All Forum Posts by: MIchael G.

@Marc Weisi - Thanks for the thoughts.  I can only say I am lucky that I have a No Subletting clause in my lease and I just expanded upon it.  Ultimately, unless you are in the apartment all the time; which you wouldn't be, how are you going to know someone on the couch has an evil agenda - to not pay rent and stay as long as you can.

I have already taken steps that will be the new protocol going forward.

1) Tighten up the lease and add additional emphasis on the NO SUBLETTING clause.  Also make it clear to prospective tenants.

SUB-LET: Resident may not sub-let the Premises or assign this Lease without the prior written consent of Management. Resident(s) shall not assign this Agreement, or sublet or grant any license to use the Premises or any part thereof without the prior written consent of Landlord. Consent by Landlord to one such assignment, subletting or license shall not be deemed to be a consent to any subsequent assignment, subletting or license. An assignment, subletting or license without the prior written consent of Landlord or an assignment or subletting by operation of law shall be absolutely null and void and shall, at Landlord’s option, terminate this Agreement and start the eviction process of all Resident(s) and occupants.

If subletting is approved by the Landlord, a one-time fee of THREE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($300.00) PER SUBLET, is assigned to the lease. All subletting individuals are required to submit an application to the Landlord for evaluation and screening. Landlord reserves the right to reject any sublessee that does qualify. If any sublets are initiated by Resident(s) without the prior written consent of the Landlord, for each individual sublet, Resident(s) will be assigned and responsible for the subletting fee, for each sublet, spanning the entire term of this Agreement.

2) I use tenant cloud which is free and awesome in ensuring all documentation is in one place and easily available in the event an eviction is required.  They even allow you to send via email all late notices, etc.  Really happy about that software right now.

3) I tried cash for keys, but I only offered 1,000...in hindsight, I would've offered 3,000 to start now as she may have taken that and between time and cost, 3000 is better then 3 months of no income, lawyer fees, my time, etc.  Lets be realistic.  An eviction can cause - at least in my case almost 10,000 - 13,000 in lost rent, legal, damage to apartment, etc.  I am still in court because this scumbag keeps adjourning, holiday breaks in the court, etc.

4) Spend more time in court - I think a big part of the problem is that I did not know what to expect, and was nervous about the situation.  Sitting there for one day opened my eyes as I did not see the evil landlords, but good guy landlords that gave a deadbeat a break and then they took advantage of that persons generosity.  I also saw those that think they can do this on their own make stupid mistakes and suffer for it in the court.  There are a lot of evil people out there and you are just a means to their end of free rent.

5) Accept that you have NO power.  yeah you can send notices, drive prices, but at the end of the day, you own a liability that will not always be a resource.  That being said, its all part of the game and even if you do everything right, you cannot always determine peoples actions and how they will impact you.

6) I increased my insurance rather then paying for the cheap coverage.  again people are capable of doing anything.  When you have a liability - treat it as such and cover yourself as best you can for the unexpected.

Beyond that...I wish prices were cheaper so I could get another good cash positive property :) 

Hope that helps!  Good luck everyone!  Ill come back when I get back from court next week....

I guess it’s all risk verse reward.  Dealing with the city is not fun - speaking from experience... they eventually catch up with you which is unfortunate.  I’m currently dealing with a squatter who a tenant allowed to stay on their couch and then couldn’t get rid of.  He moved out and she said she’s not leaving without a court order....how’s that for a response to who are you and what are you doing in my house!!! She already called building department, health department and made false claims so she can stay and not pay rent.  Imagine this happens and you just so happen to have an apartment not registered.  Luckily I do not but the point is when you have people in your home the amount of control you have is greatly reduced and sometimes sh1t happens.  Just saying :)

oh and for the air bnb idea I think they put an ordinance in to fine anyone running one in uc. Not sure but I think I recall hearing that.  Also if you’re planning construction do it by the book or be discrete.  The building department will go after you.  Also make sure it’s a true 3 family. When taking tenants you can really get screwed if it’s an illegal apt. I use to care about saving people money by doing no fee listings.  Screw that... the quality of people just isn’t what it use to be so I send my listings to Hoboken now and try to get their spill over. Anyway.. good luck!!

I own two properties in union city supporting 4 units.  Couple problems but there are pros to buying in that area.  Some of the bad include that the taxes are higher then the heights and most areas on the Hudson.   Also the resources are built to support the lower income folks... many which are Not good people but can take advantage of the system.  Think about it like this.. they provide squatters with an attorney for free from the mayors office... the city spends a lot of money on fixing the streets and infrastructure and all the people that go along with it which is great but results in higher taxes every year.  The water bill and sewer bill is separate and often rediculous in cost... parking is terrible just like everywhere else on the Hudson.. commute to nyc is the golden ticket and rents have been rising especially in the past 5 years.  1 bedrooms going for 1200-1500 for average apartments. 2 bedrooms 1600-2200 

So if you get the property cheap and can get decent cash flow with the high taxes then it’s a good deal for the future.  The heights isn’t much different and prices have skyrocketed there so union city will have its turn as well.

welcome to the sanctuary state of New Jersey. Where losers like this person get legal support to screw innocent people.  It really boggles my mind how if you steal a car cause you like it, it’s a felony but if you steal an apartment, utilities, etc you have to go to court and cannot ruin this persons life.  Merica

It’s just getting better.  Just received a summons that I harassed her and now I need to go to go to court.  I never spoke with her.  She’s trying everything. What a pro.  An evil pro.  Ejectment filed.  let’s see what happens.. funny how you have no recourse but to wait it out...sucks but it’s part of the game.

problem is they have free lawyers and if they know the game you can get totally screwed...

Will do. 

So far here are the lessons learned..

Cash for keys - might work but the people that are true squatters have an agenda. To stay somewhere for free as long as possible.

If the person was a tenant I would have to start the eviction process which would take some time considering the tenant rights as part of the lease.  It would begin with notice to cease followed by notice to quit and other logistics. Either way be mindful of your property because people will use all of the municipalities to try and create cause for non payment to delay eviction.

There are advocates that Our tax dollars pay for that will legally represent these sick people.

An ejection is when someone who is not on the lease but is staying in the apartment when they have no rights is what is filed. 

Ejection in nj costs about 2000-3000 and will be followed by by a Sherrif removal and lock change which has to be scheduled after the ruling.

If the original tenant lives with these people but wants to get out anyway. Work with them to prove their mistake by letting them in by writing a violation of lease letter outlining how they broke the terms and apologize. 

Then create a mutual agreement to terminate the lease.  Now you do not need to evict and go straight to eject. In this case if I had to evict the tenant and she stayed I’d have to eject after wards.  Now that might not be 100% correct so if anyone can touch upon that please do.

ha yeah feels like it at times.  Let the courts do their thing. 

folks more fun

So I tried to do a cash for keys option before pulling the trigger.  Wrote up a return of possession agreement.  Had the tenant give to our squatter.  She said nah.

Called the lawyer and dropped the 2500. 

Feeling better about this I go about my day till another tenant calls and says she called the building department on me.  This person is running through a playbook to try and find anyway that she can go to court and say I’m not leaving because he has a place in violation of something.  Luckily there is no violation but I am waiting to see what else she is going to do.  Will keep updating as this goes.  Enjoy