All Forum Posts by: Lisa Hammond

Out of State? Many owners do this all the time, local or not. 

Have them send you a management agreement and review it, most of what you need to know is in there. 

Ask them when they issue distributions (anything before the 15th of the month is a red flag), do they require reserves, how is maintenance charged, do you see copies of outside contractor bills, do they upcharge materials (PM's have LAR accounts with Lowes and often get 20% off), do they keep all late fees or just the management fee, what other fees do they charge (renewals, inspections, etc), where are tenant security deposits held, how are evictions handled and are you consulted before filing, what screenings do they run, what qualifications do they require from tenants, ask for a couple other owners to visit with for a reference. 

We always consider gig employment so long as it meets our qualification of 3x the amount of rent and verifiable income for 1 year. 

Anything without emotion or discrimination - facts only. On time payments, late fees, damages, pets, who lived there, dates, amount of rent, and the secret weapon only if they ask (would you rent to them again?) must be a simple yes or no. 

There is nothing you can do. Yes it's a lease violation but show me a judge that will evict in this situation? Here in our county, there's very few and far between cases of eviction for anything other than non-payment. In this case, I would offer to let her out of the lease without penalty. She needs to be in a SFH.

Because if they've paid out all the available funds from that month's rent to expenses and to the owner, how are they paying out the remaining expenses through the end of the month? That's a red flag for some sketchy accounting because in my experience with a client that went through this and a PM company I interviewed, they were using Tenant Security Deposits to fund their business. 

When do you pay out Owner Distributions? Anything before the 20th of the month is a red flag. 

Review their lease and ensure you're ok with it. 

Ask about ALL their fees - do they keep late fees, lease renewal fees, etc. 

Ask how often they charge tenants for non-compliance repairs (not changing a furnace filter, tampons in the toilet, etc), ensure there's a process in place for it. 

Have them explain the leasing process to you. Do they meet the applicants or use Codex boxes? (non of my owners would ever agree to that) Call on one of their properties to set up a showing, go and review the leasing agent. 

Contact another owner who uses them and ask for a review. 

 The point is that if you say "no pets" they are now an ESA. If you say "no ESA" they are now a service animal. If you ask those two questions, they will answer yes and good luck to ANYONE who decides to question further or refuse or even dare to remind someone that it's a crime to misrepesent. End result, Airbnb hosts have to take them.

 Perhaps there's loopholes in those two states however, as soon as you say they can't bring an ESA then they will suddenly become a "service animal" and it's Aibnb policy that you cannot requirement proof, documentation, or anything else for service animals. https://www.airbnb.com/help/article/1869

 Yeah, not even a question, you are absolutely responsible. Just part of the deal man.