All Forum Posts by: Linda S.

@James Bartlett,

Do open houses, say 2-3:30PM on Saturday.   I normally tell 1/3 of the people 2, 1/3 of the people 2:30, and a 1/3 of the people 3PM.    This way it staggers people.    I would strongly advise against charging a fee, it comes across like you are a scam.      You shouldn't have to put any money down to see a house.  Doing individual showings is a waste of time, unless it's 99.99% sure you're going with that person.  

Also people can apply to as many properties as they want through zillow.com, so it's not like it makes them a better candidate because they clicked that button.   I'd say the majority that apply ahead of time without seeing the place, don't even qualify and are just throwing darts in the air to see which one they can get, and aren't really serious contenders.

  Tell them the time, the ones that really want the place will show up!

@Da Shiek Woodard,

As someone who bought those cheap houses over the past 6 years, let me just remind you-- where ever you buy them-- they are cheap for a reason. My most recent purchase was a $17K cinderblock 1bd SFH with literately an inch of sewer it in-- the landlord wouldn't fix the sewer line. .. $5K later, I'm getting $725/mo, and the tenant is very happy everything is fixed.

 The reason is very likely deferred maintenance, and you'll be buying some's problems.      Go for value, and make sure, especially with cheap houses, you have a contractor/inspector do a full inspection so you know what you're getting.  A lot of people chase the cheap houses and then exit within a year when they realize how much it actually needs.   

Just remember-- it's not cheap because the other person is stupid, it's likely cheap because the seller is aware of all the stuff wrong with it and thinks that's the most they will ever get.

@Michael Leo,

One thing you have to remember, is if they have all been living with grandma--- do you think grandma was charging them anything?   Doubt it.  All of them are likely use to a lifestyle of not paying rent, or paying only a few hundred if that.   If they now to have to manage and take care of their own house-- rent bill, electric bill, internet, etc, it will be a change in lifestyle for them.  Personally, it always depends on the people-- and if they have say $5,000 savings, a paid off car, I   might consider it.   

Just be aware-- going from living with mom/grandma to living by yourself, it's a rocky change in lifestyle and budgeting.  If they could easily afford to live by themselves,  especially the man/gf/2 kids-- why didn't they ever go get their own house?   Think about the people and if they are responsible or not?   What's their job history?  It's so much more than just a computer program.  I definitely see a yellow flag. 

@Kim Huynh,

I completely agree with @JD Martin, this is for your PROPERTY MANAGER to deal with!  You're paying them to deal with the problems! 

Second, this reminds me of the tiktok about the guy in home depot who said "he was going to blow up the bathroom."   

If you self-managed like me, well I had a duplex tenant pull a gun on the neighboring pregnant tenant in January, really scary.      The best advice is encourage the one who is threated to file a police report, get a restraining order.   If the aggressor violate it, a judge will order them to move, and then problem solved.  This is a CIVIL matter between 2 people-- NOTHING TO DO WITH THE LANDLORD WHO JUST PROVIDES HOUSING.      This should be handled by the police-- NOT YOU.  I mean think-- worst case scenario, you kick the aggressor out,  then they blame the people  who got threatened, maybe they will seak revenge?    You don't be the bad guy-- let the POLICE and the LAW be the bad guy. 

My mentor strongly encouraged me to be neutral-- if you weren't there, you do NOT know what was said/done/why, it's messy-- but has nothing to do with you.      You are a landlord.   Let the tenants decide to file if they felt threatened or not-- this has nothing to do with you.

@Vlad B.,

It sounds like you bought duplexes, where the prior landlord had an absentee PM, and the tenants did whatever they wanted.   They got away with everything.   

It's VERY common to see this in C-/D properties, where the landlord only cares about rent-- as long as they get rent-- they never check on their properties, and it goes south fast.    I got a quadplex where they rented to a girl who was a local drug dealer (mom paid of the rent), all the other units complained about people coming in 1-5AM-- but when we got it, the PM gave me no warning-- just said she always paid on time.     Bad behavior has been accepted in your units for years, you coming in enforcing things will  honestly likely not work, to them-- it's the same place, why would they change?    Will your units be trashed?  Absolutely-- you should expect it from this type of tenant, this shouldn't be a surprise at all.   You're facing a battle I doubt you will win, and the amount of headaches and stress-- yikes!   Just wait for one of them to contact a lawyer and sue YOU about that mold, or wait for that pit bull to bite and injure another tenant (this happened to us at a property  we got with inherited tenants FYI!)--- bad tenants are going to be consistently bad tenants. 

