All Forum Posts by: Nick L.

 That sounds like a great idea! But isnt it a requirement to restore the home back to its original state of when the tenant first moved in? Meaning if at the time the tenant moved in there was a central AC unit then they would expect us to do so if I want to keep them happy or is that up to me the homeowner's disgression? Would like to know more from you seeing how your from Arizona which also faces the similar levels of heat. And yes I'll def see things out with the PM to see if we can work out a discount of some sort for the time being. Trying everything I can do not lose a tenant here.

Yikes just got off the phone with the PM and unfortunately the portables couldnt make it out on time due to the global supply chain crisis. As of now the tenants have moved out temporarily and are staying at a hotel till I get it fixed ASAP. I guess I'm really outta options here but at least was able to have the PM reach out for a 2nd opinion. I'll be hearing back from them soon hopefully and keep you guys updated!

I cant agree enough with the OP. The salary rate here hasnt really kept up with the increase in housing costs. Its def harder for us millennials to get in. On top of that the land scarcity too depending on the area you are from. They just dont seem to build as much SFH like before in the 80's or 90's.

Yes a dollar back then was worth a lot but that same dollar you worked hard for was enough to get you a home at a reasonable price. Now its 10x that amount. But has our salary 10x over the past 10-20 years? I doubt that.

The AC unit and damper system in my rental property just went out yesterday and my property management company is proposing a fix of ~$5k to replace the AC and ~3k to replace the dampers using their trusted contractor. I'm planning to ask my pm to see if they can get a 2nd opinion but as I know most professional pm companies are usually reluctant to go out of their way to do so seeing how they've got processes already in place and insider ties to their contractor they use. Just wanted to see whats the fastest most efficient way to go about handling this as I want to try my best not to delay and upset the tenant as well especially in this Texas heat!

Also as a side note, the damper system did go down before some time about 6 months ago but I had the PM use a temporary workaround by forcing the dampers open since the 3k to replace them sounded a little too costly at the time being. Not sure if tahts what caused the AC unit to work harder all this time eventaully leading to its demise.

Also not sure if it helps but the PM has informed me they have sent portable AC's to the property as a temporary fix until I make a decision although I'm not sure how much time I can sit on this.

I really appreciate the feedback that everyone has been sharing on here. It has really helped changed my perspective in terms of what to expect in this business.

Anyways I was able to get some feedback from the PM. It seems the contractor that went out there had also carried out a temporary fix by forcing the downstairs dampers opened permanently by disconnecting the wires that control it but eventually would need replacing. It has also been communicated to the tenant as well in which they are ok with it so I guess that's a good thing. At least it will buy me some time for another couple months to save up some more reserves to cover the replacement and set them up for the next winter. Seems this can be considered more of a preventative maintenance type of measure than a necessary thing at the moment.

I also had the PM reach out to the contractor to requote with the option of just going with replacing the entire furnace itself and it looks like that may be viable as well as the cost was near the cost of replacing the damper like ~$4500.

Thanks Mark for the motivation. This surely is a big reality check! I def do want to stick it out and not give up on it already. This is a great business with great people in it :)

Based on what came back on the home inspection reports, we estimated around ~10k would be enough to take care of the bare minimum to get the house in habitable conditions and up to code and all. Looks like we may have underbudgeted our rehab costs by a few thousands and dont really want to tap into any of our reserves or take out a repair loan as it will put a hamper on our ROI :(

Anyways will talk to the PM to see if they are comfortable with going with the method that you recommended with putting up the sheet or if we can get away with some other temporary solution.

Me and my wife just bought our first rental property last month and have gotten to the point of putting a tenant in place already. Unfortunately within a week of moving in we are getting hit with a work order of ~$3000 for heating damper issues with the HVAC system causing the heating not to be balanced well throughout the bottom floor of the home. This was after already putting in roughly 12k into minor rehab to take care of some TLC and mostly cosmetic items like replacing the flooring, interior paint, blinds, etc..

Should we continue down this path of waiting for the tenant to bring up the issue and throw in some more money eventually turning it into a money pit and taking a loss on this property since we are bound to a 1 year lease? What happens if you reach a point where you either cant afford to pay for more repairs or are unwilling/unable to take on a loan to carry out those repairs?

Well I'm 100% dead set on SFR (3bd 2 ba) primarily in the Round Rock/Georgetown/Pflugerville region. Since I'm from Cali and will be investing from out of state, I want to be extra thorough in selecting the right property management to work with but not to the point where I've to be nit picky and micromanage everything, seeing how I'm already working a full time job at the moment. I'm also willing to sit out 3-4 months worth of vacancy if thats how long it takes to find a reliable trustworthy tenant each time.

I would like to be a hands off type of investor and leave everything to the expert resident to handle but the only absolute gripe and condition I ask for is that I would like to take part in the whole tenant selection process (reviewing their credit score/background check/paystub history/etc...) each time and have the final say whether the tenant is a go or not. Other than that not much more I ask for but the usual standard; quarterly inspections with photos or walk in videos or having a drone fly by video is acceptable as well. Also willing to fly down every so often or so like once every six months to check out how things are going because as you all know pictures can only do so much justice and things are never what they seem to be compared to when you see it in person with your own eyes. Also no onsite visit fees, etc.etc...

Just screening for reputable property managers right now. Thinking about entering the Texas (primarily Austin area) market soon in the next couple months once all the tech companies have settled in so just want to get ready.

Would be great if you all could list out the top 10 property managers you have dealt with in this area and their pros and cons.