All Forum Posts by: Jen R.

All my rentals are in Summit County. The ACREIA group is very active and a great resource for investing in the area. There is also a BP meetup that gets together in Stow, though I have not yet been able to attend that group. 

An update on this for any Akron landlords!

https://www.cleveland.com/akro...

An update on this: the panel on evictions in Akron is having a meeting on Monday, Feb 24 at 5:30pm at the Akron Library, 60 South High Street, Akron, Ohio. Free to attend, though they are encouraging registration on Eventbrite (I’ll try to post the link below). Seems like it would be good for as many local landlords to be present as possible! Either my husband or I will be attending.

From the description:

Why does Akron have the highest eviction rate in the state? The Sound of Ideas will explore this trend with some help from the community. In Akron, an average of almost seven renters a day are evicted from their homes. The city has the highest eviction rate in the state and 24th highest of any city in the nation. The Sound of Ideas, hosted by Mike McIntyre, will go on the road to hold a community conversation about this trend and how the community is responding.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/t...

The rule change was supposed to go into effect last Friday, but they’ve postponed it until end of the month in order to extend the public commenting period (see article linked below). What is interesting is the court even released a statement that they don’t expect the new rule to decrease the number of evictions. 
If you’re a landlord in the Akron area and haven’t yet written, this is a good opportunity to express your thoughts on the matter to the courts. Also, perhaps an opportunity to cry foul on Ms. Green-Hull’s statement regarding Akron rental rates!

https://www.cleveland.com/cour...

@Nate Richards - looks like the change to the eviction law will take effect tomorrow, Jan 17th. The Beacon Journal article says that Akron mayor Horrigan will be hosting some kind of “landlord council” to discuss the high eviction rates, but it seems that is separate from the rule change. 

Link to Beacon Journal article: https://www.google.com/amp/s/w...
And another from Cleveland News: https://www.news5cleveland.com...
Also, I’d love to know where in Akron the rents have doubled from $1000 to $2000 in the past year. Most of my 3 bedroom rentals are in Cuyahoga Falls, and I don’t get nearly that much, nor has there been a doubling of rents since I started investing in the area 4-5 years ago.

“"In just the last year, rents have almost doubled in just the city of Akron alone, so a unit that was a three-bedroom unit that would be $1,000 for a family a year ago, is now renting for about $2,000, $2,200," Green-Hull said.”

Any Akron investors see the recent articles about the city’s new proposal? Apparently Akron has one of the higher eviction rates in Ohio (and even nationwide), and there is a proposal out that would allow judges to seal eviction records so that landlords can’t access that info when conducting tenant screening. The rule is being proposed in order to “blunt the impact” of the high eviction rate. In other words, let’s not find the root cause as to why tenants stop paying rent; instead we’ll punish landlords who for some reason only want to accept tenants who have a history of paying their rent....
Anyone else writing a letter or planning to attend the mayor’s forum on this issue?

“Public comments on either rule change must include a name, email address and mailing address. They may be...mailed to Montrella S. Jackson, Esq., CCM, Court Administrator, Akron Municipal Court Harold K. Stubbs Justice Center, 217 S. High St., Suite 713, Akron, OH 44308” (there is an email address as well, but the forum rules won’t let me post it).

@Eli Gilbert each city can set its own limit. If you’re investing in Cleveland area, check out Appendix B in this document for a handy chart which breaks down the occupancy limits for several areas surrounding Cleveland: http://www.thehousingcenter.or...

Sharing an article I just read that I thought would be of interest to the community, especially considering the confusion surrounding this issue. Hopefully good news - looks like HUD will soon be issuing more restrictive guidelines for what actually qualifies as an emotional support animal (the article references "service animals", but it's obvious from the language following that they are also referring to ESA's). An excerpt from the article:

"Lynn Grosso, director of HUD's Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Enforcement Office, told the Land Use, Property Rights & Environment Committee that a predatory cottage industry has developed for assistance animal certifications. Consumers are being misled to believe that an online verification letter—often provided by unlicensed medical professionals at a cost of a few hundred dollars—guarantees them the right to have an animal in multifamily housing regardless of pet policy...HUD is developing new guidance that will address for the first time what "reliable verification" means as it pertains to tenants' service animal requests. It's not clear when the guidance, which is currently under federal review, will be released....[it] also will address exotic animals such as alligators and the number of animals each individual tenant can request in their unit."

Let’s hope it comes out sooner than later, and actually clarifies the issue. It’s about time...

Full article: https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2019/05/15/hud-to-strengthen-landlords-rights-in-service-animal-requests

You can try disputing the appraisal. Do you have recent comps that justify the higher value? Look at the comps the appraiser used and see if they are truly “comparable”, or perhaps he was lazy and pulled comps that were all somewhat distressed properties. If you can get the bank to order a second appraisal, make sure you give the appraiser a list of all the updates/repairs you have made since owning. I usually pull some of my own comps to provide as well.