All Forum Posts by: Kaycee Miller

What an unfortunate situation. My sympathies to the family of the deceased and my best wishes to you as you navigate this sensitive issue.

You need to continue communication with the family that originally contacted you. Let them know that they are still responsible for rent on the property for the remainder of the lease, but you are open to ending the lease early once the belongings have been cleared. You can let them know how much security deposit is held for the property and that can be used to clean the property if they release possession and agree to end the lease early.

You might also check with your insurance , some landlord insurances policies cover lost-rent, and I am not sure if that includes tenant death, but couldn't hurt to check.

Good luck!

Planning an inspection makes sense, then they can't avoid you in person. As long as you give proper notice, you have the right to enter the property even if they ignore your calls and emails. I would also suggested doing an official delivery of a reminder that their lease is expiring and the expected move out date and process.

If you live nearby, I'd say go for it. You'll benefit from getting a good team on board so the management goes smoothly. In order to minimize the amount of time you'll spend hands on managing, I suggest finding a good cleaning crew and an on-call handy man or maintenance company. The maintenance company might even work with short-term rentals and offer after hours service that your renters can call directly.  

It sounds like the PMC could be in breach of contract for not performing inspections as outline in your management agreement. But ultimately, it is the tenant who is responsible for the damage to the property and their security deposit would cover the cost of repairs. It also sounds like your current tenants need to cure any lease violations or move out. You should rely on your new PMC to perform an inspection, and issue the necessary lease violations. If you still want to move forward with a civil suit, have an attorney review your management agreement. 

I currently have a property under management with tenants that are not maintaining the exterior of the property, it's a neighborhood eyesore and the yard is horrible looking. It's not our managers fault, just disrespectful tenants. Every time our manager issues a notice they clean up the property just enough to avoid eviction and a couple months go by and the same issues creep up again. My state has very strict eviction rules so my manager and I feel like our hands are tied. I am just waiting for them to move and to use their security deposit to bring the property back to pre-move in condition. 

Ultimately it comes down to tenant screening and finding tenants that are qualified and have good financial and rental history, in order to find tenants that will respect your property. Good luck!  

The state I live in (Oregon) only allows a certain amount of rent increase each year, typically around 10%. We try to raise the max allowable amount each year so our properties are always within the fair market rate. We've purchased too many properties were the units are so far below market rate it takes a long time to bring them up. 

If your tenants are used to experiencing annual rent increases, they shouldn't mind too much. You could offer a rent discount for the first month if they've been good tenants. Or tell them you'd typically raise it by X amount and tell them since they have been good tenant you'll only raise it Y (when really you give them amount you hope for).

Sounds like you are trying to raise your rent by $450/mth. You could raise by 200 this year (just over 10%) and then $150 the following year to hit your goal. Just explain to your tenants the deal they are getting compared to other properties. If they can't afford it, you should be able to find residents that can. 

I agree with @TS Davis above, that small annual increases are the way to go.

Alternatively, you could do a small rent increase. And then just wait for your next vacancy and raise it the full amount to hit fair market rent between tenancies. Good luck! 

I would consider offering a rent discount for only a couple months, not for the entire remainder of the lease. Like @Jaysen Medhurst mentioned, you do not need to offer any sort of compensation, esp. since laundry is not a service mentioned in the lease.  But as an act of good faith, and to soften the blow of hearing that laundry is no longer available, a rent discount for a couple months would be nice. $50 seems adequate. 

Congratulations on your property! Keeping late fees is a fairly common practice in the PM industry.  I wouldn't worry too much about.  But you do want to pay attention to the company's overall fee structure.  Management companies may keep all, part of, or none of income associated with returned check fees, rental income for pets, lease violation fees, unpaid invoice fees, bill payment fees, or income from laundry or vending machines.

When assessing a property management company, make sure to ask specific questions about their fee structure and the services included. Consider the management company’s overall performance and decide if it is worth paying for all their services or if another firm would suit your needs better. As an owner, you also have the opportunity to negotiate contract terms.

Look for a property management software solution. These programs are essential QuickBooks for landlords, but with way more rental specific features.  Starting with a program now, when you only have a couple properties makes it much easier to learn.  There are several free versions available, and as your portfolio grows you can decide to explored paid options that give you more advanced features.  

We've let tenants paint before, letting them know we would use their security deposit to repaint the property to the original color at the end of their tenancy. Of course they choose to paint the bedroom, and ceiling, black. It took a ton of extra work to return the property to it's original color. Now my answer is to just say no. 

Just like @Michael Guzik says, stick to your screening criteria. An offer letter is not good enough proof to verify income. What if they didn't actually take the job? What if there are garnishments being withheld from their paycheck, that makes their available income less than what they say? 

Every renter knows they have to provide proof of income as part of an application process. If you are receiving push back on this totally normal landlord request, it is a red flag. 

I would be leery of even asking for bank statement if they wont show you proof of income with pay stubs.