Originally posted by @Thomas S.:
When purchasing occupied properties it is all to often necessary to evict or non renew leases. Inherited tenants simply do not always work out. You will find this is especially the case with long term tenants since the present owner has likely ignored the operations of their business. Beyond cashing checks they have likely had no involvement and the tenants will probably cause issues for a new owner.
What I would do is purchase a property with two empty units or one empty and terminate one other after purchase, leases permitting. You then reno one and live in the other. Once reno is complete you move to that unit and reno the one you moved out of, rent it when completed and non renew another tenant to reno it etc. until all units are renovated and rented to new tenants. All existing tenants must ultimately leave. This is the advantage of purchasing properties with all M2M leases.
You can then move on to your next property.
Thank you Thomas. I have yet to hear about the tenants, their leases, or past history. I will definitely take your advice into consideration if the tenants prove to be more of a problem. I am a bit hesitant with such actions, however, as Philadelphia is known as tenant-friendly rather than landlord-friendly. I understand this can cause a headache when dealing with evictions.
In the event that the tenants are good, how would you recommend I go about renovations?
