All Forum Posts by: Dee Mandrekar

Hi there! Mike Tamulevich here, COO of Marketplace Homes. Renting to Section 8 tenants can be a great opportunity, and I'm happy to help clarify a few things for you.

Do You Need a Realtor?
You don’t need to use a realtor to rent to Section 8 tenants. If you’re comfortable handling the paperwork yourself, you can continue to do so. However, there are some additional steps involved with Section 8, like coordinating with the local housing authority. As for your lease, Section 8 requires a Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) contract, but your existing lease can often still be used, with some modifications to ensure compliance with Section 8 requirements.

Who Decides the Rent?
The rent for Section 8 tenants is typically determined by the housing authority based on local market rates and guidelines, but you can request a rent amount. If your property qualifies for a higher amount, the housing authority will let you know what they can approve. Keep in mind that Section 8 tenants generally pay 30% of their income toward rent, with the rest covered by the voucher.

How Long Until Move-In?
Once a tenant decides they like your property, it can take a little longer than a traditional rental because Section 8 requires a property inspection to ensure it meets their housing quality standards. The timing for this varies but can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to a month, depending on the local housing authority’s schedule.

Additional Paperwork/Procedures?
There’s a bit more involved with Section 8 tenants, such as coordinating the inspection and completing the HAP contract with the housing authority. Once those steps are done, the process becomes fairly straightforward.

If you’d like, we can send you a copy of our Section 8 Guide for Landlords, which goes into more detail. Just send us a message, and we’ll get that over to you!

We use Southwest Recovery, I believe they are located in Dallas. We have actually had some luck with them getting money for our clients. Which is very rare

Quote from @Dee Mandrekar:

I'm a professional property manager, so I have my own forms. However, I have downloaded the BP forms and reviewed them. I have compared them to dozens of leases from around the country and can tell you the BP version is better than most. It's written in plain language that landlord and tenant can understand, and the forms are very thorough. You won't be disappointed.

Quote from @Ruben S.:

Biggerpockets sells a Lease Agreement Package under "TOOLS" at the top of your screen. $100 for a lease and several other documents, written by investors and attorney approved for your state. It's better than what you'll get from most attorneys and what you'll find on the internet.

Dee, I'm a property manager down in San Antonio, but have gone through this many times. It does depend on what the lease says, but in general if you're using the TREC or Texas Realtors lease, you should have recourse to simply post a notice of abandonment on the inside of the door and if they don't contact you in 48 hours you can legally take possession and change the locks. Just make sure to document all that. However, you said they texted you? If they texted saying they left then that can be proof of them vacating. 

In terms of lost rent, you can take them to small claims court, but it's usually not worth it. I would at minimum send them to an outside collections agency. Just find one and give the tenant ledger and everything they still owe. This way it will be reported on their credit report so future potential landlords can see. I for one, if a tenant has a past amount owed to a landlord, we won't rent to them until they have settled. We had one a few months ago that we agreed to let them move in but they had to go settle with their landlord from 3 years ago and make things right. 

Good luck!

Dee, I highly recommend you use a landlord attorney to prepare a lease for you. Non-lawyers are not permitted (at least here in Florida--but pretty sure it's the same in every state) to advise on legal document (such as a lease agreement) and their import. Plus, you want your lease agreement to fit your business model, help you to reduce costs, provide for compensation from the tenant for administrative burdens imposed on you by tenant acts or omissions, provide for procedures tenant need to take for maintenance and other tenancy issues, etc. I know it's tempting to get the input of others in the landlord business, but you'll do yourself a favor by going to the right attorney for this need. Best wishes. 

I'm also curious about this particular attorney - his book on the real estate law and asset protection in Texas is outstanding!