All Forum Posts by: Account Closed

@Kimberly T.

The unit is still vacant. We discovered (and keep discovering) there were a hundred little fixes that needed to be done beyond what we anticipated. It's an older structure and so some issues just go with the territory. Although the place was perfectly habitable, to get the best rent from a new tenant. a fair amount of work was needed. It had an old floor heater -- I don't know how old it was, but it was a beast and poorly placed. So we had that yanked out and put a furnace in the attic. We still need to finish up the floors, and just discovered a plumbing issue. I need to buy a new fridge. I work full time about 30 minutes away from the rental so meeting with contractors has sometimes been a challenge. Still, there are worse problems to have!

The unit will definitely bring a higher rent, probably more than $1900, but I'm waiting till it's done to figure that out.

It sounds like you have much the same situation with your long term tenant. I think it's a good practice to increase the rent regularly, but if you want to keep it slightly below market for a long term tenant who takes good care of it and pays on time, I totally support that. Thanks for your interest and good luck to you!

@Wayne V.  Thanks for your input. I've found that small/reasonable regular increases for long term tenants are worthwhile.  It keeps the business relationship clear, and I've never had a good tenant squawk over a fair increase.

@Nicole Maser  Welcome to BP and to SB! I am landlord of a small multifamily in Carpinteria. I find it challenging and rewarding. I wish you the best of luck! If there's ever any local info that I might be able to help with, feel free to PM me.

@Jason Hill Congratulations to you and your wife!  Honestly, I think it would pay to get a tax accountant who has experience with landlords.  Personally, I am pretty good at keeping the records, but the idea of doing my own taxes doesn't appeal to me.  The tax prep fee is just another one of the costs that I expect to cover with the income from the rentals.  Good luck to you!

Hi Edwin,

I have a couple of friends who are real estate agents so I just asked them their honest opinion about our local REIA and its value to an investor like myself. They had plenty to say. I feel like it's worth attending a meeting or two if you aren't required to put out a lot of money at the front end. You may find out that it isn't going to be a great networking arena for you, or it may be fantastic. Best of luck to you.

@Jon Holdman  Thanks for moving to the correct forum. I'm aware that we won't be able to get conventional financing.  

We own 3 condos that were converted from a Triplex property during our ownership. As we have owned all of them, we haven't done much beyond getting CCRs drawn up. My question is about getting a loan against a single property. I'm thinking of a HELOC, refi or second. What condo-related documents would a lender want to see in in that process?

Budget?

Business Checking Account?

DBA?

I just want to start the process as prepared as I can be so I don’t look like the newbie that I actually am.

PS. I may also post in other relevant forums.

We used white vinegar from Costco on outdoor concrete (patio) and it worked really well. My understanding is that effectiveness is due in part to the acidic vinegar having a neutralizing effect on the alkaline urine. 

Hi all. If you know of a professional cleaning service in the Santa Barbara Area that is reliable, and reasonable, I'd appreciate a recommendation. 

I have a renter moving out and I'm looking for a new cleaning service as the one I've been using for years gave me some really lousy service last time.   I expect the tenant to leave it in good condition, but will most likely need an added once over on the following:

Outside windows  (and possibly inside)

Garage interior top to bottom vacuum

General deep cleaning in window sills, etc.

Window screens 

Floors may need a once-over, but hopefully, I'll have the last of the carpet out by then.  

For those who might suggest that I handle these tasks myself, I always hire out the cleaning as A) I'd rather have a root canal than deep clean a rental unit, and B) Professionals do a better job with a team in a couple of hours than I can do by myself in a whole day.  

@Account Closed Thanks for your input. I like your measured approach. In fact, it's much like what my plan has been for this unit. In this and my other units, repairs get handled right away. It just doesn't make sense to me to let repairs go.  What this unit has needed is upgrades, like flooring (just ripped out carpet and put in laminate), a minor re-model  in the bathroom for aesthetics.

I don't know if you saw my update, but the tenant actually let me know that he'll be leaving, most likely before the end of the year. So that was some really weird synchronicity!  I'd hoped to spread out the upgrade costs over time, but now we'll just bite the bullet and do what we can to get it in top shape for top market rent and, hopefully, a quality tenant.  So I'm looking at 2014 taxes now and seeing what we can write of in the short term, etc.   Thanks again for your time in exploring this question for me.  Your  approach to tenant relationships in the context of good business, really resonates with me.