All Forum Posts by: Lisa Wilson

Hello, 

My tenant texted me yesterday saying the AC was not cold. I texted my HVAC guy and we tried to figure out a time for the technician to visit the townhouse. The tenant works 8-5, as do I. Should it be the tenants responsibility to be there for the HVAC tech or is it mine?

I am in the middle of texting the technician and the tenant to figure out the best day and time. I'm thinking why am I doing this - they should be texting each other. And should I be taking time out of work to meet the HVAC (and the tenent is not home) or should the tenant?

How do you handle these types of situations?

Thank you,

LJ

Thank you everyone.

First, I'm going to review my lease. Next, I'll make sure they are clear on the fact that they are leasing/renting/paying as a household and one payment is required. If the full amount is not received the late fee is applied.

Thanks again.

LJ

Hi,

I am renting a townhouse to two individuals (an unmarried couple). Both of their names are on the lease.

One roommate has set up auto payment via our banks. She submits her half of the rent; I get a notification and "accept" payment. This is the first month she has done this.

The other roommate is sending a paper check.

My concern is that if I accept the electronic payment and then the other person does not pay or is late... if I have to go through the eviction process or charg a late fee... it could get tricky, right?

My question is, should I simply not "accept" until I get the papercheck. Because it's cleaner to accept full rather than partial payment? or does it not matter.

Thoughts?

Thank you in advance!

LJ

All - thank you so much for your feedback!

Sue Kelly - thank you for the template. I'm going to take this and run with it. Very helpful!

LJ

Hi,

I rented a townhouse to a couple in early Feb. Both names are on the lease.

Over the weekend, one of the individuals texted me saying that she wants out of the lease and she has moved out already bc the realationship turned abusive. She says the other person does want to stay.

The other tenent qualifies on their own and I'm ok drawing up a new lease with just the one persons name.

Does anyone have a document (form or template) saying that the tenent coming off the lease does not get their deposit back and when the other tenent moves out would receive the full deposit back (if eligible) ?

Anything else I am not thinking of? Any words of wisdom in this situation?

Thank you,

LJ

All - thanks again for your feedback!

Here is what we (my hubs and I) came up with...

She asked for $1k. We've offered $1050 and will hold firm.

Someone made the comment about avoiding the inevitable - not wanting to deal with a vacancy. Next year, market rates may increase and it will be harder for us to increase bc she is a good tenent. And then we will be in the same boat. She is semi-retired (fixed income). Therefore, she is not going to be able to continue to pay as the rents / market increases. We either deal with this now or next year.

If she does not meet us half way, she'll move but we will pro-actively start adverstise. I've negoitated with the realtor and got him down to 75% of 1st month rent. So, that takes out the sting too. If we can get the next tenent in quickly, we would be out $825 for the realtor and $275 for 1 week rent, total $1100.

My hubs and I are new at RE. This is the first time we've had a tenent move / talk about moving. I think this is putting us to the test. Hubs texted me "we're not going to be able to retire early if we're push overs".

I feel good about the decision. Thank you all for your help!

LJW

Thank you all for the quick and thorough responses.

I talked to our realtor and he said the townhouse could rent for $1050 - $1100. The tenent currently pays $1100. We earn $400/month positive cash flow. 

If she moved in June, we would keep the rent the same, $1100.

Jake - you're right. We could be proactive and have it rented before she moves. But we would still be out the realtor fee ($1100).

I'm leaning towards reducing the rent....

The following year reassess the area to see if rents increase. If so, I'd up the rent to market value which could make up for the realtor fee/time vacant.  

Any other thoughts?

Again - thank you all for your feedback.

Hi,

My tenent's lease is coming to an end in June. She has been on a year to year and has been an excellent tenent (pays on time, takes excellent care of home). She now works part-time (semi-retired) and asked if we would lower the rent by $100 for the following year.

At first I thought, "heck no". But if she moves, I would have to pay the realtor we use to find a new tenent which costs one months rent. In addition, we could be out (best case scenario) two weeks rent (we would need time to clean / get it ready to rent).

When I compare the loss of $1,200/year (reduced rent) vs. $1,650 (realtor fee + 2 wk rent), I'd be better off lowering the rent. My time and effort would also be negatively impacted if she moved.

I'm leaning towards lowering the rent.

Am I missing anything? Is there anything else that I should consider?

Thank you!

LJW

Thank you for the inspirational post. I especially like the reminders - taking action, being consistent, partnering with others, etc.

It doesn't seem like the title of the post, "Real Life of a Newbie Investor" matches the post entry. You don't sound like a newbie. On the contrary, you sound legit!

I was expecting a post that is similar to my experience as a "newbie" - daily trips to home depot, stalking craigslist to get an idea of rent in the neighborhood, showing up to work (my corporate 9to5) with paint in my hair, asking my husband every night, "is it worth it?" Yes, it's worth it!

Nice work fellow Newbie! :)

Hello,

I moved from San Diego, CA to Charlotte, NC in 2004. I have NO regrets. I was tired of being broke all the time.

When I moved to NC, the house I purchased was less expensive than my half of the rent of the crappy townhouse I was sharing. Since I moved, I've been able to buy/sell/buy my primary residence and 3 investment properties (only recently got started in RE). There are many companies headquartered here and they're hiring! You and your family are welcome in NC!  

Thanks.