All Forum Posts by: Faye R.

Last month I installed True Submeters in a small duplex. They provide multiple set-up options. I chose to go with meters on the hot water lines of the water heaters and additional meters for the toilets and cold water lines to sinks. I'm losing out on collecting on the cold water that runs through the showers but the trade-off of not making the shower heads  a little awkward was worth it to me. Also, I realized after getting the first bills that only 10% of our local water bill is for actual water use. The rest is local surcharges that True Submeters billing assigns to the tenants, so the loss from this setup is quite minimal.  Since the sub meters are still new, I can't speak to their resiliency. Because the batteries are easily removable, I'm a little concerned that tenants will try to hack the system by removing them. But that won't change the 90% of the bill that represents surcharges so it's not a major concern.  So far I'm feeling really good about my decision to go with True Submeter. It didn't take my handman long to install them and True Submeter was very responsive and patient with me. I was not an easy client. I changed my mind and the order multiple times. 

Does anyone know how the Oregon BP rental agreement compares to the Oregon Rental Housing Association's Rental Agreement? I'm currently using the 2016 version of the latter and wondering about switching over. Is there a preview of the BP version? If so, I didn't see it. Thanks in advance!

Has anyone used an infrared "fireplace" instead of baseboard heaters in budget apartments? At first glance, it seems to me that the perceived value of a fireplace would offset the minor additional expense. This is the one that I'm looking at. $89 to heat up to 1ksf. 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Hampton-Bay-Legion-1-0...

I'm considering https://truesubmeter.com. They include cell-based meter communication in their monthly fee which, based on the features that I want, looks like it will cost just under $18/month for my triplex. My only hesitation is that I haven't been able to find any online reviews of the company. That being said, my phone conversation with them was encouraging. 

I'm also hoping to connect with someone who has first hand experience with True Submeter (www.truesubmeter.com) for an older triplex. I'm leaning towards their service because they measure actual use instead of hot water use based rubs based, which seems to be the other option here in Oregon. 

Thanks for your thoughts but I'm still confused. What kind of trouble might I get into by hiring the least expensive state-certified surveyor?  Would my risk be as minimal as having to nag him to get the job done or ask for changes based on the designer or city's feedback? Or is it the sort of mistake that could put me at risk for having to backtrack the entire project? 

Joel,

There is a personal guarantee but that isn’t worth anything. No leasing commissions. Tenant is local in nature. His primary business is production for grocery stores. He is working on taking it to the regional level.

The space is positioned in the pedestrian heart of a small town. (pop 6.5k) It has sufficient parking and good traffic counts. The community has a strong identity. It’s the third or fourth most expensive zip code out of the 18 in our county. Even if I could attract them, national chains in the core identity area wouldn’t be embraced by the community. We strongly value local and unique.

A recent feasibility study reports that the average retail rate for the county is $13sf/year. But it’s difficult to apply this to the individual cities.

There are only three other restaurant-ready spaces available rightnow. But they are all in a higher populated but less expensive city. Two are about $1sf but are twice the size. One is comparable in size and only .50sf but it’s in a bad location. If variances in residential rents can be applied, my unit should be 20% higher than these. But that same idea would yield considerably more if I applied it to the closest neighboring town where I was paying $2.25sf for restaurant space and residential rates are 63% higher.

Great idea to offer fee payment over time, for mom and pop tenant placement. Thank you.

Will you explain this for me? I don’t understand: “someone will list a space as rent is below market but actually for the box size of the space it is actually above market or market rent.”

Damon, 

.10-.20/sq foot sounds reasonable to me also. Thanks. You’re right. It won’t attract a national tenant. 

Should I just google local surveyors and look for the best reviews or is this one of those things where, assuming that they are properly qualified, I can select the lowest price? If so, is it enough that they are certified with the state (Oregon) or are there other qualifications that I should require? Will the surveyor know what to include in the survey or is it my responsibility to consult with the county and inform the surveyor? 

Thanks in advance! 

Details that may or may not be relevant: missing pins, corners are not 90 degrees, ground is slightly sloped, original existing structures predate planning dept records and likely infringe on neighboring lot. For now I'm developing an unused portion of one of two adjacent lots but I will eventually want to add density to the developed portions of both lots so I'm thinking that it makes sense to survey both of them at once. 

If you close with a title company, you don't have to worry about the 7k. It's their job to clear that and anything else that the seller might not know about from the funds that you bring to the table. 

Be aware that purchasing his business and "absorbing" it into yours carries its own risks that should be addressed by a business attorney so that you don't end up being liable for things that happened before the purchase date. For example, even if you keep his employees and vendors, you'll likely be advised to start their payroll from scratch and also to open new vendor accounts, instead of assuming his. 

My understanding (I'm not an attorney or accountant) is that the IRS considers single member LLCs to be disregarded entities, so there is no financial tax-related benefit to having two different LLCs. That being said, I suspect it will be beneficial for the following reasons:

1) If done properly, it can reduce your liability so that if one LLC is sued, the other is somewhat protected.

2) If you treat them like two individual businesses, it will be easier sell just one off in the future, should you choose to do so.  Also, if you mix the books, your future buyer pool will be limited to people who understand both metalsmithing and real estate.