All Forum Posts by: Jill F.

@Tereal Wilsonn

Well, here's the thing. I know it's a landlord fail but I hate going to court and it's expensive and most of the time I won't get my money back soooo I have twice, allowed inherited tenants to use the deposit as last month's rent without following through with an eviction. Once, they had given notice before I took over, they were moving out of the area, they called and made the request in advance. They came back, got their stuff, cleaned and left the place nice. The second time I sent a notice to vacate as soon as I purchased due to significant damage seen on inspections, I offered the deposit back hoping to get rid of them with a minimum hassle (they had relatives in the neighborhood). They showed me proof that they had another place and I took a chance and didn't evict. They left the place a mess but I knew that was going to be the case. In both cases it would have cost me more to go through with an eviction than it did to make a "bad" and risky deal. I have been lucky though, in both cases had they not left or had they trashed the place further, eviction would have worked out better.

Akron U. Some drama-- one OD. Some have trouble paying rent over holidays.  Some are more responsible than others. I wrote a VERY detailed late policy that allows me to be flexible but still get paid (mostly) in a timely manner. I enjoy dealing with kids (even the pita ones). They are less fussy than old folks.

I have 8 one bedrooms rented to college kids

2 side-by-side ranch duplexes ( large one bedrooms) with shared parking rented to older gentlemen.

both properties rent well.

@Art Maydan

I would be EXTREMELY surprised if a judge allowed you to discriminate against a family that had foster children. The fair housing law prohibits discrimination based on "family status"  I would figure that "children" included foster children, children under guardianship, adoptive children, step children, and biological children. I think you'd be on really shaky ground and I wouldn't do it. But I'm not a lawyer-- you might want to check with a local lawyer before you go down that path.

The fair housing act does not allow you to discriminate against families with children so you can't charge extra because they have kids. In Ohio, you can limit occupancy in the unit based on the number of bedrooms. 

I just read Fannie is about to change the rules on DTI, maybe this will help you,

https://therealdeal.com/2017/06/09/fannie-mae-taking-a-friendlier-approach-to-debts/

Did you have to quit-claim the house to an ex? Perhaps you could offer an incentive to get them to sell so the mortgage will get paid off?

My son works in Westlake and lives in Lakewood. When he first moved to the area, his co-workers said to look west of 117th street and properties get more desirable as you move west. He loves living there. It's a very walkable, young, hip, area. He is renting a place on the far west side of Lakewood just before Rocky River. Also, water is very expensive there at least compared to Akron where I live and invest and the city charges an annual landlord fee.

My drain company charges $90 for the first drain but sometimes they find other pipes clogged when snaking a drain so there could be extra costs. Extra costs would be itemized by the company I use. 

I don't need new gutters but I am considering two different guard products: gutter brushes and gutter stuff foam. Does anyone have any experience with these?

Hi Hush,

Our bank requires 25% down on a commercial (non-recourse) 25year 5 year ARM. They calculate operating expenses at 50% of revenue. The deal must have a minimum debt service coverage ratio of 1.25. Plus they required us to document a fair amount of liquid personal assets to cover vacancies and other expenses for a worse case senario and to show a history of relevant business experience. You can probably get started much faster using w-2 income to obtain traditional residential financing (or even fha financing) on a 1-4 unit for a "house hack"