All Forum Posts by: Derreck Wells

MA lead paint laws are extremely strict. When you buy a rental property that was built before 1978, you have 90 days to get a lead certificate or you are liable for past tenants that were lead poisoned. If you send me the address of any potential properties, I can run them through the database for you and see if it's ever been inspected and if it has been deleaded if it was. If it wasn't inspected, I recommend Anderson Lead Inspections, he works with the owner, not against them. 

If it hasn't been deleaded, you can use that as a negotiation tool when you're buying a property. Assume $5k per unit counting the outside as a unit, so a 4 family is 5 units = $25,000. I have never seen a job go above that $5k and most come in about half of that, so even if you get a 50/50 split on the negotiation you might still get the full cost deducted from the price.

Good Luck!

Derreck

Check the lead paint laws for the state. Any house built before 1978 possibly has lead paint, and many states require that to be remediated before you can rent to a family with kids. 

It's my understanding that evictions are only paused for non-payment due to Covid-19, other reasons are still evict-able... such as non-payment because he's foolishly spending his money. I'm not a lawyer, so verify that, but it specifically says this in the form from the CDC: 

"You are still required to pay rent and follow all the other terms of your lease and rules of the place where you live. You may also still be evicted for reasons other than not paying rent or making a housing payment. This declaration is sworn testimony, meaning that you can be prosecuted, go to jail, or pay a fine if you lie, mislead, or omit important information.

I certify under penalty of perjury, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1746, that the foregoing are true and correct:
• I have used best efforts to obtain all available government assistance for rent or housing;1
• I either expect to earn no more than $99,000 in annual income for Calendar Year 2020 (or
no more than $198,000 if filing a joint tax return), was not required to report any income in 2019 to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, or received an Economic Impact Payment
(stimulus check) pursuant to Section 2201 of the CARES Act;
• I am unable to pay my full rent or make a full housing payment due to substantial loss of
household income, loss of compensable hours of work or wages, lay-offs, or extraordinary2
out-of-pocket medical expenses;
• I am using best efforts to make timely partial payments that are as close to the full payment as the individual’s circumstances may permit, taking into account other nondiscretionary
expenses;"

The 3 underlined bullet points above seem relevant to your situation. If he's buying $4500 bikes and taking Florida vacations, he can pay rent. He can be fined or go to jail for lying and signing the form. Start the eviction process now.

Good Luck!

Derreck

I just wanted to drop you a note on the new lead paint laws in MA. They now only give you 90 days to delead when you buy a rental. If you don't delead within 90 days, you can be held liable for any lead poisonings that have ever happened at the building, even if it was before you owned it. They basically hold the building liable rather than the owner and that liability transfers from owner to owner until someone deleads it and breaks the chain, so just because you're planning to rent to college students, you'll still be liable for past tenants. It's just good business to plan on deleading during the purchase and if the building hasn't been deleaded, negotiate the cost during your due-diligence period. Assume a $5k per unit cost and count the exterior as a unit, so a 3 family will be 4 units. I have never seen a property come in higher than that, so that's a safe negotiating point. Most I've done come in about half of that, so even if you negotiate a 50/50 split, you could get the entire cost taken off the purchase price. If you send me properties you're looking at, I can check them against the database and see if they've ever been inspected for lead paint or if they've been deleaded if they were. 

Here's the law as written:
460.100: Duty of Owner(s) of Residential Premises
(B) Whenever any residential premises containing dangerous levels of lead in paint, plaster or other accessible structural material undergoes a change of ownership and as a result a child younger than six years old will become or will continue to be a resident therein, the new owner shall have 90 days after becoming the owner to obtain a Letter of Full Compliance or a Letter of Interim Control, except that if a child younger than six years old who is lead poisoned resides therein, the owner shall not be eligible for interim control, unless the Director grants a waiver pursuant to 105 CMR 460.100(A)(3).

Note it says "a child younger than six years old will become ... a resident therein...". It is assumed by the state that any rental larger than a 1 bedroom will fall into this category at some point because of the anti-discrimination laws that prevent landlords from refusing a family because they have a child. Basically this is their way of getting all rentals lead safe, because no matter what your business plan is, chances are there were kids living there before.

