All Forum Posts by: Nathan Golding

You can check to see if anyone has their windows open while the heat is going and set a temperature that is the max you will heat the apartments to and pay the bill.  

You can write up a notice and give it to all tenants saying if you heat your apartment above 72 degrees or have the window open while the heat is on you may be held liable for a 25 dollar fee or something along that line.

Check to see how your insulation is in your attic.   Check for drafty windows.  Replacing windows takes a long time to recover the money and sometimes you don't see any savings long term.  

From what 5 seconds of google searching has told me you do not need a college degree to be an agent/broker.

I graduated from college a few years ago with a degree in Construction Management so I think this has some relevance to your situation.  90% of what I was taught in school had no application to real life and 5% had little value.  I strongly feel I would of been better off starting at the bottom as a semi skilled laborer and learning my way up with a company.  I would of had real life knowledge, I could of saved 40 plus thousand I spent on college that could of been used to invest in real estate and the big one is I lost out on 4 years of earning potential.

I personally think college is forced on High school graduates and the value of it has gone down a lot in the last decade.  Talk to a few local firms and ask what they want from their realtors.

Most inspectors are hacks themselves.  They take an online course and claim they are experts.  Usually they have a clause claiming no liability for missed items.  However they should of atleast ran all mechanical items in the house assuming utilities where on when they inspected the house.  So if the boiler did not fire up/start they should of noticed it but they might not of notice the lack of heat depending on how long they ran it for.  So I would say small legal standing to get money back.  Realistically you might get the inspection fee back.  I would be surprised if they cover the replacement/repair.  

All the above said this is why I forgo inspections since I know more than most of them about houses.  Saves me a couple hundred when doing cash deals.  

Have you tried getting a loan for the building but without the extras you wanted?  That way you get the majority of the funds to build the building.  The extra dog park and solar you could add on latter with your own funds or some other way.  

I talked to an electrician once and he made it sound like for an extra 1k he could run the basic feed for the solar add on and cap it until the money for solar panels was available.  That way you are not tearing up your newly built building to add new wires.

My american family insurance provider was able to get me full replacement value on the whole duplex expect the roof.  I can't remember if he depreciated it 5-10% of replacement cost or would not cover the roof at all for replacement cost. 

I just finished a fixer upper that was a smokers house for 20 plus years and was poorly maintained.  It took 3 coats of paint and ripping out all the flooring but the smoke smell is gone.  What I did might of been over kill but that's what it took to make it look nice.  Also airing it out for two weeks while I worked on it did not hurt anything.  

All changes need to be approved by me before the tenant can make changes.  I do not deduct their their rent.  Some tenants I am ok with them doing certain changes others I will do it for them if they supply materials.  Unapproved changes might have their security deposit deducted for them.

Announce your self loudly before entering and wait a few minutes after announcing your self.  Bring someone with you and a gun or at the very least pepper spray.  Search property for other people before worrying about the house condition/if you want to buy it.

I left mine in when I replaced the furnace on my primary residence.  

The main question is the basement living space or storage.  Also is the tank tucked away out of sight or easy to see.

My basement is for storage and it was tucked way back in a corner that was very unlikely to ever be used for anything.  

I do maintenance for 160 plus unit complex.  Besides the stuff that is just wearing out after being installed 25 plus years ago the most common items I encounter are

These items I try to avoid when buying my own rental units

Clogged/broken garbage disposal.  

Patio screen busted(frame) and window screens in general.

Busted bifolds or bifolds that came of the track.  Seems they wreck a set a doors a year per unit.

I also encounter a lot of 

Holes in walls

Towel rods or similar items ripped off the wall

Tenants that due not know how to use the ceiling fan, thermostat and other control related items.