All Forum Posts by: Eddie Somerville

Recently finished reading Pace's Wealth Without Cash. In his book he mentions that he and his team keep template contracts on his website. I haven't found any. If you have, can you share the link? Thanks!

Smart locks on STRs are kind of critical. We have Kwikset and Yale. I like the interface of Kwikset better. These also let you check on the status of the lock, who opened it, when it was opened, and you can even lock it or unlock it from your phone (cleaners will forget to lock up sometimes).

As to changing the pin, you can set up a bunch of different pins and rotate them. Just change the pin in the message to the guests before check-in. Or purchase one of the locks on the market that automatically changes the pin and integrate that with your host tool app.

It sounds like your negative experience with other AirBnB locks may come from not changing the batteries often enough. We set a schedule to change them every 4 months just to be on the safe side. Most of the apps out there will have a power meter to let you know how much battery is left in the lock. If you see the battery level dip below 50% you could always get someone out to change the batteries and keep things working smoothly.

As always, having an extra set of keys for the locks is always important too.

Good luck!

You're going to need permitting to move plumbing. From personal experience, it will cost more than $1k to get all that done, even with the tenant helping out. Furthermore, if your tenant decides she doesn't want to complete the project -- you're kind of in a terrible situation.

I would wait to do it yourself when you have a vacancy.

I've been using Latchel for 2 months now and can attest that it is a horrendous experience. I've had 2 maintenance issues that were submitted on June 2, 2021. One was a plumbing issue, and the second a garage repair. Latchel struggled to find a plumber.Took them nearly 10 days. They eventually sent one out who visited the property, told the tenant that she would have to buy a bunch of parts, then charged my tenant $50 for visiting, but never submitted an estimate. It took another week, but we eventually got her money back. Weeks later, another plumber was sent to the property. The tenant called to tell me the plumber was there. I spoke to him, but he said he couldn't talk to me, and had to talk to Latchel. His estimate was $1400 to fix a leaky sink, unclog a drain, and replace a faucet! I was told Latchel would negotiate with vendors to ensure fair pricing. That $1400 is insane. After talking to Latchel and trying to get it figured out, I told them I would take care of it myself because they have been completely incapable of solving the problem. (It took me 30 min to find a plumber and coordinate everything).

Next was the garage door. I requested that they send someone out to set the door on its track, and then get a quote for the cost to install an opener. They had multiple vendors visit (one no-show) without getting an estimate. I clarified and re-clarified what I wanted. After 7 weeks, I called to say that I see I have to approve something in my dashboard, but there is no attachment and nothing to approve. The man on the phone emails me the quote of $1000 to set the door on its track and oil it! I can buy a whole new door and system for that price. I asked to speak to a manager. I spoke to an escalation person, and told him I would like a different quote. No response. It's still pending approval.Throughout this disaster, I've always had to follow up to find out what's happening. I never receive notifications. They never call for approval. I've called numerous times and have been sent to "escalation teams". No solution.Thursday I spent 90 min on the phone trying to talk to a manager or supervisor. I finally spoke to Luis who told me, "we definitely dropped the ball. I see that you haven't gotten any messages, alerts, or notifications. I think something is wrong with your account." He then told me he would have an escalation team member reach out to work with me. That person never called. Luis never called back.Suffice it to say that I am absolutely disgusted with Latchel. They've wasted my time, they've wasted my money, and they've pissed off my tenant. I've never dealt with such an abundance of incompetence in one place.