantly, you need to understand the HOA finances. A great source for Owners is https://www.caionline.org/pages/default.aspx  where you can find great resources to learn how the HOA is supposed to be operated, and learn about Reserve funding. CAI has local chapters across the country where you can meet other Owners and Board Members.

Aloha,

Your post is not very clear. I am assuming the "company renting your property" is reference to a PM company that is managing the property for you. I also am assuming that the PM has found this new Tenant.

If both of my assumptions are true, then it seems obvious the Electric company knows more about the Tenant than your PM. The Tenant likely has not paid Electric or other utilities at prior rentals, and is therefore a bigger risk to the Electric company, which is why they are requiring additional deposit. There is nothing unusual about that, except your PM should have adequately screened the Tenant and discovered what is a big red flag.

Aloha,

Requiring larger deposits from some can be seen as a Fair Housing violation, as you are effectively allowing them to "buy" their way in. Also, many locales limit what you can collect as Security Deposit and initial Rent payment. Check local LL/Tenant law.

Regarding credit scores, this will help you understand their meaning:

Aloha,

Selling an occupied property leaves a lot of money on the table usually. It is much more difficult to show; Tenants sometimes say things to discourage buyers; prospective Buyers can't "see" through the Tenants personal property; and of course, investor Buyers never pay retail!

You would be better of giving the Tenant notice NOW that you will be selling and they will have their current agreement non-renewed. They will have to move, BUT you will allow them to vacate any time between now and then, without penalty, and with full return of their deposit on moving day.

Use the additional time you gain to freshen up the place, with interior paint (nothing fancy, just a clean, blank canvass that Buyers can easily match to their own taste) and minor repairs, possibly also flooring throughout for a cleaner, unified look; and clean it spotless, including windows and screens! Make sure everything is functional also. Now it can be very easily shown and will impress potential Buyers, helping you to get top dollar!

Aloha,

Normally we have been getting email notifications of replies to followed posts, which is perfect. This morning, I ALSO had notifications for each reply in the Notification portion under the "bell" icon. Usually this is just reporting votes, quotes, and changes in rating. Never had these previous; and they will quickly overrun the usefulness of this feature.

Aloha,

Well, I see a number of issues here.

Starting with the "Notes Recommendation".

Not much useful info there, very poorly reported, hopefully the pics were of more use to understand the issues. Looks more like a handyperson wrote this up..."doesn't look good", "recommend a specialist", "need different vendor", "looks like it can last", "looks like outlet burned out" (yet, he only lists the $20 charge to change the outlet cover), "remove mirrors".

Moving on to the charges, I don't have a clue of your local costs, but first of all, an unlicensed handyperson should not be on the roof; regardless, if he plans to charge you $550 to brush on a little roof cement around the penetrations, way over priced. What, exactly does he plan to do, where on the roof, and why (if not evident in photos)? It is more likely you are nearly due for a new roof due to lack of regular preventative maintenance.

If the chimney sweep is actually a professional, that has the proper tools and knowledge, might be OK, but still seems high. One story or more?

I would want to see the yard cleanup costs separate from the pruning/trimming. Costs will be very dependent on how high the work is and type of equipment needed. You can hire day labor and get a rolloff for the cleanup, let the tree guys do trees. And be sure THEY are pros; too many "yard guys" are just hacks that cause long term damage by improper cutting of desirable trees.

Window well cover? How many, what size, not that difficult to install common basement well covers... typically 5 or 6 screws for what I am picturing, but I do not know what you actually need. Price the covers at HD and guesstimate from there.

Page 2

Installing sheet vinyl...cheapest possible choice, guaranteed more work for them in a few short years. You probably do, or will have, a mismatch of flooring from one room to the next. You do not indicate the quality of the unit, but from what I am seeing in the repair list, seems low end, to low average. I stopped using sheet vinyl in low end units over 20 years ago. Armstrong commercial vinyl tile works well once you source someone that cleans and waxes it properly. Luxury Vinyl Plank has come a long ways, and is pretty easy to install. Looks fantastic when you have one continuous flooring throughout, no matter if CVT or LVP. Both will last AND look far better for far longer than sheet vinyl. Be sure they pull the toilet to install any floorcovering, and do NOT caulk the toilet base to the flooring.

Reglazing the tubs, while priced right, tells me this is an old property. Reglazing is fine, looks great, but again is a short term fix. If Tenants are not properly instructed in proper care; if they dump draino in/around the drain; or if the tech does not properly prepare the surface, they will last three years or less, and get ugly much sooner. The bigger issue however, is the age and condition of the drain and waste line, as well as the supply side lines. At this age, they are probably at or near the end of their life as well, and if either has slow seepage, it will be damaging your subfloor and structure until someone notices and reports an "unexpected" leak. Far better to rip it all out, replace with decent quality so you have a finished job that will look great for the next 20+ years.

If the home was rented "with subfloor only" in the master bath, someone severely failed at their job. If the Tenant ruined/ripped out previous sheet vinyl, someone failed again, either with a poor quality installation (by you-know-who) or failing to inspect during occupancy and bounce a poor Tenant out.

It sounds like someone (Tenant? Handyperson? Former Tenant?) did a poor job of installing shelving. What was there when you bought it? Based on that, who should be responsible for the cost of repair or removal?

Repairing a "cracked door...needs a few nails"? What do the pics show? Is this a split edge from the door being kicked open damaging the latch area? Or simple de-lamination of the veneer? A bedroom door is pretty cheap to just replace unless you anticipate more poor quality Tenants.

Page 3

Cleaning and painting the stairs seems high, are they actually that dirty, or very old, and never painted?

Foundation- water coming in? This should have been a priority, water is your worst enemy! You need to determine positively where the intrusion is; what is needed to stop it? ANYTHING you do inside the basement is NOT solving the problem. Especially if the current plan is to apply $225 worth of caulking. Gutters and downspouts, proper slope away from the foundation, redirecting water flows during heavy rains, digging out the foundation and re-waterproofing the exterior of it, these need to be explored as most likely fixes.

$750 worth of drywall repairs PLUS $4800 to paint? How many BR/BA? Did you collect damages from outgoing Tenant? If not, why not? If it was that rough when they moved in, or if they damaged and did not pay, someone has failed you again. For that money, they better be properly priming, multiple coats of a great paint product, with proper sheen for the type of area being applied.

Personally, I don't do Blinds, and especially in a lower end unit. Good quality curtain rods, properly and securely mounted, let Tenants provide their own curtains. Cheap curtain rods fall down too easily, and Tenants always remount them improperly, damaging trim and sheetrock. 

Doorstops...the springy ones get damaged easy and you constantly replace them; friction stops are very hard on hollow core doors. Magnetic stops, properly, and securely mounted, these last a very long time without damaging the door, including the fact they prevent doors from blowing shut when room pressure changes suddenly.

I would be very curious to know how 3 sets of hinges need to be changed. not something that typically "wears out". It may be the door jamb has been damaged from getting forced open repeatedly, and/or having partial, poor repairs done; or improper screws were used to mount the hinges at some point, easily pulling out or just not able to be secured adequately.

Aloha,

Start with the Governing Documents for the HOA. Do not rely on just "asking" a Board Member or HOA Managment. See if rentals are currently allowed or have restrictions, and also check to see what it takes to amend or change the specific rules that apply. Some can be changed by the Board alone, others need a majority of all Owners to be in agreement.

Also, for condo ownership in general, check if there is a local chapter of Community Association Institute near you. They will have great resources for you as an Owner or Board member of a condo.