All Forum Posts by: Jorge Caceres

Zillow is good platform for taking applications and for posting your listing. Applicants pay a one-time application fee, which is valid for 30 days, allowing them to apply to multiple properties within that period using the same fee. As a landlord, Zillow provides you with a background check, credit score, and a well-formatted application for each applicant. Your property is also listed in multiple sites owned by Zillow, and is free! Depending on your property's location, setting a minimum FICO score is advisable. A FICO score requirement of 650 or higher, along with at least three years of consistent income that's 3X the monthly rent, are also a good ideas. These are just guidelines and may need to be adjusted based on your property's location and class. While these criteria work well for Class A and B properties, they might not be suitable for Class C. Personally, I believe it's preferable to have stricter requirements and wait for a qualified tenant. The payoff is worth it in the long run with reliable, on-time rent payments and tenants who are more likely to stay long-term, and take care of your property.

0 Votes

I agree with everyone else—this is a huge red flag. Social engineering is everywhere, and some people are really good at making you believe what they want you to believe. Be careful!

0 Votes

Raleigh, North Carolina

Regarding the Zelle versus Avail issue, I would advise choosing your battles wisely - as with many aspects of life. Finding good tenants who pay on time and care for your investment property is invaluable. I wouldn't recommend beginning your new landlord-tenant relationship with a dispute over payment methods. The fact that you described this tenant as "a good tenant of 5+ years" is what I would focus on. Those are not that easy to find. Work with them to ensure they feel comfortable with you as the new property owner.

2 Votes

Chicago, Illinois

When choosing tenants (I am in California), it's important to avoid even the appearance of discrimination, especially during in-person meetings. Set clear and consistent application requirements so you can base your decisions on solid facts. For example, require a minimum FICO score of XXX, gross monthly income X times the rent, and verifiable income for the last X years. This way, when you meet with applicants, you can explain if they don't meet the minimum requirements, and if they do, you can then consider their application further.

1 Vote

Quote from @Aaron Wolman:

General question, I am turning over my first rental and I got the charges from my contractor on damage done and I want to see peoples opinion.

Security Deposit: 2600

Lease states no smoking/painting walls/no hanging things on walls

Tenants have moved out and have left two truck loads of garbage to be removed.

Damaged door

Painted walls which got on the ceiling and trim

Lots of holes on the walls throughout the house

Damage from windows being left open constantly

Weed was clearly smoked in the house (smell throughout the place) so we need to deep clean

Water bill wasn't paid so I had to turn back on utility

Missing key

Quoted costs:

$450 junk removal (some furniture)

$935 for damaged doors/windows, painting cleaning

$30 for utility turn on

Tenants were only there for a year before moving out so a lot of this is beyond normal wear and tear. Looking for peoples opinions if the quoted costs are fair to take off the security deposit.

TYIA

You are absolutely within your rights to deduct all that from the security deposit. You also mentioned an unpaid water bill, so be sure to deduct any outstanding balance from that bill as well.

0 Votes

Wilkes Barre Scranton, Pennsylvania

Quote from @Colleen F.:

@Jorge Caceres Is this with electric baseboard heaters or heat pump/minisplits. We did get much lower costs when we changed to minisplits but the initial cost is high.

Central HVAC unit, very expensive to run.

0 Votes

Quote from @Alecia Loveless:

@Jorge Caceres When we have to include heat in our rent we just raise the price accordingly to the max comparable amount that other similar units are getting.

I’m not sure you can reasonably expect that you are going to recoup 70%-100% of the heat/AC costs. It’s just the nature of the beast.

With MTR you are probably just going to be stuck.

With my LTRs I have been switching to all tenant paid utilities after my first winter where I discovered the majority of my tenants were setting the heat at 78 (which is unreasonable in Northern New Hampshire) and leaving their windows open in -20 degree weather.

Best case scenario for you maybe do a “utility allowance “.

@Alecia Loveless Thanks for your input. I do the same for my LTRs, tenants have to get their own utility accounts and they are fully responsible. This will be my first MTR.

0 Votes

Quote from @Alan Asriants:

$1000/m for heating costs? are you sure? I would get that looked at. But again im not from cali

Sadly that is a very real number in California @Alan Asriants. Maybe for a newer construction is not but older homes (<1970), it is real. Winter's are cold and summers are hot in northern Cali.

0 Votes

Quote from @Patrick Paige:

@Allen Duan Has a great point that I fully agree with (look at from tenant's perspective). I cannot fathom having a MTR that required the family we are hosting to setup their own utilities.

Thanks @Patrick Paige, all good points. Appreciate your input.

1 Vote

Quote from @Chris Seidler:

Quote from @Jorge Caceres:

Quote from @Chris Seidler:

Our medium term lease covers utilities but includes a cap for electricity. Its generous and I don't think anyone would go over it with normal usage. If someone was over during a high consumption month I'd give then a notice/warning for the first month along with some energy consumption tips then tack it onto the rent.

Thank you Chris for the reply. How did you come up with the cap amount? average +/- a percent?

This property is in the mountains and has electric heat, so the main bill comes in the winter when the heat is running.

We took the highest month of "normal" winter usage we had records on -- people in the house, heat running at a reasonable temperature, washer/dryer running, etc. We then added about 50%, rounding up to a round number. That's our cap.

The only time we have seen an electric bill higher is when contractors were in there working and using a ton of electricity for industrial heaters for a month. I think you'd really have to work hard by mining bitcoin, leave the windows open in winter with heat on full blast, or something similarly unusual to exceed the cap.

Thanks @Chris Seidler for that info

0 Votes

All Forum Posts by: Jorge Caceres

Jorge Caceres has started 6 posts and replied 45 times.

Post: New Landlord: How to Screen Tenants & Attract More Applications

Post: Potential tenant doesn't want us to call HR

Post: New Landlord - Tenant Refusing Payment Method

Post: When to approve tenants?

Post: First Turn over

Post: Utilities included worth the risk?

Post: Utilities included worth the risk?

Post: Utilities included worth the risk?

Post: Utilities included worth the risk?

Post: Utilities included worth the risk?