All Forum Posts by: Jennifer Rysdam

I don't know. You might have to find a new mower. Either that or ask his parents if you can pay them and 1099 them. Otherwise, hire more than one so that it doesn't get over the $600 mark. Personally, I would hire him and once you get close to $600 tell him that he either needs to fill one out or he can't do any more work for you. Provide him with the documentation to explain the laws. If he's young you might want to also include his parents in the conversation. If he's 15/16+ then it would be no different than him/her filling out paperwork for any other job.

<$600 you are fine. Anything over that needs a 1099 unless they are a corporation. One good practice is that if you know you are going to pay someone more than $600, or you get to that point during the year, make sure to get a W9 filled out by them before paying them. It's much easier than after the fact. I also get them from people who are claiming to corporations. You don't give them a 1099 but having the W9 is proof of what they are claiming in case they are lying. Always better to cover your butt just in case.

https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw9.pdf

If they pooped on the carpet did they pee also? That alone might require a lot more work. Cat pee is horrible. Wait until the cleaning is done and see how it smells. Then you'll know what to do.
I have it in my lease that they have to have it professionally cleaned. They never do, so I do it and take it out of the deposit. Nobody leaves clean carpets and I take pictures to prove it. You can never take too many pictures.

I agree with Patrice. If that's what you think it's worth to you then go just below and wiggle from there. Who knows, maybe they'll take it if it needs that much work. There aren't a lot of people throwing themselves at properties like that. I just bought an 8-plex a year ago the same way. People just didn't want to deal with the remodels and updates. I didn't mind. Got it for $175,000! 
Now if I could just find another one!

I do the same thing. I put a 1 at the end of the password and then go up from there. That way it's easier to guess if it's not working the first time.

My leases state that rent is due on the 1st and that it is considered late after the 5th. I go and pick it up from my drop box on the 6th. I someone's rent isn't there I'll stop at their apartment and ask if I can grab their check while I'm there. After that point they have a $25 late fee until the 10th. After the 10th we have issues and I will start eviction proceedings. 
As far as the shed, it would depend on how long their lease is, or how long they plan on staying there. If they are short term or not someone you think will be there for a long time, then I'd say no. I've had people ask about adding swing sets. I just tell them that it's a safety issue, and an "everyone else will want to get one too" issue. We have a big city playground next door.
Good luck with your new venture!

Hi all. We sold a house on a contract for deed. Now their tax person needs our social security numbers for tax reasons. I would rather not have my social out there on every tax form of every person I sell to on a contract for deed. I realize now that maybe I should've set up an LLC, but what do you advise? Do I have to provide it? Is there a way around it?
Thanks!

Are you renting the other units at market? If he'd be willing to move to market rent, and leave while you do it, it might be worth doing. It really just depends on what your gut is telling you. I would think that it would be a TON of extra work trying to work around his stuff and redo all of the walls. Would he be willing to move everything to the center of each room and cover it all in plastic? I think it would also depend on how much stuff he has. Some of my apartments are pretty loaded. I can't imagine having to plaster and paint around it all, even if it was in the middle of the room.

People have to make their own accommodations to suit their unique lifestyle. If they work night shift or have a baby, then they need to find ways to make it work. I have 6 busy kids, 4 teens and 2 little ones. If I want my 1 year old to EVER get a nap in this house, I have to have a box fan in the room to turn on to make white noise. He sleeps like a dream. We also live in town, on a major road. All of my kids have air purifiers in their rooms that they can turn on for white noise anytime they can't sleep. They're so used to it now that they don't need them.
I certainly do my best to contain my noise when I'm working on one of my units, but sometimes you just have to get the work done.

I often find that many scuffs can be handled with a Magic Eraser easier than having to touch up the paint. Might save you on a few walls, and especially closets. When you do the color matching, make sure to get the same sheen of paint. Example: If you touch up eggshell with high gloss you'll really see a difference. I also use the same color of grey in all of my units. That way I always have some leftover from the last repaint for touch-ups on a different unit.