All Forum Posts by: Mario B.

Hi @Herbert Richards glad to see a fellow CT member!  I'm in Stamford, very interested in the Bridgeport market, clueless on it but I hear there is great money to be made.  I'm also interested in the New Haven market, around Yale.   

This opportunity is out of my budget but I would love to connect with you on 2-3 family rentals.  I'm in the process of getting a home equity line, once it's approved I would have access to fast cash.

@Account Closed I would address everything in an email, print the e-mail and add it to their file.  E-mail them photos of everything, final account statement with charges, and asking them for their forwarding address so you are covered and there is a record of you attempting to send it. If you have outlook maybe try attaching a send receipt or read receipt, maybe they'll actually click it.

@Samantha Klein this! Yes when a renter doesn't provide their forwarding address my management company sends the deposit check back to their last known address, our apartment complex.  When the resident calls for a status update, I kindly let them know that they didn't provide a forwarding address but their check is in our office safe, I can send it to whatever new address they want.  @Account Closed Do they have e-mail accounts that you can reach out to?

@Tabitha J. a huge topic and one with many answers, however I think @Kyle McCorkel gave a great answer.  I'm reading the book set for life, I highly recommend it.  The book talks about your spending habits and becoming very conservative with spending aka frugal.  It breaks down the % of what your check should be going to.  I own 2 properties, one has a 12% return but not paid off, and the other I live in.  I pay the bare minimum on my rental and take the cash flow and apply it to my mortgage in an effort to pay it off as quickly as possible, it's a small two bedroom condo.  My mother in law lives with me and helps with the mortgage each month to the tune of $600.  When I get my rental property paid off, I'll make about $1000 a month.  If I don't carry a mortgage on my home and my rental is paid off, I live a very frugal life, I can essentially quit my job, suck the equity out of both properties reinvest them in rentals and continue my journey, providing my own funding. I could also sell my 2 bedroom condo and live like a hippy in a VW van traveling the rest of my life.  It's all dependent on the life style you want to live an maintain.   

@John Kunick Great suggestion, a vetting period for new tenants, I didn't think of that.  Venmo discourages utilizing the app for selling items to strangers, as the transaction can be cancelled thus allowing the scammer to get the item and never pay.  Although with a rental you know where to find them, lol.  Venmo customer service isn't great either, just playing Devil's Advocate.  I still use it and haven't had a problem yet, but there are articles on alternatives.  I get a txt when I receive funds, it's great!  

@Account Closed Bed Bugs are hard to diagnose, many don't know what they are.  A large percentage of people don't even know they have bed bugs because only a small percentage react to the bites, it's very alarming.  I highly recommend having a bed bug addendum or mention of it in your lease.  My previous company had a 9 page lease which I thought was bullet proof.  My new company has a lease that's about 35 pages, it's very eye opening, and I will be utilizing it for my next renter.  There are so many grey areas for landlords, the only way to protect yourself is with a sound proof lease, photos, videos, etc. and even then you may miss something.  A rule of thumb for treating bed bugs is to treat the affected unit, and inspect the unit above, below, on the sides, and across, that's what we did when I managed a hotel.  

I 2nd venmo @John Kunick I just started it with my new tenant, I love it!  Venmo saves me so much time.  

A friend of mine has a checking account that their tenant deposits into, the account is only for the rent, it's not connected with anything else. 

The management company I work for utilizes a payment software, rent cafe.  The renter sets it up with their routing and check number, and they can set it for automatic payments.  The money is then transferred to my ownership.   

@Account Closed It's hard to prove where bed bugs start, a reason why my company actually has an addendum for it!  It states that the unit was inspected prior to the resident moving in and they initial that it's bed bug free.  Without this addendum to your lease, your out of luck.  If you have an addendum that says it's shared, take it out of their deposit.  Take photos, document everything, if it's gets disputed you need that evidence.  I would treat every unit. I was a housekeeping manager for years and they are no joke, something you don't want to try to fix yourself to save money.  Do your research and hire the best company out there, don't skimp, it will only bite you in the *** (see what I did there).  

@Michael L. thank you for sharing your perspective.  It sounds like you've had a rough ride and your heart wasn't in it to begin with, a reason why so many don't venture into real estate or want to become a landlord, I hear it all the time.  If you make a great salary and don't need the headaches of real estate, you are blessed.  I truly believe that you can be completely hands free of real estate and still invest if you have the right people you can trust, another headache in itself finding the right people, but just like starting any company, once you find the right people it makes everything easier.  Best of luck to you.  

@Rachel N. look at the positive side, you found BP.  Some people never find it, or never come to the realization that you are coming to.  It's like pulling a bandaid off, it may hurt in the short term, but long term it will pay off.  I'm in the position I am today because of the guidance of my father, if it wasn't for him I would be paying rent right now or have bought the biggest house I could afford.