All Forum Posts by: H Simpson

::bump::

Has the rent been paid yet?

Talk is cheap.

Title just about says it all.

I found the house browsing the multi list, the listing is expired, the property is obviously a foreclosure..It was up for a year with continuously dropping prices. How I missed it while it was active, I dunno....

Now the bank owns it.

I drove by and did a walk through, I want it.

The MLS says it was transferred to American Home mortgage (not listed in their REO portfolio) The county tax site shows the owner as Deutsch Bank National Trust.

How do I buy it if it's not listed?

Thanks.

I have a couple as tenants most would define as freaks.

They own a tattoo shop, they have more ink on them than the Sunday comics. (don't get me started on their multiple piercings too)

I couldn't ask for better Tenants. Their house is immaculate, never ever late with anything. Two amazing kids who you would never imagine being born from those loins but who obviously love their "freak" parents dearly.

In today's day and age, its' tough to generalize based on appearance alone. It's a book/cover thing that needs to be handled on a case by case basis.

One of my worst tenants looked like an old school marm. Moved in her 3 cats, started missing rent in the third month. When evicted she left about 10 large items behind. Thumped her Bible daily and never once told me the truth! I couldn't wait to get rid of that freak!

Do any of you give Christmas gifts to tenants?

If they are "good" tenants, I'll hand deliver a gift card from the local grocery chain. They can use it for gasoline or groceries. Depending on the tenant, the denomination is between $25-$50.

For me, this accomplishes a couple of things.

1. General goodwill. Who would want to screw a nice guy like me?
2. I get to see the house/unit unannounced.
3. I get 20 cents off of 30 gallons of gas for every $50 spent on these cards!
4. In the overall scheme of things, I think it's a small price to pay.

Now for a tiny operation like mine, this type of deal is feasible. I put these gifts into Christmas cards and go door knocking. They are always well received. A few of the old timer residents will hand me some cookies or a re-gifted bottle of booze as well.

I think there's still something to be said for interpersonal relationships, especially around the holidays. That said, all lease rules are always enforced!

Do you guys do anything like this for your tenants?

Why, or why not?

I also use the following two clauses in all my leases.

OCCUPANTS. No more than ___ person(s) may reside in the Premises unless the prior written consent of the Landlord is obtained.

GUESTS. Tenant agrees to be fully responsible for the actions and behaviors of all their guests, family, visitor, employee, and/or agent. Landlord strictly prohibits subleasing or unauthorized long-term guests. Landlord MUST approve all long-term guests in writing. No guest may stay no more than a total of three nights (consecutively or combined) within a rental period without written authorization. EXCEPTIONS: Does not apply to minor child visitations.

I stopped taking section 8 tenants a few years ago.

Section 8 in PA requires the property to pass an inspection before they let the tenants occupy the space.

That's not the problem.

The issue is that the tenant (who in some cases pays $0 out of pocket rent) have absolutely no liability when they trash the place.

In other words, it must be mint for move-in but there are no requirements that they take care of the unit.

If you want to take on section 8 occupants, just make sure that you qualify the tenants.

3 words: screen, screen, screen.

Good luck.

Wear and tear aside, they are in violation of the lease terms.

If you don't mind 4 people living there, then tell them you need to update the lease and collect more money, deposits and personal information. Tell them the fire department also needs to know how many and who is living in the building.

If you let this slide, they will push and push and eventually walk all over you.

Hi again. Someone asked me via the private message feature of this site a question. I figured I would post and answer it here:

Why?? For cost of replacing the carpet might cost you the lost of a good buyer. Buyers are picky today and I wouldn't take the chance of losing a buyer because of dyed carpet. At $.99 sq ft at Lowes or Home Depot, change the carpet and make more $ on the deal.

The carpeting in the house is in very nice shape, almost new. The issue is that for a rental, a soft plush PINK is not a good idea. I had read on another forum (sure can't find it now) about some landlords who had amazing success dying carpets a more tenant friendly, darker color (I'm thinking brown).

I could absolutely replace it with some cheapo HD entry level stuff. But if this dye works out, for the same $$ or less. I have a MUCH higher quality flooring. If I were flipping the house, I would probably replace. But for rental (damn these numbers look good) the $$ are best reserved by fixing what's already in place.

By the way, I know this is good carpeting because I have the EXACT same carpeting including the color, in my personal living room. I spent way too much for it, but the Wife makes those in home decisions. :roll:

Thanks to all for the responses, links and questions thus far. By the way I am still looking for any personal experiences with dyeing a carpet.

Hi all,

I was wondering if any of you have ever tried to dye a carpet rather than replace it?

I just bought a house I am going to rent out and it has a high quality, but nicely stained PINK carpet. I had heard of using a darker dye to make the carpet more functional for a rental, I have googled it, but am looking for some first hand experiences.

Thanks in Advance, this site is amazing so far!