All Forum Posts by: Michele Fischer

Agree they are both tenants and you can't keep it from the other tenant.

If she gives notice you can send them both their own move out letter which would give him a chance to react.

Agree the other one can stay if they want to and qualify.

We always designate one tenant as the primary, in the lease, and make it clear that they are the decision maker.  Both would still need to be informed, but it makes it clearer how to proceed if they are not on the same page.

Are you planning to say that no guests are allowed at all?  I would think that would turn off a lot of applicants, peopel want their own place to have some freedom.  

Any guest policy is very hard to enforce, with a camera or not.  No matter how long a guest stays compared to policy there will be an explanation or excuse or expectation that you will look the other way.

Hopefully people understand that with you living next door there will be more enforcement of the rules, but you need to figure out what you can tolerate becuase they are going to push you to the edge and trying to be ultra strict may backfire.  This was hard for me to comes to terms with, that I don't really have very much control over who is in the unit or for how long.  It can drive you crazy if you let it.

In their favor:

As homeowners and landlords they should be more reasonable and take better care of the place.

Steady income with SSI and willing to hustle when they need more.

They are motivated to make it work, offering more and reasonable concessions.

If there is no carpet there would be less impact by dog or bed bugs, if either go worst case scenario.

Not in their favor:

They may be renting as a temporary situation until they can find where they really want to live long term, so they may not be a long term tenant.

They are not familiar with the neighborhood, other than school district quality, so they may not be a long term tenant.

What I would look at more:

How long have they all lived at previous addresses?

Is there a reason they are willing to be so accommodating to get this property, is everyone turning them down.

Can the concession be a combo of pulling payments forward and paying higher rent, like pet rent.

I would say stick to your gut and your criteria, but consider the gray areas to see if any criteria or reactions need adjustment.

We don't turn anyone down until the unit is offered to someone, even if we know they won't make the cut.  We tell them they will get updates via e-mail, we send a mass e-mail out when it is rented "thank you for your interest, we wanted to let you know that the unit is now rented."  Don't go into detail.  If they reach out before, let them know you are still processing an application ahead of them and need a bit more time.  Don't answer/engage if they are repeately bothering you, which is another red flag and negative on our scoring system.  Remember that if you deny (or don't choose them) based on the credit report findings, you are obligated to fill out a form notifying them.  It's not difficult, just another step.

We would follow abandonment processes for getting possession back and storing belongings.

But we are less likely to encounter this because we have this clause in our rental agreement:

In the event of abandonment, arrest or death, the following person has the authority to decide when to terminate tenancy and how to store/distribute my belongings:

Name: ____________________________________________________

Address: ____________________________________________________

Phone #: ____________________________________________________

If we have an applicant who will be living alone we include this wording.

If they didn't have access to their kitchen and the hotel didn't have a kitchenette, they are impacted with higher costs to eat while they were displaced.  While it is not required, it seems like an easy gesture of goodwill.  If they had taken option 1 would they have received more money?  You may want to give them a per meal per diem or split the difference or what you feel you can live with.  This was a big disruption for them and in the grand scheme of things is likely not a big deal for you to cover the meal cost.  If this was us, I would hope that we would have thought to get some gift cards for some local restuarants and dropped them at the hotel for them.  Sorry for the inconvenience, we're glad you are our tenants, thanks for being flexible.

Hi Brandon.

I would rather own in WA than OR, although I am sure you will hear both sides.  I feel like Vancouver is a nice size - big enough to find quality property management and trades, but small enough to be a little less urban.

If this is an area you'd like to live in the future it may make a lot of sense.

I might suggest a three bedroom, but will be interesting to see what others think.  There is demand but I'm not sure you get the premium for the fourth bedroom.  I find the larger houses are more difficult to find good market rate comparable rents and they will likely attract applicants that bring more wear and tear.  But I am probably biased living in my teeny tiny downsized space and never wanting to go back to big.  Think about what features you really want.

Suggest you connect with @Dan Z. on this site for some insight.

We would post a notice of abandonment at this point if they are not in contact at all.  It depends on your local laws, but any paperwork you can provide the tenant to indicate that they need to respond might help.

If they want to pay with two payments, that's fine, but make it clear to them that both of them are ultimately responsible for 100% of the rent.  No return of deposit until both parties move out, they need to work things out themselves.  You want the ability to pursue both fo themf or unpaid rent, and you can't rent out half the house.

When we have couples rent, we always designate the strongest applicant as primary on the lease to avoid getting involved with any disputes.  Talking about it while everyone still likes each other can make things easier when someone wants the locks changed.

wording:

In the event that Tenants decide they no longer want to live together, ___________ will be considered the primary Tenant to make decisions about modifying or terminating tenancy. Deposits will not be returned (full or partial) until all tenants move out.

If you continue down the path of free rent, I would do a personal contract with her about the rules and expectations to continue earning the free rent, including respecting the house and neighbors.  When our kids went to college we signed a contract with them.  It was simple but let them know that the help with the tuition was not no strings attached and they had some mimimum standards they had to meet or they could pay their own way.  Loving guardrails.