All Forum Posts by: Greg M.

That driveway is a safety issue. Fix it. NEVER ignore safety issues. 

And if that driveway doesn't look bad to you, have someone else start inspecting your properties. 

Let's say to cover your mortgage, you have to make your rental rate a couple of hundred dollars more than rental market value for your property. This makes you exposed to the biggest financial pitfall that comes with owning a rental property...vacancy time (the amount of time your property does not have a tenant).

Setting your rent a couple hundred above market rate is not a vacancy issue. It's an idiot issue. Because someone is an idiot for thinking they will be able to rent their unit a couple hundred above market. Market rate is market rate. The market doesn't care about your bottom line. Pricing your unit above market won't cause your unit to take 3 months to rent vs one month to rent at market rate. It will cause your unit to NEVER rent as there are cheaper alternatives in the marketplace. 

The only way to get above standard market rate is to tweak the other variables. Taking on higher risk, like someone with awful credit and an eviction. Otherwise your unit sits empty. 

Working with a good property management company can be advantageous because the owner's and property manager's interests are aligned. 

No they aren't. My interest is making as much for ME as possible. Their interest is for making as much for THEM as possible. Never forget this: No one will ever care more for you and your well being than you will. 

The more money the owner makes on the rental rate, the more money the property manager makes for their services. It's not a good business model to not make as much money for your clients as possible. So if you are working with a PM to manage your property, and they recommend a certain price that may be lower than you would like and not cover the mortgage, why do you think that would be? The answer is because they have their finger on the pulse of the market, and want to get your property rented as soon as possible.

No, the answer is that it is less work for them. Getting it rented at $1,500 and moving on to the next unit is better for them than getting it rented at $1,600 and having to work it longer. 

Same as them getting a plumber out to your unit that charges $100/hour is better for them than calling around for an hour and finding that plumber that charges $80/hour. Your PM will do what is best for them, not you.

There is a very simple word for your tenant, it's BULLY. And you are allowing yourself to be bullied. 

Mentioning a lawyer is a bully tactic. I can guarantee she's never hired one. People have TV show ideas about lawyers. They never have a basis in reality, where the lawyer asks for a $20K retainer and tells you that you're probably going to lose. 

She "won't let you increase her rent"? I don't recall a tenant getting a say in this. This is the sale price of my product and if you don't agree, but from someone else.

I charge an assh*le tax. I also offer awesome tenant discounts. You need to start doing the same.

Let her know that the renewal will be presented 60 days before the expiration and at that time it will include any rate changes. She will have 30 days to accept/decline.

All the advice given to you is 100% meaningless. We don't know your location. Therefore, we don't know your local laws. 

You may have no say whatsoever if they move in. You may not be able to use their criminal record to deny. 

Where are your units? It's standard in nearly all kitchens here and any mid-end or higher would have one. 

So there are a handful of holes and instead of them fixing them, you want a professional... second thought, you'll do it for $5 a hole. 

Are you serious? Your time writing this post probably cost you more than fixing the holes. Just fix them and move on. Great tenants for 4 years should not be nit-picked. 

As for the paint, I don't know your local laws, but 4 years is probably past the useful life of paint in your area. You likely can't charge them.

If these are your biggest worries as a landlord, you're lucky.

I'm not sure if they could make a case that they need to pay in two payments because of some disability. It's possible that they could BS a judge into believing it. However,that is meaningless as having a disability does not allow them to pay rent late. Those two payments better be for 100% the rent and arrive by the due date.

Continue with the eviction.

This post is exactly why I say spend the few extra bucks and get the keyboard with the comma and period keys. 

Why do anything? I assume you're going to sell it to a developer, so sell it as is and let them deal with it. 

There may be a property tax benefit to leaving pieces. Where I'm at, if you leave a tiny piece of an existing wall and rebuild the remaining 99.99%, it's a remodel instead of a new build and the property taxes don't reset.