All Forum Posts by: Robert P.

Anyone who admits to smoking would not be allowed to rent from me. Doesn't matter if they tell me they will travel to another city to smoke their cigs, I still won't rent to them. Of course they are going to sneak on here and there. Once they get more confortable, more will come and so on. Move on from them!

A nice red door would look great with the trim painted white!

We just started as landlords and got the tenants a little welcome basket that includes your basic information about utilities, water shut offs, and recycling rules, etc. We also add in a few other things based on us getting to know them a little during the process before they move in. This could include a dog toy, gardening book, or some cool coffee mugs. Very simple and keep it under $20. We also include our top picks for restaurants, things to do and more in that packet to get them acclimated with the area. Even if they are from the area, it's still good to give them our "top picks"...you never know what they haven't tried!

Important thing is to make them feel welcomed and that you care about their well-being. My theory is that if you respect the tenants as people and not just cash flow, you will be better off down the road!

It's obvious that the current landlord wants this person out, not matter what it takes. I would pass on this person. Major reg flag when you get two different stories. It would be different if the one from 18 months ago was also saying they were a good tenant. 

I would not rent to anyone who is haggling me on the rent. What's next? Pass on them.

You may need to have that provision to even get it past the underwriters. Most underwriters will not close on a property if there isn't a spot for the owner to live in immediately. I.e. you can't close on a FHA loan with the property 100% occupied. Look into it now before it holds things up down the road.

Tough to enforce if you don't know who it is. At first, I'd see droppings every so often when cutting the grass. I would make sure to give them a friendly reminder. I think once they realized that I was going to be cutting the grass and would bring it up, it stopped and they made damn sure to pick it up each time. So far so good. At first I got upset, but as I no longer see it, even if I see it once every couple of weeks, it's not worth losing a great tenant over!

I have a lockout fee in my agreement. Personally, if I lived <5min away and it wasn't too late (9pm for me is not late, but that could change for anyone) AND most importantly this was a one time thing, I don't think I would enforce it. If I had to come back within the same 6-9 months or so, then yes I would charge. If it was 2am, I would 100% charge the fee. 

To me.... 5 min away, 9pm on practically a weekend, open the door and be on your way.

If there are no laundry mats in the area, then I would assume most tenants would own a washer/dryer. I opted to just have hookups in my unit. That way, they can bring in their own, are in charge of maintaining it and all I have to do is keep the area clean and access open. (Of course I charge an additional fee for them to do this as I pay for water) Some people will bake this into their rent, but I like to give tenants options. If they aren't bringing in a unit, why am I going to charge them more?)

No idea about the laws, but I would either fill it up and like @Kevin Harrison mentioned, take an oil deposit. Another option would be to fill it enough to give them a week or so of oil. Make sure when they move in, they are aware of this and give them all of the information to get it filled. It would be smart to tell your new tenants in advance so they are prepared. Basically give them all the information and lead time to be able to get on top of it. Tell them they should have it at the same level when they move out, but if not, just take it as a turnover expense. I would think 1/4 a tank of oil wouldn't be all that expensive (could be totaly wrong, though)