All Forum Posts by: Kevin Prentice

Real Estate Broker and Property Manager here in Beaufort, South Carolina. I can help......what specific questions do you have?

Hi Wade,

I'm a real estate Broker and Property Manager here in Beaufort, SC.  I can help with your Telfair property....contact me to discuss. 

Best regards,

Kevin   

I'm a real estate Broker and Property Manager here in Beaufort. Beaufort may be the best long-term rental market in the country. We have two military bases and a military hospital, here. It's litterly a revolving door of military families needing rental properties for 2-3 year periods at a time. Plus, the military provides them with a housing allowance. This means ---->>>>> (1) you know you're gonna get paid, (2) you're gonna get paid on time (3) AND they must take care of the property or the military gets on them. Additionally, supply is almost always low and demand is ususally high.

Jason,

I own a property management company here in Beaufort.  I can answer your questions, etc. Feel free to contact me.

Kevin

@Tess Tari    When you sent the "Non-Renewal Letter" did you send it registered mail / return receipt mail? If not, scan and email them a copy of the letter asap.  Otherwise, it's possible they could claim they never received the letter. Unlikely? Maybe. Possible? Absolutely. Some people call it CYA.  As you travel down the Landlord's "path of hell" learning curve over the years you'll come to realize the following:

Tenants are people. People look out for their own self interests. Put another way....To get what they want, tenants will kick Honesty, Integrity and The Golden Rule to the curb, so to speak. 

FYI.....regarding property inspections in this matter:

• The prior landlord should of handed the tenants a "move-in inspection report" the day they took occupancy.  He should of instructed the tenants to complete and return the report within 48 hours. The drill is to have the tenants go "room-to-room" and fill out everything on the report that either needs to be repaired or needs to be noted on the report for their own protection at move out. The report acts as a "baseline" for both Landlord and tenant. It keep both parties honest. Both tenant and Landlord then sign off on the Inspection report. Next step is for the Landlord to go over the information noted by the tenant and address any issues. There should be two copies of the report. The tenant gets one copy and the other "hard" copy goes in the file. You should also scan in the report and save it to the cloud on your computer. CYA....cover your a--
• You, as the new homeowner and Landlord with an inherited tenant should:

1. Get your hands on the file --- or a copy of ALL the contents within the file --- from the previous Landlord
2. Place the Security Deposit funds and any Pet Deposit funds in an escrow trust account
3. Conduct an immediate property inspection. Then have the tenant fill out an inspection report noting.....(see above)

Important:  If you have no information or documentation from the previous Landlord regarding the condition of the property when the moved in....AND.....you have no documentation of the condition of the property from the date you took over as owner/Landlord up until today, March 15th, then you're currently in a very weak position (that's putting it nicely). Should you try and deduct money for damages from their security deposit funds and it ends up in court?......could lead to you being up the creek without a paddle.  It would be my recommendation you send an email tonight (written notification) putting the tenant on notice of your intent to access the property for inspection. Remember:  it's always a good Landlord practice to guard against the worst case scenario. The importance/value of documenting everything via email pays off ten fold should you ever end up in small claims court.  Your ability to show written communication in court.......when your tenant can not?  Huge! Huge as in, "winner, winner, chicken dinner" when the judge serves up the verdict.

@Thomas S.  I've read your original post four times now and each time I go away more shocked than the last time!  If I was to gaze into a crystal ball to view your future,  I would certainly see a Fair Housing Act violation tattooed on your forehead.  Sorry, don't mean to be harsh but I am taken aback at what you wrote.  

"Off the top of my head and keeping in mind that we all have standards that may not be strictly legal....."   Wow! Stop yourself right there. IMO, your statement speaks to >>>>>>> Yes, I'm willing to break or bend the law to serve my self-interests.  

 Some people will say there are 2 types of people:  Those that see everything as either Black or White and those that also see some grey.  I happen to believe Property Management has it's fair share of grey, also.  I may be wrong but, that's just he way I see the world. BUT when it comes to the laws and qualifying prospective tenants, I believe:  .... There is NO grey when it comes to the laws and qualifying prospective tenants. Believing that keeps you out of trouble. It keeps you out of court. It allows you to retain your license, should be already be licensed. You want to disqualify an applicant? Do it lawfully. Don't bend the laws, it's not worth it.

Neck and facial tattoos? Restaurant workers? Low income immigrants? Bikers? Tattoo artists? Nationalities and their offensive smelling food?   The more I read what you posted the more I believe you're either a racist or a bigot....or both. 

Money is blind. It doesn't care what color you are, what you cook, your tattoo's, etc. You should be blind, also. You should be concerned with:  Do they pay their rent? Do they pay their rent on time? Do they take care of the property? Are they respectful to other tenants and to you, as Landlord? Do they contact you asap if there's a property issue to be reported. Care about those things.  

