All Forum Posts by: Mark Forest

When I had a major loss on a SFH my insurance agent said since I was insured at actual loss instead of replacement value they would deduct depreciation. He said that since my house was more than 50 years old it could not have been insured at replacement value. I called other agents in same company who described creative ways my house could have been insured at replacement value. So yes the agent does matter, but how does one know in advance?

Thank you to all who contributed. Do any Michigan landlords know if state laws have changed on this? 

@Account Closed  Any record, but I guess I am particularly concerned with violent felonies.  I used to believe that this was a legal reason to deny a prospective tenant, but I have read some landlords saying they think this has changed.  However, i have not read anything definitive. 

What is the current law on refusing to rent to prospective tenants who have criminal records?  Thank you in advance.

I noticed that investors buying certain retail stores and seeking finding offer good returns. There must be good money to be made in these stores. Many of them have triple net leases. How does one get involved in buying stores?

@david dachtera: Whenever I hear "always hire a licensed pro" I know I am talking to either a licensed pro or a landlord that does not make any money.

I assure you that ANYONE  can do a simple dryer hookup. Instead of one black power wire you have two power wires. Don't over complicate or be intimidated by simple fixes. Electricians and plumbers can easily eat up 50 to 100 % of a months rent. Don't let them!!! They have you suckered into believing a cliche. 

A dryer should have 10 gauge cable and a 30 amp breaker. If it did not have that I could see the wire burning and/or the breaker triping. I do not understand how having a smaller cable could burn out the dryer.

By the way, this is an easy DIY fix. Please don't pay these contractors such high prices for merely running cable and installing it  into an outlet and breaker. That only encourages these shysters.

Michael i cant find your blog. I would appreciate a link to it. Thank you.

What do you all think about buying self storage buildings? There would be no tenants complainig about leaky anything and i imagine eviction is simply cutting off the lock and disposing of their stuff. The only down side is you have to put someone on payroll to be there during the day to fill out rental contracts and answer questions.  However i would think that a creative owner could automate some of that. Just want some opinions of self storage ownwership especially from those of you who have experiance in this business.  Thank you as always.

How do i prevent them from seeing everything I have in Google Drive?  Sorry I have never done this and need some guidance.  I do have a Google drive account.