All Forum Posts by: Sarah Wolf

Hi @Account Closed, thanks for your candid reply. The reason why the utilities are in my name is because I lease the bedrooms individually kind of like a "rooming house" and in effort to keep the lights on and the water running I keep the utilities in my name to protect the other tenants from potentially irresponsible tenants who may/could take people money for their share of the utilities and not pay the bills. 

I am a landlord with a unique SFH rental in the SF bay area, I lease out (month to month) individual bedrooms and manage the property off site (I don't live there). All the utilities are in my name, I furnished the home and do all the maintenance.

I recently served one of the tenants with a 30 Notice to Terminate Tenancy (tenancy less than one year) though the nail and mail method. She occupies 2 of the 4 bedrooms and has a minor child. She didn't acknowledge the notice and it has been unopened, taped on her door for 10 days. She alluded to the other roommates that she intends to squat. I reached out to her to ask her how I can help her move on (aka pay her off so I can save myself from going through the eviction process)! She was unresponsive yet again. 

Today I went to the house and served her personally with a 3 day to Pay or Quit and a new 30 day Termination of Tenancy dated from today 12/02/2017. (I realized that my previous Notice was not proper because I didn't mail a copy after posting it to her door). She owes rent for December and has unpaid utilities. The reason I am terminating her tenancy is she is in violation of the lease agreement by failure to pay rent on time. She is more than 2 weeks late every month she has lived at the residence (also, she is an alcoholic and hostile with the other tenants, but that's not a legal reason to terminate tenancy). She was extremely hostile with me after service and it got to a point where I left the house, assured that she has proper notice this time. 

Several hours later she contacted me to pay rent... I gave her my account info and am waiting to see if she pays me.

If the payment goes through, the 30 day Termination still stands of course. 

If the payment doesn't go through, I can legally begin the eviction process by Thursday.

WHAT WOULD YOU DO? 

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR A GOOD REAL ESTATE ATTORNEY IN SANTA ROSA, CA? 

TIPS FOR INTERVIEWING AND SELECTING ATTORNEYS FOR EVICTIONS?

WHAT AM I FORGETTING? 

Thank you very much for any insight, suggestions, and relevant experience! Much gratitude to all of you on this BP community.

@Matt Fisher typo: *I don't necessarily want to stay out of the metro areas

@Matt Fisher, Thank you for the pointers, I'll certainly look into those places. One of the most attractive things about Iowa to me, is that millennials are buying and settling there because there are jobs and its still affordable. I think you're right though, I do want to stay out of the metro areas. I'll give it a looks and when i narrow down some prospects i'd love your input, its very helpful!

Yes @Matt Fisher, from what I've seen of the Des Moines market, I think i'm a little late. I don't plan on buying an MLS property, i'd much rather go through a turn-key company, which is a baby step and potentially cuts into the profit margin a little. My motivation for investing out of state is because i'm priced out of the market in CA. I'm going to have to purchase out of state for a buy and hold investment unless things miraculously tank, which isn't as likely as the market plateauing for a period from what i can tell.

From what the realtor said, Marshalltown is short on property managers and having no relatives or friends in the area its probably not going to work for me. I'm still coming up with a list of Iowa cities i'm interested in. I realize the risks of vacancy, eviction costs and property damage in a lower income areas, for my own piece of mind I do not intend on being a slum lord quite yet.

Thanks for your feedback Matt

And to respond to @Matt Fisher,I just got off the phone with an agent in Marshalltown but that is the first place I've looked. I was drawn more toward the Des Moines area but it looked expensive. Short of it, i don't have a clue. Would ideally like a SFH or small multi family around 100K in the decent neighborhood that generates 2% or close. Any suggestions? You know us NRM folks are on a budget ;)

Hey everyone,

Thanks for reaching out to welcome me and for the helpful info/suggestions. I am excited to learn more from you "Iowans" out there. I'll be in touch. And @Ryan H, i really appreciate you connecting me with our meet up! Its all new and good.

Much gratitude and i'll connect soon.

Hello BP members,

I'm a beginning investor out of Santa Rosa, CA. For the last 6 years since college I've worked in Natural Resource Management. I got my start in Real Estate when I became an accidental landlord in 2009, now I am looking to buy another single family or small multi-family out of state. I am currently looking at investing in Iowa and am just beginning to research the market. I am open to other locations if it meets my criteria, ideally I'd like to invest somewhere I wouldn't mind visiting occasionally and a little closer to CA would be preferable.

It's a challenge to invest out of my market, in a place I don't live and I am looking to Bigger Pockets members, forum posts and podcasts to figure the process out and find a property! Thank you all for your wisdom and contributions. 

Sarah