All Forum Posts by: Jordan L.

Thank you JD, Nick, John, Todd, and Frank for your responses and stories.  I know I'm not alone in this.  I suppose I never expected it to happen because I try to dot all my I's and cross all my T's.  I spent the day organizing my records and I will call my insurance company on Monday.  I'm expecting to hear back from my PM and his attorney on Monday as well.  I doubt I will sleep or think about anything else all weekend.  

Something else that might be worth noting is that they've requested a jury trial.  I'm not sure how much that will affect the case.  I live across the country from the property but will fly to the area if needed.  I don't have direct contact with tenants, and this is one of the reasons.  I suppose they got my information from the property records.  I can't say whether or not the tenants reached out to my PM for further remediation of the repairs after I had the work done, but as far as I am aware of they didn't.  Everything I was made aware of was taken care of as quickly as I was able to get a contractor to do it.

@Bjorn Ahlblad Thank you for your response, but I was served papers this morning that state a lawsuit has been brought against me.

@Michael Gessner Thank you for your feedback.  I have not needed an attorney until this point.  I am a sole proprietor with a handful of properties.

This is my first experience with this, and to be honest, I'm panicking.  A former tenant that just vacated a property I own is suing for multiple items and a large amount of money.  Mostly on items they're claiming were not repaired.  To my knowledge everything was repaired properly.  In fact, I tend to go above and beyond regarding the presentation of my properties and maintenance.  They are suing me, my property manager's company, and my property manager individually.  What should be my first steps?

My property manager has an attorney and will follow up with me after the weekend.  I do not yet have an attorney.  I do have liability insurance through my homeowner's carrier.  Should I get my own attorney?  Would my insurance company provide one for me?  Should I contact my insurance company?

Any stories from anyone who has been through this are welcomed.  I'm literally shaking as I'm typing this.  Thank you.

I currently own 7 single family rental properties in North and South Carolina and I’ve been a landlord since 2014. Due to a number of circumstances I have been considering switching to self-management for some time now. Do any of you self manage from across the country?

I’m aware of certain ways to help myself already... for example: rent collection and tenant screening with Cozy or something similar, and Rently for self-showing of vacant properties. I do have a few good pairs of boots on the ground in the area as well. Additionally, I have been handling all of the maintenance calls on my properties, so I’m comfortable with that.

What are some of the hurdles you’ve overcome if you self-manage from far away, and how did you overcome these obstacles?

One of my concerns are move-out walk-throughs and how to handle them.

I’m sure there are other things I’m not even thinking of.

Thanks!

Another vote to let him out of the lease.

Hello BP,

I just acquired an approx. 1400 sq foot single family that needs some work on the subfloor in one of the bathrooms. I’ve gotten one bid thus far, with more to come. I’d like your opinion on whether or not this bid is too high.

I realize it may be somewhat difficult to determine without seeing the property.

The full hallway/guest bath needs some sub flooring repaired/replaced with no damage to the joists underneath, and new sheet vinyl laid down. The bid is for this, replacing the vinyl in the master bath, and for replacing both toilets and wax rings. Whoever does the repair will likely have to move the bathtub then reinstall it after the repair is done. Total amount is $2,950 and the property is in North Carolina. Both the master and hall bath are of average size for a 1400 sq ft house.

The same contractor gave me an outlandishly high bid for repairing the deck at the same property, and I’m not sure how labor intensive subfloor repairs are. Hence, I’m seeking advice from you all.

Thank you very much in advance!

@Darius Ogloza Thanks for the response. I didn’t know of the difference between eroding and non-eroding limits.

I would assume most umbrella policies cover defense, correct? Also, do the limits stack on top of my current policy if I do purchase an umbrella? Meaning, if I have $1 million liability limits and purchase of $1 million umbrella, this covers me for a total of $2 million?

Do I need umbrella insurance if my liability limits on my properties are already 1 mil/property, 2 mil aggregate? I’m running into issues getting an umbrella policy as my vehicles and properties are insured through different companies.

“I quit!”

Haven’t said this to my W2 employer yet but I live, sleep, eat, and breathe for the day I will be able to.

My current portfolio consists of 7 SFR rentals and I'm working on acquiring as many as it takes.