Your best option IMO is to non-renew, start fresh-- remodel and have them be nice higher quality units.  Hire a different PM,-- clearly explain what you expect and demand inspections.   A clean slate with new tenants will be your best option with disrespectful inherited tenants.   Also-- be proactive with your property, if the roof is really old, or has a history of leaks-- it my be time to plan to replace it.   

@Nick L.,

I don't know TX laws, but in VA landlords only have to legally provide heat. Definitely figure that out ASAP or you'll be paying thousands in hotel bills. Why can't you buy some window units for cooling for the time being? Walmart still sells them, or you can also just buy them on CL/Marketplace. Tenant comfort is #1, being in a hotel will also put you possibly liable to be charged for meals too. If a hotel costs you $100, offer to pay the tenants say $50 night instead, most people would strongly prefer to stay in their homes!

Also, if it broke 6-months ago, and the band-aid fix didn't work long term, it sounds like it's time to replace the whole thing.    Ask local investor friends who they use for HVAC, and get a few other opinions-- it's worth it.   HVAC quotes can vary DRASTICALLY, but honestly $5K sounds very competitive!  

@Kyle Curtin,

The rental market is crazy now, and it's VERY common if people are interested to figure out the address, or if the address is posted-- to drive by slowly to check out the area, or even walk around the property to check it out.   If the property is vacant, and you're in a C-/D area, some people might even check the windows and doors to see if they are open, it's not unheard of-- would be VERY scary if someone lived there though!   Watch out for scams on your ad, scammers will tell people directly to go check windows and try and get in.  

I would put as the first line "OCCUPIED-- DO NOT DISTURB!"     Most people won't read the ad, but they will see the first line--  especially if it's bolded.

@Nathan Holt,

Keep social media light and positive, share  cute puppy pictures, funny tiktoks  and neutral topics.    Everyone has different opinions, and that's okay-- actually it's great, it what makes the world unique!    

 When it comes to being a landlord, if you chose to share on social media-- again-- keep it light, share the beautiful after pics!    You won't ever  "win" a discussion on social media, just going to piss off the other side.     If they are your friends, always be respectful.   If they are your close friend, private message and talk to them.. if they aren't a real friend, then de-friend away!

No one understands what it's really like to be a landlord--  unless you are one.  Lean on BP and your friends who are landlords to vent or talk about landlording topics, regular friends will NOT understand.  People often think it's unfair, like --why did you get lucky?  My personal favorite is when someone told me "you must have a rich husband."  People are a*sholes, welcome to life!

@Michael Nahm,

Watch @Nathan Gesner's video, it's 100% accurate.    The only thing I will add, is that it's not prolonged decades of smoking that destroys walls-- it can be  A COUPLE OF YEARS of allowed INSIDE SMOKING.  We had one inherited tenant-- the prior landlord said "Smoking inside is okay, you just have to wipe down the walls (IDIOT!)" and let me tell you, the room she smoked in for less than 3 years was BROWN/BEIGE.    The bathroom and guest bedroom where no smoking happened were  white walls. That's what it looks like, it's gross, and you will 100% have to do a primer  coat and then re-paint.   

That being said, if you do C/D properties, from my experience-- most people smoke.       I've found 95% of  units must be repainted with turnover if someone lives there +6/mo--- smokers or not.  In ones where people smoked outside, it didn't require primer, but again that's my experience.  So maybe I will be the outlier, but I wouldn't make this the determining factor.  Make it clear about it being a non-smoking house, and the fees associated-- I tell people straight up-- "if you smoke inside, I end terminate the lease."       Chances are, you'll just pick someone who says they didn't smoke and will smoke outside.    Look at the big picture, and what's most important to you in a tenant.   You can tell a lot with how someone presents themselves, communicates, and their history.  You can also do check ups, you can't hide the smell IMO, and another obvious thing is to move a picture-- you can't hide damages.

@Vicente Vitela,

Personally, I think they're selling a dream, and why should you pay money for what can easily be found on BP or through networking?    I say go to the LIBRARY and rent some books for FREE, read maybe 10-15, listen to podcasts, educate yourself, and then see if you feel like you need to spend thousands on mentoring?       If you go to the local meetings, and just state that you're looking for a mentor, and want to help them however you can--  this is worth WAYYYYYY more because they'll be able to help you with contractor recommendations help show the ropes!  

People who have done this a million times find it to be easy (and not to mention are probably the best at it!), and especially once very successful, are willing to help new investors!