All Forum Posts by: Liwen Gu

I received this letter from the neighborhood community regarding my tenant in Denver CO (Littleton, Woodmar community if anyone is local) that goes like this:

" I am writing you in regard to your rental property .....(address) 

Since your renter moved in over a year ago, the property has suffered as well as the community. Your yard is in terrible shape and in need of care on a regular basis. Regular maintenance and upkeep on the house itself is not occurring.

Your renter disregards the covenant rules as well as Jefferson County laws. There has been a huge camper/fifth wheeler parked in front of the house for weeks now. Woodmar Square covenants state three days parking only. You are ultimately responsible for your property and are encouraged to let your renters know what is needed.

Please address these issues and contribute to your investment property and our community."

I've never received a warning like this and I'm wondering how seriously I need to take it? I forwarded a copy of the letter to my property manager immediately and he said the tenant has been great. The yard is suffering because of the heat. He's going to get back to me about the camper. I remember having the conversation about the camper when the tenant first moved in and we decided that he cannot park it at the house. Anyway, I asked my property manager to drive by the house and take a look. I'm willing to pay for any yard maintenance as needed because I really hate neighbor complaints. Two months ago, he suggested that I buy a lawnmower for the tenant to do his own lawn work so I don't need to hire lawn service so I did and I agreed not to increase his rent as a result of that. Anyway, thoughts/comments?

My initial reaction is that $2000/month mortgage seems is a little high for a rental. One question that I have for you is if it's easy to find good tenants in your neighborhood to rent it at $2400/$2600? I don't know your local market so it's a little hard to judge but last time I rented out a house in that price range, it was a little hard to get the ideal renters (for me the ideal renters are a family with a stable income that want to stay for 3+ years but if you think about it, why would a family want to pay that much for rent when they can just buy their own house). Of course, it's not impossible but it was just that last time I got applications from a group of adults (friends) who want to share a house instead of a family that I wanted. That was when I realized that expensive rentals might not be a good idea. 

Thank you for this post. When I first started reading it, I thought it was just going to be another success story, but it's a great lesson learned and thank you for sharing this with everyone! Also, if this happened to me, I think I would be absolutely devastated so I really admire your positive attitude.

what do you guys think about other commercial properties like office buildings?

I have a friend who is trying to sell his primary residence because he recently got a new job and is relocating to a different state. It is in very good condition (move in ready)  located in Aurora CO in a desirable school district. Please note that I am not an agent or a wholesaler. I'm just helping a friend sell his house. Asking for $380,000 for a private sale if he does not have to pay any agent fees. I think it is a decent rental for someone who wants a turnkey property. You can probably get around $2100/mo for it. That is just my personal opinion so please do your own due diligence. Since this is his primary residence and he is not an investor, there are no financial documents, rent history, etc. to provide. Please PM me if you are interested. 

Zillow link: https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_sale/54646039_zpid/39.624894,-104.72893,39.62184,-104.732792_rect/17_zm/1_fr/

@Jeff Wallenius is this house still available?

The fact that you're even thinking about all this at age 21 is great so kudos to you. I really like the idea of house hacking at your age if you are going to buy a home. It doesn't even have to be a duplex, could just be a single family house and rent out the bedrooms. After you're done with college and have a good paying job, you can buy something nicer for yourself and keep the first house as a rental. I'm not sure about "creative financing", just don't get into too much debt with high interest rates. Keep it simple and get a 4% 30 year loan if you can. Put some sweat equity into it. I've lived in Atlanta a few years ago and it seems like a great place for investment opportunities! I wish I had bought something back then. Good luck to you.

Are you legally allowed to refuse someone with a service animal according to the Fair Housing Act?

@Yash Bajpai you’re welcome. I really like it here in Salem. It’s a very family friendly place. Are you planning on moving here or just interested in investing?

@Ahmad Azad Can you please send me the details on the property you have in Portland?