All Forum Posts by: Pam R.

@Dylan W. - Particularly interesting idea. How much is the gift card? And what do you find they buy - it is throw rugs and welcome mats or new knobs for the cabinets?

@Michele Fischer - we always stick with eggshell too, but have a long-term tenant who wants to paint. I think I'm going to let her, with a limited-yet-beyond eggshell palette of colors.

One thing we also did with the latest property we bought - the landlord said the one occupied unit was rented at $625/month. When we went through the paperwork, it was actually being RAISED to $625 at that moment - he put it on the market and raised their rent. In fact, we would be the first recipients of the rent increase. They had been there 8 years at the time. The very first time we met them, on day 2 of ownership - I handed them a letter stating I was rescinding the rent increase, and it was staying at $600. That bought far more goodwill than the $300 it was squeezing out of them.

Hi Sam - I think where you lost me is the comment that there no such thing as a last month's rent in a MTM. Even in a MTM, there is a 30-day notice. So he'll be there one last month after giving notice. That's where his pre-payment will come in. Unless I'm misunderstanding how you would work your MTM.

Hi Sam. I guess that's the question - did he pay this month's rent since it was his "last" month? Or did you use his original pre-payment?

You can raise the rent at either a 3-month renewal or a month-to-month renewal. So now is a good time, not matter which option. If he really is a short-timer (which is questionable, IMO, based upon the circumstances you describe), then he'll probably move when he can work it out - whether it's at the end of the 3-month period or in the middle. The only thing the MTM buys you is you being able to give HIM 30-day notice to move. If you want that ability, go MTM.

And as for the last month's rent, just hold on to it. He'll still have a last month at some point.

Hi Dmitriy - You're in a tough spot.

It is possible you will get a better response if they pay you the water bill directly. I have a duplex where the tenants get the monthly water bill from a metering service, and the tenant sends the payment to me. I pay the city quarterly. I've never had a problem with getting the water bill paid to me, and I've had multiple tenants. It's been late a couple of times over the years, and I just send an e-mail to the tenant and they pay me. It's more difficult to avoid me than some nameless, faceless public utility - which is exactly what your tenants are doing.

Where my property is located, unpaid water bills result in a lien against the property itself. So landlords generally don't put the water bill in a tenants name.

We're also required by state statute to "Supply running water" to the property. By my interpretation (I'm not a lawyer), I can't allow the service to be disconnected. Does California have a similar statute?

You say they've lived there two years - that is enough data to calculate their average water bill, build that into the rent with the stipulation that the payments vs usage will be reconciled every 6 months.

That's a good question Aaron. I agree with Joe - a porch light is a good idea. Beyond the legal requirements, we try to use the "reasonable" test on things like that. Is it reasonable they would expect X?

@Chris Adams - notice I didn't recommend that option, I called it "spiteful." But he was asking for options, and that is one. It is not an uncommon law in many places.

Yes, that sounds fishy. Personally, I would refund the deposit if the place is left clean and show-ready, as @J. Martin suggests. Otherwise, deduct cleaning costs, etc. as you normally would. Ultimately, you won't lose any sleep knowing you cut a break to a serviceman, no matter the circumstances.

You ARE investing - paying down (or paying off) consumer debt is really the first step to a financially secure future. That's a really, really smart move that many Americans never master.

And keep looking. Maybe in a couple of months you'll run across some unbelievable deal for half the price of what you're looking at now.

Hi Kelly - To answer your question about how long before first investment...

My parents were landlords...my husband maintained hotels and apartments professionally for 20 years. I knew at some point I'd invest in real estate, and made a hobby of watching the local market, and reading all the articles in the paper about it.

I was 35 before I was in the position to really commit to my first rental purchase - we had the money, the skills, and time commitment that we felt we needed to take the plunge. We looked/bid/inspected for over a year before we actually made our first purchase - we waited for the deal that was the right price, the right amount of work, the right location, the right revenue. It was worth the wait.

It was 3 years before we decided to look for our next property - and that took about 3 months to uncover. I've been looking for my 3rd property now for nearly a year - I haven't found the right one yet.

Ironically - it took 1 day of house shopping, only looking at 4 houses total, to pick out the house we currently live in. It didn't have a furnace, duct-work, garage, fully operable windows, or, ahem, drinkable water - but it was THE house. I'm much more selective about the houses whose job is to make me money.