All Forum Posts by: Raquel L.

@Account Closed  Yes, the mold addendum has saved me twice already!!  :)  Yikes on your tenant!!  Good thing she's gone.  The plumbing part saved me when a tenant reported a backed up toilet--my guys went out, removed the toilet, turned it upside down and pulled out a shower faucet and a baby washcloth!!  

Is there a way to go back to the old one?  I can't reply to most of my forum posts, even with refreshing, and it also doesn't allow for me to speak to someone directly using the @ feature.  :(

Sure-- message me and send me your email address.  I will email you blank copies.  :)

I always attach a mold addendum.  I've already had a few tenants try to claim that there was mold when they moved in, and I've had to point them to the mold addendum which they signed, agreeing there wasn't mold and any mold that occurs is the fault of the tenant.

Also, "Only human effluent shall be put down toilets, no personal hygiene products.  If a clog occurs, and any foreign substance or item is found in the toilet, the responsibility of the bill becomes the tenants.  Substance and item refers to: grease, cooking oil, any food products, toys, rags, paper towels, etc."

Hello all!

This year, one of my big goals has been to optimize my systems, strategies, and real estate business altogether as things come due. Well, I've just had a tenant move out in the state of Pennsylvania. Looking at my current PM's lease, it's actually much less strict than my prior PM, and the last tenant showed me that the strict lease is very important in order to protect myself!!

Soooo, I'd love to hear everyone's tips on attached rules & reg's, PYA (protect your a$$) clauses & addendums, as well as the standard lease they like to use.

Currently, I use the PAR lease (the new PM does not, but I am going to request they use it), a mold addendum, and a drug-free housing addendum.

Thank you!

@Sergio B. How will I ever learn my lesson if I don't go through the process that a professional would go through? ;) If I learn about it, I can create systems to prevent this in the future. I also need to understand the laws in the states in which I operate. I'd like to learn the lesson.

@Adam Johnson I'm one of those less is more people when it comes to lawyers, so I don't have one I use on a regular basis, but I think, for this, and since it's family, I want to do everything by the letter of the law in order to say I followed everything by the book and treated them as I would treat any other tenant (because that's what we agreed to!).

@George C. Thank you for sharing your experience. I also have it in my lease that I require 30 day WRITTEN notice, prior to the 1st of the month, directly to me.

My biggest concern is that the law (I actually read the codes, lol, and quite a few legal forums) seems really unclear about the last month's rent. I'm also concerned that the legal fees would outdo the amount of last month's rent she would actually receive, had she not broken her lease, and had she done everything correctly according to the lease (which she didn't).

The disputed amount is $600 which is last month's rent. She does not expect her security deposit back. The damages to the unit are $1000+ because of a window her children broke, holes in doors, etc. The window is an odd size, VERY large custom window. The last time I spoke with an attorney regarding collections, he didn't think it was worth it to pursue with C class tenants (which she is) because they live on Social Security, etc..and don't have jobs to collect from.

Soooo.. this is a complicated topic.

Complication #1- The tenant is a family member. Don't worry, yes, I had them sign a lease, a mold addendum, rules & regulations, and an addendum for drug-free housing.

Complication #2- They moved out with prior notice (which is required, 30 days in advance of the 1st of the month), leaving behind TONS of possessions, and moved into a shelter.

Complication #3- I was never given notice. However, they left a note for my Mom saying they were moving out because of mold in the unit due to a leak (a leak I was never notified about, and mold that wasn't there when I rented it to them). The last repair in their unit was back in April, which is exactly where they say the new leak is (you know, the leak they never told me about).

Complication #4- Ugh. I'm so mad at myself for this. Instead of requiring two month's security deposit (and believe me, family or not, this was a total necessity), I required one month security deposit, and last month's rent. They handed over the keys on June 6, which means the clock is ticking for me to itemize and mail them, although they didn't provide a forwarding address (I will mail it to the property and to my Mom's house, because she can always find family members).

Here is my question. Given the fact that they broke their lease and abandoned the property 4 months before their lease was up, what are my rights in regards to the last month's rent? They handed over the keys on June 6, but didn't say they were completely out until June 9. I know that legally, the keys signify possession, which means I need to send an itemized list regarding the security deposit in the next 30 days--but what I don't know, is what happens to the last month's rent since they're breaking their lease, without permission?

@John K. --I agree completely!! I was able to use that list to negotiate a bit further on this property, and it certainly helped the bottom line. :) Thanks for the tip on magnets--I will have to see if my PM's actually have those, and if not... recommend it!

@Tim Haas --Sure, go ahead and PM me-- but, remember, I live out of area, and only visit 1-2x/year. I can put you in contact with a few property managers that would be better at the info, since they're dealing directly with tenants needs/owners needs on a consistent basis. In terms of units, last I heard from the PM's-- they say that they're in dire need of 1 bedroom/1 bath units--that's currently the most desirable, and least available. ;) Houses are in low demand--so best to stay away from those for the moment. But again, local property management would be best.

@Mike M. --I figure we all make mistakes in our investment careers, and we learn from them. Why not let others learn from my mistakes? ;) And thank you, for the best wishes. :)