All Forum Posts by: Kyle Meyers

I received an application from a family for one of my units today and I am just finishing up the approval. They have several children, one of whom is 18 years old. Should I have the 18 year old sign the lease, or do I just list them with the other children in the occupants portion of the lease? How have others handled this?

I have had several prospects call and let me know up front they have an eviction on their record. Is there any time that you would accept them. I have been asking them the reason and letting them know I would see if I can get it approved. One prospect told me their eviction was for leaving before the end of their lease because they needed to move to help a family member. I think I would be willing to accept that reasoning, but I don't know how I would verify that story. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Sorry, I think I phrased my question incorrectly. I am not considering renting to tenants who are my friends, they are friends of each other. Sorry for the confusion.

Just had a couple of friends call me, they want to rent out a duplex so they would each have one side. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? I figure it will help with avoiding disputes between neighbors. Is there a downside?

Don't include internet in the rent. If they are buying directly from the internet provider any problems they have will not be with you.

With my first tenant, we signed the lease once she was approved even though she wasn't moving in for another month. I collected the deposit the day we signed the lease. Then, on the move-in day, I met with her for the inspection, collected the first month's rent, and gave her the keys. I don't know how everyone else handles it, but this seemed to work for me and her.

I would also recommend this book. I just completed extensive repairs on a rental property to make it rentable, based on my reading of the book, I believe that because there were so many repairs, it is considered an improvement and must be depreciated over 27.5 years. I did keep the costs of the appliances and the blinds separate from the other costs since they can be deducted over 5 years.

If they are say they are moving from another country and they don't want to see the property I assume it is a scam. I don't think anyone would ever want to pay for several months rent up front for a property without seeing it first. I get one of these emails almost everyday.

I wouldn't ignore people who are from out of the area. I have had several people contact me that are moving from a few hundred miles away, they are usually planning to make a trip and take a look at several properties before they make their decision though. The real clue to a scam is the desire to agree to rent a property without seeing it, once they say that I know the next email will ask me to accept a larger check and then pay their interior decorator, mover, security company, etc.

You need to get a W-9 and send him a 1099, he should not have extra taxes for the materials because he can deduct those purchases. I believe you can avoid the W-9 and 1099 process if he does less than $600 in work for you during the year, if the labor costs were only $600, it may work for you to buy the materials yourself and then you would not have to issue a 1099 because he would have done less than $600 of work for you. The tax law around 1099s has changed recently so I would check with a CPA to make sure this is right.

I was interested if anyone rents by the room? I have come across several renters who are looking for an inexpensive room to rent, and was wondering if you have ever tried renting a property by the room. Are there any legal issues with this? What kinds of things would I have to handle with arguments between the roommates? I assume I can get some additional rent by doing it this way, but not sure if it will be worth the extra hassles, or even if it is legal to do.