All Forum Posts by: Phil LoCicero

Good evening all. 
I have an odd question. I have some tenants on what we thought was a six month lease. I just noticed the lease states that it’s a six month stay but when we wrote it up the termination date is August first instead of the 31st. ( the 1st would make it five months)
I’m not overly concerned about it. If they left on the first it wouldn’t break my heart. If they stayed through all of August that would be fine too. 
My question is which of the numbers would be more likely to be binding in the eyes of the court? I realize what judge you get makes a difference as well. 

Probably a combination of the things you described. Another thing to consider is location. I don’t see an appreciable uptick in foreclosures in my area but I could be wrong. Price appreciation is also still moving along at a healthy clip here. But yeah I get the sense that the party is winding down. Not the same thing as a crash 

It’s a tough call. We own both long term and short term rentals. My wife is an airbnb queen. It’s a lot of work but… we make quite a bit more money than the long term produces, have the benefit of always being in the home so it never gets too beat up, and on the outside chance we don’t like who’s in it, take comfort in knowing they’ll be gone shortly. We don’t own in a party town so most of our guests are grandparent types. 
On the other hand, a long term rental with a decent tenant is a dream. I own in B and C neighborhoods. The C is the long term and honestly, even though the tenants all have good credit and pay on time, they have never ending streams of repair complaints. So the notion of sitting around and watching the money roll in never really happens. Not at all passive. I never put off a repair and even then they come. It’s almost like the airbnb is less stress even though it’s more work  

Wow. That’s razor thin. I never tell anyone no because I don’t own a crystal ball but I wouldn’t do that under those circumstances. I’m in a similar position as you in that I also own three properties but mine are fully paid off and I still wouldn’t do that. Right now I have saved enough money to put about 25% down on a fourth property and my local market in Boise is absolutely screaming but there is so much crazy stuff going on in the world right now, I think I’m gonna hang on to a little cash right now- fully  knowing inflation will eat a hole in it. Good luck 

I’m late to the conversation but this is exactly correct. A ton of young people honestly think they deserve to start out at the top. I started out in construction and then taught school while still working construction after work, on weekends, Christmas break and summer. My wife’s grandpa who’s still kicking owned and operated a 240 acre farm, ran a hog operation in the barn, and ran a drop forge for a tool and die company full time until 65. I’m in my fifties and it has never crossed my mind that whining rather than working would get me ahead in life. Add in owning rental properties- welcome to your third job. Prosperity does not equal leisure.

Arian, thanks for the reply. Yep, not sure anyone was ready for what Covid brought. So at least part of the problem there is her counting on child support to make ends meet. Deadbeat dads have created an entire industry including courts, attorneys, legislative action etc. I’m not sure allowing a tenant to claim this as part of their 2.5 to 3 times rent income requirement is a safe bet. 

I like to use these scenarios as learning opportunities. Arian, sounds like you did some kind of background check and it still didn’t work out. If you don’t mind me asking, what do you think you missed in the beginning if anything. Also, do you have a credit score threshold prospective tenants must meet? Rentals are a hot commodity where I live so I can be extremely picky. I don’t rent to anyone with under a 730 credit score. My last two tenants had 800+ scores. My average tenant lasts about 18 months and they usually leave to buy a house, but I never have non payers and they fill as soon as they go vacant. Good luck 

I only accept co-signers who own property in my state 

I can’t begin to describe the relief I feel regarding this decision. It never affected me monetarily since my tenants always paid, but I was always waiting for the other shoe to drop. I live in what must be the most conservative state in the union and I was still a little nervous about it. I really felt for the landlord stories coming out NY and the left coast states. A lot of folks with steel nerves investing there. 

SCOTUS finally managed to get something right. Anyone else as relieved as I am?