All Forum Posts by: Hilary Graves

After advertising our vacant unit, I had several people fill out an application right away, and now I'm getting a round of people who just want a showing to see if they are interested BEFORE they pay the money to fill out the application (on Zillow, which is $29 I think, because it includes credit/background check).   Is it customary to do showings before people even apply?  Just checking! TIA

Thank you!  I hadn't even thought about it being a 22 year old who may not have had a chance to establish credit yet.  

I was just using the credit check provided by Zillow/Hotpads...I don't know what company it is offhand.  

I'm accepting rental applications for the very first time, and as the applications are coming in, so far two of the applicants have credit reports that appear to be blank...?   There is a score that appears at the top (exactly 524 on both of the blank reports) but there appears to be no credit used, no credit inquiries, no further info.   Is it more likely that this person really never uses credit, or that they paid to have their report scrubbed, or something else? 

Thanks for any insight:)

Hilary

Co-owner, Bilary Property 

John,

I am new to this as well so this is not coming from an expert by any means, but my wife and I have opened two separate accounts at our bank for our business. A checking for all normal expenses and collecting rent, etc. and the other is a savings account for the sole purpose of holding security deposits. That way, we don't touch it and it's always there when needed to reimburse a tenant.

Bill

We talked with the seller's agent...this tenant has been in there for 3-years and has always paid in full and on time.  The current management company typically, they say, doesn't charge $25/pet, they do $25 for one then $35 for two. They also said they don't typically charge for rabbits or iguanas. Since we are inheriting this, I don't think it's necessarily fair to come in and change things wholesale for the tenants who have been living under management that doesn't, it would appear, hold tight to the lease. Term is up in October, maybe best to continue with the status-quo until then? The unit has to be completely rehabbed anyway and what's another couple months of a dog and cat running around. There was no major damage that we saw.

Thanks again

Bill

Hi everyone,

My wife and I are closing on our first property on March 1 (5 units.) We are inheriting 4 tenants and one vacant unit which we plan to update as soon as we close. We have been combing through the current tenant leases and have found one tenant that has a pet addendum for one cat. When we went through the property the first time, we noticed not only the cat, but a dog, a rabbit and an iguana in a large terrarium. Our appraiser also said he saw all these animals when he went through. None of these pets have addendums for the lease and we are assuming the current management company doesn't know anything about them. In the lease, there is a $250 non-refundable fee per pet and then an additional $25/month/pet charge. What we're thinking is that this tenants rent should be $75 more based on the agreement plus the additional $750 for the non-refundable pet fee. Tenant has a lease until Oct. 31 of 2021 and has always paid in full (minus what she may be hiding from current landlord) and on time. We are looking for advice on how we should proceed. If she is a good paying tenant, do we risk losing her if we call her on the additional pets? We'd like to rehab the whole place at some point, so maybe wait until her lease is up in Oct, and not renew, giving us time to put a tenant in the current vacant unit?

Thoughts?

Thanks,

Bill

Christopher, also great ideas, thank you.  I just got a quote for $8900 to paint the exterior (and I'll be getting 2 more quotes to compare), but I'm thinking there is just no way to make light blue work in 2021.   Getting rid of the turf will help a lot.  There is space on the side of the house so next time I visit the property (this weekend) I'm going to take a look at that to make sure there is space for 5 bins there. I don't know anything about lava stones, so I'm googling it:)  Getting a clear message on paint-paint-paint.  Thank you!

Thank you for the amazing ideas!!  I've read your reply often and am looking into each and every idea for sure!

My husband and I just bought our first deal, a 5-unit that sits pretty close to the road. Besides upgrading the units themselves, we definitely want to paint the exterior and replace the old deck and patio for curb appeal.  Please feel free to weigh in on the following:

1. What if anything can be done about the ugly wiring (power/telephone/cable?) on the front of the building?

2. What would you put down instead of the green turf? 

3. Is there a way that we can "hide" the recycling bins?  

1. Does your attorney/CPA have to be someone who specializes in real estate, or can it be someone who has worked with real estate agents before?

2. Can anyone near York, PA recommend a good CPA and/or attorney?