All Forum Posts by: David Sussman

@Tim S. yep, I definitely see the theme!  As for payment, do you just pick one of them ("house dad/mom") and say they are responsible for collecting all rents or fines and submitting them to you in full each month?  

I can definitely see how college rentals are more headache, but I think the upside outweighs the downside, and I'm very interested in trying it out.

Amazing post, thanks to all who have posted here, especially @Will Gaston. A few questions now, and please forgive me if they are stupid questions, as I am pretty new to this game. 

How do you fill all vacancies in each property? Do you advertise the number of tenants you’ll accept, and just leave the ad up until its filled? 

How do you handle the lease signing? Is each tenant signing their own copy of the lease and you just maintain each one in a master file, or do they all have to sign the same copy? 

I’m just trying to understand the basic logistics of this…also, how do you handle 1st/last month’s rent and security deposits? I’m assuming each tenant pays a percentage, but just wondering if you did something different. 

Lastly, with one lease, what are your options if one of the kids wants out? Do you even entertain the notion of them finding a replacement, or do you just say adios, as long as you still get full rent for the remainder of the lease? Thanks so much!

@Will Gaston

I'm just the new guy here, but this @Alex Franks guy seems to know what he's talking about. :)  Mr. Franks, I'd love to buy you a coffee some time and pick your brain for just a few minutes!  

 Hi Harry, newbie question here, but where are you seeing these sub-2 deals?  Do you mean when you are closing on them as the attorney, or do you see them somewhere else?  

I would completely agree about hiring the off duty officer.  Definitely money well spent.  Also, perhaps if the officer has a chance to see for himself the situation, he may take more of a vested interest in the problem, resulting in some special attention from the Street Crimes Unit (or whatever they call it in ATL).  

Regardless, even once you get the wall built, I wouldn't let up with complaints to the police until some results are achieved.  That saying about the squeaky wheel getting the grease is very true when it comes to problems like this.  If the police department gets enough complaints, especially if these complaints go high enough up the chain of command, you WILL see some action taken.  Having a crack house behind your property isn't exactly a value-add scenario...Good luck!

Sounds like a real pain, sorry to hear you're dealing with that crap!  I am by no means an expert, having only had 2 rental properties, but without knowing what else you put in your lease agreement, I'd say that there isn't much you can do with the main house until that month is up.  As for the keys, why did you leave the closing without getting them, if that was in the contract?

As for the granny flat, I'm not sure how the law works in CA, but I'm wondering how that notice to vacate relates to eviction?  Either way, I'm fairly sure there isn't much you can do either way until the end of the 30 days, and I'd consult an attorney before doing anything like changing locks or posting letters before that 30 days is up.

Just my $0.02, but I wish you the best of luck!

Nevermind, I just found the updated article by Brandon Hall.  Cheers!

So now that the new tax bill has become law, I'd love to hear some input based on the *actual* changes made.  I'm new in the game, as I will be making my first investment later this year in a rental property, and while I will be starting modestly, I have big plans on a 5-10 year scale.  Obviously, I will be meeting with a CPA in the coming months, but I'm also very interested in the knowledge many of you experts could share.  Thanks!