All Forum Posts by: Josh Frye

Thanks guys. This kind of goes in line with my thoughts that it would be more difficult and I would get less if I try to sell now vs waiting.

I currently have a rental townhome with a tenant under lease. I am exploring the option of selling the property as I don't want the landlord responsibility anymore. Since I have a tenant under lease that would limit me to sell to an investor that would keep the lease intact. This seems like a very limited buyer pool. Anyone have any experience with this or any recommendations?

She's already made it clear even if I do pay them they aren't going to be happy either way so I'm not convinced there will even be peace even if I do pay them. I am just more wanting opinions to make sure I am not thinking about this the wrong way.

I would like to have peace with them that is why I am going through this process instead of just putting up a fence. I think it reasonable to pay for the removal of their fence and I even offered to help them sell their fence and they keep the money but they also want me to hand them $450 on top of that...

I just purchased a brand new construction house. The neighbors on one side already have been living there and have a chain link fence. We are going to get a white pvc privacy fence because we both have 2 dogs each so we will have problems with them barking and causing problems so we opted to pay more to get the privacy fence. We approached the owner's of the house about removing their fence and we would put ours up in it's place so that we didn't have a fence right next to another fence since that will make the in between area hard to maintain and it will be an eyesore for them. We originally agreed to paying them $450. Well apparently there was a miscommunication and they are wanting us to pay them $450 and pay to have their fence removed, and they keep their fence and get to sell it and keep whatever they get from it also. This is not what I thought we agreed to. Personally I think this is a bit much. I can see paying to take their fence down but why am I paying them $450 for their fence that they are going to sell anyway?? They straight up said they don't want to do either but they have no choice so they would rather we pay them than have to look at a fence next to a fence. I think they are being unreasonable and I'm trying to get some opinions on this. I could just put up my fence and save myself some money but I'm trying to be a good neighbor and they really don't seem to want to be a good one in return.

Thanks! Actually according to Iowa law the first 5 years interest are mine according to the above text.

Also is there any regulations on the rent payments? Currently the mortgage and HOA dues auto deduct from my personal account so if I deposit the rent payment checks to that account is that a problem? I haven't seen anything on this. It seems it would be better to separate this also?

I have researched this topic and just need a little further verification from more experienced professionals than myself. I will be renting out my first property. When I receive the security deposit I understand that the funds must be deposited and not commingled with my personal funds. Now I have an account with a bank and have multiple accounts within that bank. So if I were to open another savings account within that bank would that be considered commingling or do I need to open this account in a separate bank? The reason being is I can see all of my accounts from the same login screen online and I can easily transfer money back and forth so I don't know if that would be considered commingling or not. Here is the Iowa law on the issue:

562A.12 Rental deposits. 1. A landlord shall not demand or receive as a security deposit an amount or value in excess of two months’ rent. 2. All rental deposits shall be held by the landlord for the tenant, who is a party to the agreement, in a bank or savings and loan association or credit union which is insured by an agency of the federal government. Rental deposits shall not be commingled with the personal funds of the landlord. Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 543B, all rental deposits may be held in a trust account, which may be a common trust account and which may be an interest-bearing account. Any interest earned on a rental deposit during the first five years of a tenancy shall be the property of the landlord.

Thanks for the help! Great site with helpful people! I have considered setting up an LLC but as of right now this is the only property I will be renting and I don't know that it would be necessary right now. Plus since I have a mortgage on the property I am aware of the due on sale clause which I know is very unlikely but still is a possibility so I don't that an LLC would be an option anyway so for time being I just planned on having the funds in an account under my name.

Thanks for the input guys. I did plan on having her fill out financials on the app so I would determine if she can afford the place or not. Obviously the credit report will shed some light as well.

I do also think if I were to rent to her that a year lease would be the best option to protect myself in case she does have financial troubles though so that is a good idea. I am not sure about the Eviction law here so I will need to look into that. 

I am going to rent out my townhome and am a first time landlord so I am coming here for a second opinion. I have been listing my townhome for a a few weeks now and I have had one person come look that is very interested. She is about a 45 year old lady that works in the Medical Examiners office here. She wants to sign a longer lease (3 years) as she wants to stay where she moves for a while. She currently has lived in her house for 25 years and her husband died years back and has fallen behind and will either short sale her home or foreclose. She was honest and upfront on this before I ran anything on her. I do believe she is an honest person but I also think it's probably not a good idea to rent to someone who is in this situation. I do like the fact that she is older and will probably respect the property and that she wants to sign a long lease so I don't have to worry about tenants coming in and out. But that issue with her house is holding me back. Should I just move on? So far I haven't had much luck because the association's rules have limited my tenant pool somewhat but I am sure I would get it rented out but so far no luck.