@Mindy Jensen    

"Property Management and Listing Agents have two very different skill sets."

What are those two different skills sets?  Do you believe an agent should stick to one or the other but not both? Do you believe it's possible to have to the skill set(s) to do both, well? 

Do you believe it's all about specialization? Aka, the  "right person for the right job?"

Or, do you think it could be more about the 80-20 rule? Meaning the pool of "top producer" type agents (the 20%) have the ability/skills/attention to detail, etc., to be effective in producing quality works in both fields?

@Matthew Kreitzer   Thank you for your post. Curious....have questions:

Regarding "tenants assertion" alleging breach on the part of the Landlord, AKA providing unsafe living conditions....  The landlord, Ann, had no prior knowledge of past asbestos in the unit, nor did she have prior knowledge of asbestos in the apt building. She is not an expert in detecting asbestos. The city did inspect the unit prior to the tenant moving in (whether that be her request or the city mandated it). The results of the city proved negative. With that being said, how could the tenant and/or his attorney successfully argue the Landlord "breached by failing to remedy the situation"???  How can you be guilty of failing to remedy a situation you were not aware of? What reasonable evidence/testimony could they use to support their argument that "she should of know about it?"

@Ann Wu   My first piece of advice is to read and study the Landlord Tenant Act for the state of Texas until you know it like the back of your hand. IMO, the smartest way out of this mess begins with you knowing the L/T Act for your state.

As I mentioned earlier I just got out of court on Tuesday with a tenant claiming sickness due to mold. The dynamics I dealt with were similar in nature to your current problem. Now mold is not asbestos and South Carolina is not Texas. But I believe my experiences --- especially what to expect should this end up in court --- would be helpful to you.

Bigger Pockets is a great resource. The posts and related advice are wonderful for many different reasons. You can learn what to do.....and what not to do. Up to now you've received helpful information......and you've also received some advice that has been AWFUL.

• There's an old saying, "hope for the best....prepare for the worst". The 2nd half of that saying is exactly what you must do. Start taking action immediately. Ask yourself,  "what's the worst thing that can possibly happen should this situation not go my way? Whatever that answer is take steps to ensure it doesn't happen. Preparation is the key to success. You need to prepare for the possibility this could end up in court. I seriously doubt it will but it's too important (financially?) for you to overlook that happening.
• Don't make the mistake of underestimating your tenant. Yes, he's likely a fool, an idiot, a drunk, etc., etc. Doesn't matter. Prepare like he's a genius. No matter how much a dolt he is remember, even a blind squirrel finds an acorn once in a while. Take note: he's already done something very important should this end up in court. That being his text message alerting you to a potential health risk. The court will likely interpret that as being "written notification".  A Landlord receiving written notification of a potential health risk? That's huge! As I said, you're dealing with asbestos in Texas.....As opposed to myself here in SC dealing with mold. Here in SC should a tenant provide written notification of a potential mold issue......as soon as that happens the "clock starts ticking", so to speak. You can choose to act......or not to act on those tenant claims but either way, that clock in counting down 30 days. You, as Landlord, have 30 days to remediate the (potential) issue. You can be proactive or reactive. Your decision. But if you roll the dice on, "this guys an idiot and the local asbestos guy tells me there's no way in hell that could happen"....Well, you better be right. Because if you're wrong and 30 days goes by and you haven't remediated the problem and this thing ends up in court.......that idiot drunk druggie tenant could own you to the tune of mucho money.   As for me here in SC with the mold issue? No thank you. Not going to roll the dice on that. Would rather pay $300 to my mold guy and get the property tested. Because when I go to court that is exactly what they're going to want to know, "did you have the property tested for a mold issue?"

To be continued......

@Ann Wu  Award for bad behavior?  Bad plan.   You pay this extortionist to go away and your subconscious "highest and best self" will haunt you forever.  Do you want to wake up each morning black, blue and bloody because you spent the night beating yourself up in your sleep because you paid this guy off?  NO, I think not.

Ann,  I just went through similar extortion attempt (aka MONEY GRAB) by a tenant over a mold issue. When I say "just" I mean "just"........as in the court case ended three days ago, Tuesday, March 8th.  I started a thread on BP titled,  "Landlord vs Tenant -- Anatomy of a Trial.  Feel free to wade through it. 

You have options here. Good options. There are laws and processes in place to help guild you out of this mess. Understanding your options, the law, the Landlord Tenant Act for your state, and then following the process "to a T" is the way to go. It's the longer route, but the best route. The shorter route can also work but IMO, at a much greater expense to your wallet, your conscious, your "higher self" and your quality of sleep at night.