All Forum Posts by: Scott C.

Jessica,

Pa Landlord Tenant Act states the following:

Section 250.501. Notice to quit
(a) A landlord desirous of repossessing real property from a tenant except real
property which is a mobile home space as defined in the act of November 24, 1976 (P.L.
1176, No. 261)3, known as the “Mobile Home Park Rights Act,” may notify, in writing, the tenant to remove from the same at the expiration of the time specified in the notice under the following circumstances, namely, (1) Upon the termination of a term of the tenant, (2) or upon forfeiture of the lease for breach of its conditions, (3) or upon the failure of the tenant, upon demand, to satisfy any rent reserved and due.

(b) Except as provided for in subsection (c), in case of the expiration of a term
or of a forfeiture for breach of the conditions of the lease where the lease is for any term of one year or less or for an indeterminate time, the notice shall specify that the tenant shall remove within fifteen days from the date of service thereof, and when the lease is for more than one year, then within thirty days from the date of service thereof. In case of failure of the tenant, upon demand, to satisfy any rent reserved and due, the notice shall specify that the tenant shall remove within ten days from the date of the service thereof.

(c) In case of the expiration of a term or of a forfeiture for breach of the
conditions of the lease involving a tenant of a mobile home park as defined in the “Mobile Home Park Rights Act,” where the lease is for any term of less than one year or for an indeterminate time, the notice shall specify that the tenant shall remove within thirty days from the date of service thereof, and when the lease is for one year or more, then within three months from the date of service thereof. In case of failure of the tenant, upon demand, to satisfy any rent reserved and due, the notice, if given on or after April first and before September first, shall specify that the tenant shall remove within fifteen days from the date of the service thereof, and if given on or after September first and before April first, then within thirty days from the date of the service thereof.
(c.1) The owner of a mobile home park shall not be entitled to recovery of the
mobile home space upon the termination of a lease with a resident regardless of the term of the lease if the resident:

(1) is complying with the rules of the mobile home park; and
(2) is paying the rent due; and
(3) desires to continue living in the mobile home park.
(c.2) The only basis for the recovery of a mobile home space by an owner of a
mobile home park shall be:
      (1) When a resident is legally evicted as provided under section 3 of the “Mobile
      Home Park Rights Act.”
      (2) When the owner and resident mutually agree in writing to the termination of
      a lease.
     (3) At the expiration of a lease, if the resident determines that he no longer
     desires to reside in the park and so notifies the owner in writing.
     (d) In case of termination due to the provisions of section 505-A4, the notice
     shall specify that the tenant shall remove within ten days from the date of service           thereof.
     (e) The notice above provided for may be for a lesser time or may be waived by
     the tenant if the lease so provides.
     (f) The notice provided for in this section may be served personally on the
     tenant, or by leaving the same at the principal building upon the premises, or by             posting the same conspicuously on the leased premises.

Section 250.502. Summons and service
(a) Upon the filing of the complaint, the justice of the peace shall issue a
summons which reflects substantially the complaint, is directed to any writ server, constable or the sheriff of the county and commands that writ server, constable or sheriff to summon the tenant to appear before the justice of the peace to answer the complaint on a date not less than seven nor more than ten days from the date of the summons.
(b) The summons may be served personally on the tenant, by mail or by posting
the summons conspicuously on the leased premises.

I don't know for sure but I would guess that the City of Philly has its own set of rules protecting the tenant. 

Hope this helps.

If he is delinquent why are you returning the security?

We have owned a 19 unit apartment complex for almost 8 years and in that time we have had 3 evictions, 2 leave after a "pay or quit" notice and 1 very surprising situation. This one tenant, who had always paid on time, called me and ask me to stop by his apartment. When I met with him he explained that he developed a serious medical issue and was going to be late with his rent. He showed me all of his medical bills, showed where he had cancelled his cell phone and cable tv. The surprising part was the 2 commitment letters he had from the local VFW and American Legion, stating that, combined they were going to cover about 1/2 of his monthly rent for the next six months. He also showed me that had contacted several other not-for-profit organizations for help as well as applying for SSDI because he was not able to return to work. Before I agreed to anything I verify everything that I could and then allowed him to stay. It took 8 months before his SSDI was approved and when he received his first check he paid me the full amount owed. I know this is a unique individual and definitely not how other tenants have dealt similar situations. He was proactive in trying to solve his problem and I will probably never see it again.

Congrats on your first rehab. 

Most general contractors do not breakdown their proposals. As much as 20 -40% of the job cost is managing the project using their people and subcontractors. Trying to negotiate price with a general contractor usually does not work unless you have a written specification or scope of work and several competing bidders. 

I do not know what your experience is but I would suggest you try to manage this project yourself and get bids for each trade. The knowledge and experience you gain from doing this can only help you in the future.

If you don't feel comfortable doing this, you should sit down a write up a detailed scope of work you want done and have everyone bid the same. If a general contractor recommends a different item, listen to him and ask for a separate price on that item.

Hope this helps

The wire mesh, needed for the stucco, had to be mechanically fastened to the brick, which will mean there is a lot of holes in the underlying brick.

Britt, I've had coin operated washers and dryers in my rental complex for 8 years and they are very easy to cheat the mechanism with a common household item. I will not explain here but I can email the details, if you would like to know. Is the washer price set higher then the local laundromat and are the dryers priced lower? I'm often surprised by the things tenants due to save a quarter.

Brick can be difficult to clean. Try is website, 

http://www.howtocleanstuff.net/how-to-clean-a-brick-fireplace/

it has helped me the past with my rentals.

Heather, The only way you going to know for sure what the reasonable cost for your project is to get more written estimates, I would suggest at least three. Please make sure that the company and their employees are RRP certified (get copies of their certifications).  Finally, have an independent Lead Risk Assessor verify that house is lead free. The EPA website should have a list of certified RRP contractors and assessors for your area. 

 Thank you Wendy. I also have a remodeling company and we did all of the interior finish carpentry. Everything else was subcontracted 

 This project was 100% private funding. We had 3 investors; 1 for the purchase and 2 equally split the rehab