If you don't already have an inspector you like to use, I recommend Anderson Lead Inspections, www.andersonlead.com. No, I don't get a referral fee or anything, I just know he's fair and works to help owners.

As far as Lowell in general, I grew up there. Anywhere within walking distance to the college is usually overpriced, and MA is a very tenant friendly state and it's a long process to evict someone. I've seen people in Lowell lose properties because it took so long to evict and they couldn't pay the mortgage. There are many "professional tenants" there, so screening is very important. If the business plan is to rent exclusively to students by the room, that can be a very profitable venture, but will come with it's difficulties for sure. Make sure you have parents co-sign the lease so they're liable for the rent if the student defaults.  

Good Luck!!

Derreck

Hi @Maryann L., Congrats on the new house! 

I just wanted to drop you a note on the new lead paint laws in MA. They now only give you 90 days to delead when you buy a rental. If you don't delead within 90 days, you can be held liable for any lead poisonings that have ever happened at the building, even if it was before you owned it. They basically hold the building liable rather than the owner and that liability transfers from owner to owner until someone deleads it and breaks the chain. 

460.100: Duty of Owner(s) of Residential Premises
(B) Whenever any residential premises containing dangerous levels of lead in paint, plaster or other accessible structural material undergoes a change of ownership and as a result a child younger than six years old will become or will continue to be a resident therein, the new owner shall have 90 days after becoming the owner to obtain a Letter of Full Compliance or a Letter of Interim Control, except that if a child younger than six years old who is lead poisoned resides therein, the owner shall not be eligible for interim control, unless the Director grants a waiver pursuant to 105 CMR 460.100(A)(3).

Note it says "a child younger than six years old will become ... a resident therein...". It is assumed by the state that any rental larger than a 1 bedroom will fall into this category at some point because of the anti-discrimination laws that prevent landlords from refusing a family because they have a child. Basically this is their way of getting all rentals lead safe. 

I ran the address through the database and it has never had a lead paint inspection done. If you don't already have an inspector you like to use, I recommend Anderson Lead Inspections, www.andersonlead.com. No, I don't get a referral fee or anything, I just know he's fair and works to help owners. 

Good luck with your new property!!

Derreck

@Steve Morris, the point is it's not hazardous like a lab would be, which seems to be the OP's fear.

 Most people don't allow smoking indoors anymore, but either way, drugs aren't like cigarette smoke. They're not smoked in the quantities required to stain the walls brown or to make everything stink... not for lack of desire, I'm sure, but due to the expense. 

I'm not sure where you're located, but look into lead paint laws. In MA you cannot rent to a family with a child under 6 unless you have a Lead Certification on file with the state. MA also has a law that if you buy a rental property that doesn't have a Lead Cert, you have 90 days to start the deleading process in order to remove the liability of previous tenents. Yes, if you don't delead a rental in MA when you buy it you can be sued by people who lived there before you owned the property. Stupid and unfair, I know, but it's their way of getting rentals lead safe. They basically allow the tenant to sue the property rather than  the person who owned it at the time they lived there.

Just clean like you normally would for a turnover. 

Actually, Anthony, lead remediation IS in fact required if you are going to rent a unit to a family with a child under the age of 6 in MA, and it must be done by a licensed deleader in order to get the Lead Certificate required. Further, if you don't start the deleading process within 90 days of closing, you are legally responsible for the past tenants that lived there before you even bought the house. They can sue you if their child has high blood lead levels. Using "fresh paint" does not encapsulate the lead paint. An encapsulant is actually like a liquid rubber that gets painted on certain components and the components need to be tested first, the results of the tests recorded, and the encapsulant needs to be put on to the required thickness in order for it to encapsulate the lead paint. Also, this cannot be used on walls, only on a couple of components like windowsills.

The laws in your state are likely different, but MA has some of the strictest laws in the country regarding lead paint. You should really only give advice about stuff like this to people in the state where you know the laws.