All Forum Posts by: Brandon Heimsoth

Is anyone having trouble with vacancies in St. Louis?  I've had a couple 1 bedroom apartments in a 4-plex that have been vacant for 6+ months.  The property is in North Hamptom.

@Soung You

I have 2 section 8 houses in St Louis County. I inherited the tenants—one low maintenance, one high maintenance. I don’t mind the inspections. In my experience, the things they’ve found, you want to fix (broken door knob, bad gfci, someone living in basement, etc). It gives you extra eyes into the property. And, I like the guaranteed income. I can’t say that about my 4-plex where a couple decided not to pay during COVID.

New landlord here and more questions. I bought a house last year with an inherited tenant. I received notice to vacate from HUD. I have a few questions about the move-out procedures, most of which deal with the damages and deposit. The Book on Managing Rental Properties outlines it pretty good but I still need advice. I'm not trying to just cash in the deposit. I want to be fair...but also want to know what is expected.

1. Previous landlord did not present me with Move In Condition Report.  So, how does one treat damages in these cases?  I could see where the tenant could say "that hole in the wall was there when I moved in" and I would have no proof that wasn't the case.  I admit, I should have at least recorded condition when I purchased...but I learn from my mistakes.

2. Is it common practice to just charge for carpet cleaning?  I will probably replace anyway but still wondering if that charge is kind of a given.  The same goes for door locks...that which I will definitely replace.

3. What about painting?  The Book on Managing Rental Properties lists that in the Common Deposit Deductions lists under General/Damages section.  What constitutes the charge for painting?  I imagine if a kid colored over the wall...but again...I don't have a move in report.  All that being said, the cost to paint a couple rooms would wipe out any deposit.

4. If charges outweigh the deposit, do you normally just cut your losses?  Do you list them on damages report but don't pursue further?

Any other words of wisdom?  I really don't know what to expect.  Maybe I'll get a perfectly clean and undamaged unit back, but I doubt it.

@Michael Plaks Thank you for the clarification.  I honestly wasn't expecting that the full $2800 replacement could written off in one year.  Taxes sure are fascinating...I truly mean that.  Thank you!

Newish landlord here.  I have a couple items that need fixing at a property I'm managing myself and I'm wondering about the tax implications since they are higher ticket items.

Item #1:  The driveway

I got cited for a city violation as the driveway has a tripping hazard.  One of the slabs cracked/sank and there is a 1-2 inch drop off.  I got bids to replace just the one slab ($1800) or the whole thing ($2800).

Item #2:  Garage Door

The garage door opener has been causing fits and needs to be replaced.  It's ancient.  But, the door is old too so I would like to replace both.  I haven't gotten estimates for these but imagine it can replace both for $1000-2000.

I've read about this $2500 and safe harbor limits but would like details as to how that applies to my two scenarios.  If I can deduct all in one year, obviously that is beneficial.  Is it legit to separate things out to get under the $2500 amount?  Is the $2500 per item?  Is there a limit to amount of items per year?  For instance, if I wanted to replace all the windows in a house...I imagine that's going to cost more than $2500.  But, what if I just did a few at a time?  Any information would be much appreciated.

I'm new to the whole management thing.  As for year end expenses, which year do I report them for?  For instance, if I pay for maintenance by credit card in 2020 but don't pay the credit card until 2021, do I report those costs in 2020 taxes?  What about receiving January 2021 rent in 2020?  I'm sure these are stupid questions to most but I continue to learn.

Nice job.  What area of St. Louis did you do this in?  Also, how did you stage it?  I see the pictures but I've always wondered how people do this.  Did you buy furniture that you will reuse on other flips?  Or is it rented furnishings?

I have a couple properties in Florissant, MO and I'm looking for recommendations on some reliable handyman services. I've run into a couple issues with current handymen--caught one in a lie (said he did something and he did not) and another case where they basically didn't want to fix something.

I honestly don't know what I'd do.  I no longer live in a small town.  But I used to and everyone knew everyone.  The biggest thing that I find exception to is the accusations of sending sexist messages.  I wouldn't want everyone in a small town to think that would be true.  The rest of if just seems like a babbling teenager that doesn't understand what a lease and a security deposit is.  For my rentals in the city, I wouldn't respond because it would be in the weeds with all the renters out there.

@Account Closed In the end, my down payment was only around 17% I think.  The original agreed term was 20% but I asked him to bulk the closing costs and realtor fees in with the loan and he had no issue doing that (while keeping the down payment dollar amount the same). 

That's another thing I guess I didn't mention.  This was off-market and seller didn't want to pay realtor fees.  And, I was obligated to a realtor so I had to.  Not that big of a deal as she was a lot of help and very motivated.  It was dumb luck getting her.  I had just been filling out the "Email Agent" form on Realtor.com to get someone to show me houses.  I probably did that with 3 agents that would show me a property but then I would never hear from them again.  Then, I found my current realtor.  She was really went the extra mile and was patient.  Her commissions seemed higher than I was used to but I believe it's because she's good (consistently near top in her agency).  You get what you pay for I guess.  And, even though she didn't find the deal, I was happy to use her.

My lender did say that the down payment could be less in future as he becomes more comfortable with clients (and depending on the deal).