All Forum Posts by: Kazi R.

@Account Closed Yes, it would be more feasible for me to pay off a single family rental and then use it as collateral for a small commercial property than having to come up with large amount of cash for down payment if I wanted to go at it alone without taking on partners.

I recently had a brief discussion with an investor who owns small commercial multi-family  properties.  He told me that a local community bank (wasn't willing to reveal which bank it was) in Atlanta metro area allowed him to use his free and clear single family properties as collateral for multi-family financing. I haven't heard about such lending practice before (admittedly my knowledge on this subject is limited). Is this typical for small local banks?

"If it exceeds $600, just return the deposit. Lesson learned and move on."

@Damir Kamber That's exactly what I did! I gave the security deposit back as I didn't have great documentation about the condition of the property (She moved in before I bought the property), and also upon further communication with her, I sort of believed her that the unit was almost in as bad condition when she moved in 2 years back. I always advise my tenants to mark EVERYTHING on the move-in inspection checklist, but it appears that it's not made obvious to prospective tenants by some landlords / property management companies. I don't think she understood how she was supposed to document the damages on the checklist. Anyway, like you said, lot of lessons learned from this ordeal! :)

@Dawn Anastasi

 House keeping skills? What house keeping skills?!? LOL 

I have been renovating and improving the units as the inherited tenants move out (and also am getting a lot more rent as a result!)! I know I will have lot less headache to deal with with this higher quality tenant base.

@Byron Bohlsen I do have move-in checklist (got it from previous owner) signed by the tenant, but tenant marked everything to be in good condition. Is that good enough or I need further proof?

@John Thedford If the paint is ruined so badly that I am forced to paint again within 2 years, can be considered beyond normal wear or tear? Is the same true for carpet?

@Account Closed Love the youtube idea! Will try to incorporate it! :)

@Jon Behlke Thanks for the advice.

@George P.  I didn't take pics when I bought the property as the unit was occupied, so I didn't go in to document it in detail (I probably should have). However, I can tell you that the unit was in similarly messy condition! 

@Matt Devincenzo I did provide an itemized list. 

@Account Closed Thanks for the great advice. I do take some pictures, but don't do a very good job on that. I need to get much better at documenting the property conditions! Landlords that own more than 10 rental units in Georgia are held to higher standards per state law. I do fall into this category, so I try my best to follow the process but there is room for improvement!

I have a tenant move out recently from a 4plex that I bought last year. She left me a horrible mess! I am spending about 4k to fix up the place. She noted no defect with the unit on the move-in inspection check list (I inherited her as a tenant). I decided to keep her $600, which is way lower than what it's costing me. Now she is hopping mad! Wants to take me to court etc! How do you deal with a situation like this? She is saying that the unit was in worse shape when she moved in, but I have no way of verifying it!

How do you handle situations like this? I am almost tempted to give her the $600 back as going to court etc will not be worth my time, but at the same time I just don't want to give in!  I have not really dealt with situations like this, so any thoughts will be appreciated.

I have an applicant who is moving from LA to go to school in Atlanta. I usually require applicant's income to be at least 3 times the rent. She is quitting her job to relocate, but says she has good savings to cover her rent until she finds a job. How do you screen an applicant in this kind of scenario? Do you ask to see bank statements that show significant savings? If not, what are your requirements for such an applicant?

@Nancy Curran Thanks for the response. Yes, I do charge $35/adult application fee.

I bought 2 quadruplexes over the last 12 months - my first venture into small multifamily properties. These are C/C+ properties in B- area. Units rent for around $700/month. I haven't dealt with vacancies until now as one of my tenants moved out recently. And now I am finding out how much more difficult it is to find a qualified tenant for my multi than it is for my single family properties! Because these properties are located in a popular area, there has been no lack of interest! As a matter of fact, my phone has been ringing off the hook! I have been getting 4 to 5 applications on average every weekend (only can do showing on the weekends) from people who swear by the fact that they meet my minimum criteria. It has been few weeks, and I haven't been able to approve a single application! Very frustrating! Lying on the application, especially about rental history, is rampant! I also have had forged pay stubs, false employment claims etc. This has not been my experience with single family rentals which tend to attract higher income people as rents are higher. BTW, the existing tenants have been pretty good about paying rent on time though - no complaints about that! Any advice for me on how to do a better job with this screening process?