All Forum Posts by: Eddie Fleckenstein

Hi everyone, 

I am seeking a referral for someone who can install 4 vinyl double hung windows (purchased replacements) in Chelsea, MA.
I could also use a referral for someone (or the same person) for some handyman work on a unit turnover. Light cosmetic stuff -- paint touch up, reattaching baseboard trim, etc.

Anyone have a referral who works in this area?

Thanks! 

Eddie

@Colleen F. Thank yo for sharing, I love how your bathroom looks! Does that bathroom have a shower in it? 

@Luis Reis another good point about the paint! Our bathroom's ceiling paint is currently flat which explains why its having such a hard time with the humidity. Never realized glossy paints have much higher moisture resistance. Thank you! 

@Michael Gessner Thank you for the feedback! Didn't consider moisture building up behind the boards. 

My partner and I live in a three family building in Chelsea Ma ( city right next to Boston ). All three units have a single small full bathroom with no windows. Two of the three units regularly deal with mold on the ceiling.

The bathrooms are vented but they are not strong enough and need to be replaced. The unit we live in was newly renovated before we bought the property. We have lived here for a couple of months and haven’t seen any mold, but the ceiling paint in our bathroom is already cracking even though we run a fan constantly and keep the door open as much as possible.

We are in the process of renovating one of the units that became vacant. In addition to new vents we are also considering installing cedar planks on all three bathroom ceilings because it’s mold resistant and (hopefully) handles moisture better than paint.

Does anyone have experience with this? Is this a good solution? Any Alternative ideas? Would cedar ceilings have a positive or negative effect on reevaluating the value of the property?

Thanks for the help and thoughts!

Ed

@Ou Wang congrats on your first property! My partner and I also just complete the purchase of our first multi-family property that we are house hacking. Completely agree that it is incredible how much you learn just by going through the buying process one time. 

Sorry to hear about the problem with the solar panels. I hope it gets resolved soon, but thanks for sharing the story, that is very good to know. 

Good luck with the new place and everything that comes next! 

Update. 30-day notice was served, I spoke to the tenant and the call went as well as could be expected. Not out of the woods yet, but things are looking good. Thanks again for the advice and input @Douglas Snook!

@Ben Capone congratulations on your first purchase!

Hope you are able to get the second property soon! I’m in a similar situation, just acquired the first property and can’t wait to get the next one.

You should look into an FHA loan for your next property If you plan on owner occupying. Being able to put less money down could dramatically accelerate your timeline for buying a second place.

Good luck!

Ed

@Douglas Snook

No the previous landlord did not provide letters of indemnification. Funds for only security deposits were deducted from my closing cost but I was not provided checks with the direct amount for the security deposits. 

I put up letters in the common area saying I am now the landlord in both english and Spanish and provided my contact information and instructions for sending rent/contacting me. 

Tenant in question and her two roommates sent me rental applications but all three were incomplete and the names on the two roommates were so illegible that I could not put them on the 30-day notice and not be confident I got the names right. She did not provide income on the application or provide an employee. Same with her roommates. I think they all work under the table and only listed "janitor" for employment but didn't list an employer. Tenant in question also said in person (sister translated) that she does not have a bank account and that she wants to be the only person on the lease and not list her roommates. We also asked for her email and her sister said she could not find or remember what her email address was even though the tenant in question has a smart phone. Tenant in question did not list a social security number and it's possible she doesn't have one. She has not provided any documented information that allows us to confirm she can pay rent or anyway to track her down if she left one day. The previous owner spoke highly of her and told us us she always paid rent over 6 years which is why we considered keeping her at first. I think she makes income by renting the other rooms out to the "roommates". Her sister told us that over the years the tenant in question has had to kick out certain roommates and replace them with others. 

We have not sent a notice saying her application was declined. My partner and I instead decided not renew the lease and send 30-day notice with the lease ending at the end this month. 

Thank you for the tips on the communication. I think I will write out things that might be said to me and write out how to respond to various questions and commits and practice them so I don't say more than I should.

I agree that her putting up a fight is a very real possibility. The way her and her sister have engaged with us during this process makes us think they have some knowledge of the system and rules and have experience handling landlords. 

Thanks for this reply @Douglas Snook! 

- We purchased the property at the end of the July and it is our first property which is why we could not let her know we weren't renewing sooner (but good to know for the future). The previous owner told us she informed the existing tenants that the new owners (myself and my partner) could be asking for higher rents and we could ask them to leave. The previous owner was also fluent in Spanish so I know she communicated directly with the tenant in question. We didn't want to be serving a 30-day notice 28 days into our land lording careers...But, here we are.

- Great point about the lease auto renewing. We checked the previous lease and it doesn't renew. 

- We decided to serve the notice through AABCO Constables who says on their website they are "Eviction Experts". We have hired them to send the 30-day notice and hopeful it will get to my tenant today or tomorrow. We also made sure they provide the required information needed to serve the 30 day notice in Spanish. They told us they will record and provide a record for us of all the steps taken to serve her the 30-day notice. They told me they are officers of the court so I feel confident delivering the notice will hold up in court in our favor if it comes to that. 

- I don't know the names of the other roommates (part of the problem). We addressed the 30-day notice to her "and any/all other occupants". Hopefully that will be enough if it comes to eviction, but I'm not sure. The good news is that the original lease specifies that no one over 18 is allowed to live there without being named on the lease. Again, if it goes to court hopefully that will work in our favor. 

- She only pays the rent in cash. When I collected August rent I provided her a receipt that we have a record of. For September's rent when I issue another receipt are you saying I should specify on the receipt that the money collected is "For use and occupancy only"?

Also we are living in the building and about to move in. Any tips on how to approach communication with her through this process? She only speaks Spanish, her sister has translated so far and they push for in-person meetings every chance they get. I think they will try to do this again, but it seems like this is  the time for recorded correspondence only. 

Thanks again for your feedback. I don't feel 100% great about the steps we've taken so far, but I also don't think we have made any drastic mistakes either.