All Forum Posts by: Jennifer Bennett

Does anyone have a recommendation for a good home inspector in the Melbourne Florida/ Brevard County area? We are relocating to the area and would love someone who is willing to teach us what to look for in Florida homes. We have great relationships back in DFW, but need to learn the nuances of Florida real estate and what to look for. Thanks in advance! 

Christine is right. My policy: your relationship problems are not my business problems. I keep them both on the lease until the end of the lease. They are both liable for rent and damages. If, at the end of the lease (or on month to month), then we can talk about walking the property & deducting what's necessary from the security deposit, then starting over with new sec dep and new lease with just her on lease. It benefits you to keep them both on lease. Hope this helps!

They would need to report it as income, but would also have an interest expense deduction allowed on Sch A. Hope that helps!

I second Investway. They started in Dfw & now cover more areas including Houston, without having to be a member of Lifestyles Unlimited.

In Texas you can legally do so, but then have to give tenant a key when they ask for it. I prefer to pretend that option doesn't exist and just do a regular eviction. Good luck!

Last time I looked at HUD (few years back) they had a MINIMUM allowed of 2 per bedroom (you can't deny an applicant with 8 people for a 4 bedroom house). Most people advise making HUD's minimum your maximum (that's what I do with my SFRs) For a 2 Bed I would limit to 4 people. Obviously, check you local/state laws as they overlap HUDs.

Time to turn off water & turn on the BIG fans! I'm so sorry for ya! Get some rest. Maybe a hotel room for them?​

Is the SFR or multi? With multi, take care of pest control (it effects other tenants). With SFR, I always do pest control between tenants & then explain that any bugs they get later are their responsibility. Part of the difference in renting a single family home. I will take care of termites, but ants, roaches, fleas etc are due to tenant behavior & are pests they can control. Plus, everyone prefers to use something different. I personally don't use a lot of chemicals around my children & would hate for a tenant's family to be adversely affected by my pest control.

Silly app won't let me view pics, but I have done tile backsplash in my rentals. Just be SURE to seal the whole sucker in grout sealer (tile & all) so it is an easy cleanup between tenants. Might want to reseal between tenants too, depending on time. I love having that 1 thing that makes my rentals just a little nicer than comparables & then price it just a little less than market. Makes for easier/faster turnover. Good luck!

Welcome to the crossroads. Right now you have a choice to give up and say real estate just doesn't work for you, or you can choose to continue in doing and fine tuning what you are doing to get results. One of the biggest things mentioned in the podcasts over and over "what sets apart" question has to do with persistence. Having the money to spend won't change your circumstances. "A fool and his money are quickly parted." Focus in one the one thing RE related that you want to accomplish and keep doing the doing. I spent about 7 months learning & then 6 month actively pursuing before I closed on my first rental. It changed my family's life. I don't regret it. But I was narrowly focused on my one thing. Hope this helps!