All Forum Posts by: Dylan Earl

Our tenants pay for utilities. They said they couldn't pay the rent because they were trying to keep up with utilities which were "out of control". I arranged to meet them at the house to see if there were any electrical issues, window gaps etc but instead I found x6 LARGE aquariums full of salt water fish. 

So because of their pets/acquariums, they cannot afford rent. I told them to get rid of the fish and they said they are their pets and they are family. 

Yikes-a-roni! 

Just make sure you have the deed showing that you own the property in case the cops/whoever gets suspicious about why you are breaking into your own property haha! 

We charge $35/hour (CAD) and track what we do at properties and bill quarterly. I'd say high maintenance properties will run require probably 3-5 hours/month. Easy breezy properties I'd give maybe an hour a month!

Best of luck!

Trusting that they would pay rent on the 1st day of the month, being flexible for 2 months in a row and then discovering their friends moved in, wrecked the place and everyone took off leaving me with damages that I had to cleanup & repair. So sad. 

Just use encapsulating paint. Kilz, Bullseye, whichever, and then do the work. 

Maybe you can be more specific in how you intend on "sealing off the basement"... are you sealing it with plywood or a door? 

1) Your numbers seem decent. Insurance looks low, 5% for vacancy, Capex & repairs & maintenance? I would put 1.5% to vacancy, 5% to repairs & Maintenance and Capex... well I'd budget $1000/year personally.

As for your repair costs, depends on what you are doing. Cleanup, door knob changeouts, floor updating, new appliances etc you'd probably be looking around $2500-$5000 depending on the materials you pick out. If you are looking at Renos like redoing the kitchen, changing out windows, changing structural layout ie new walls then yeah you'd be looking between $10,000 - $20,000 most likely. 

2) Next I would double, triple check that the house can pull the rents. Drive by it, where is the nearest school? Hospital? Highway access? Convenience store? Bus stop? Is there parking space? Are the neighbouring properties decent? Nice looking? If everything checks out and my gut feels good I would put in an offer on the property! 

3) Time to "fix" depends again. Replacing floors? Painting? Structural changes? Yeah could be anywhere from couple weeks to 2 months. Finding contractors is majority of the battle my friend! Good price, good quality, good relationship and good timing are tough to find. Get 3 quotes from various contractors, meet them on site, give them all the same scope of work, ask them their opinions and what they would do if it were their own property etc. Some might be rude/short, some might be over the top helpful, sometimes you have to take chances. To make sure work is being completed timely and correctly youtube how to do it and make sure their workmanship matches. If you have questions ask it here. Things like Flooring installation pattern may seem minor but having joints that match up every other board is very poor installation and can have a devastating effect on the look of brand new floors. 

In terms of setting aside money... you have to account for your mortgage, operating costs each month, and of course the Renos! Payments for construction materials and/or sub trades.

Hope that helps... 

Best of luck

Lots to look for...

• -Obtain estoppel certificates from all tenants
• -Check their renewal options to make sure you aren't stuck with low paying tenants
• -Who is responsible for building systems? If HVAC goes out, who's on the hook? You or tenant? 
• -Personal guarantee on the lease is pretty important. Need to pierce that corporate veil in the event of default. 
• -Get address or drivers license of Officers of the Corporation(s) in case you have to take anyone to court
• -Ensure all leasehold improvements committed by the landlord are complete and you aren't on the hook
• -Check title - (not sure if they have this in the US) make sure there are no Liens on the property or property taxes in arrears (or utilities for that matter)
• -Check with city to make sure the use of the building matches what they have on record... don't want to pickup a non-conforming use! 
• -Get floor plans, copies of all/any applicable occupancy permits or building permits that were completed. 
• -Any existing contracts? (with maintenance? snowplowing? irrigation? cleaning staff?)

And many more... sounds like some others on this forum have great input as well!

Best of luck

Every demographic has it's pros and cons. 

- Students, short term, can be messy and careless since it's short term... however parents usually always make sure rent is paid. 

- Young/Mature adults - Reliable, little more caring and responsible. Their next move is dependant on their career and/or relationship... you may have someone who has friends come over a lot, girlfriend/boyfriend move in with them OR they move away for new job or buy a house

- 35+ people - hit or miss really. Depending on their financial situation, career path, family situation etc, you never know. Usually responsible enough to make sure rent is paid on time and house is clean/in order. 

I've rented to all 3 groups and more. It really depends on the person not the demographic. 

Best of luck!

Few factors to consider too... is it tile? Surround insert? Did the PM have to break open tile to get to a potentially rusted out cartridge, replace and retile/re-drywall? I would hope the work wouldn't be that extensive, but you never know. If it's a simple replace then yes you got ripped. 

4 hours at double minimum wage is my usual reference for starting point labour wise... add material and see where that brings you price wise. 

Best of luck!

I wish there were more Canadian components present! I am sure myself and other Canadian users would be happy to contribute and help expand on these features to be included