All Forum Posts by: PJ M.

I consider a few holes from hanging pictures/paintings normal wear and tear.  To me it's the normal use of a house to hand a few things on the walls.  Nothing strange or excessive about that.  Now if they have a full wall collage going on where there are 40 or 50 holes, yeah, I charge for that because that's excessive use.

I also ask the tenant's to leave them as the years have taught me that most tenants do a poor job of fixing it and I end up having to sand, or in some cases dig out, what they used to fill the holes.  Less work means faster turnover and a happier landlord.

I'd be interested to know if this was them marking it as fraudulent or if this was a reversal where they paid by credit card.  

I have a suspicion that this is going to become a lot more common as people are taking credit cards for payments.  I've mentioned a few times where Cozy has an issue in that they don't permit you to choose which payment types you will accept.  So when you sign up for their service you may not even realize that a tenant is paying you by credit card.  Then suddenly the tenant reverses charges and the landlord is hit with the money removed from their account.  The big thing with credit cards is that you don't have to claim fraud as a reason to reverse charges.  You simply need to claim that you didn't get or weren't satisfied with your purchase.  The card company will reverse that charge because the tenant is their customer.  3rd party payment processors don't have the regulations placed n them for investigation, etc that banks do.  So credit card companies then toss it to the 3rd party processor to prove that the charge was valid.  A lease doesn't mean squat if a tenant claims "The landlord didn't repair the hot water heater for the last 2 months of my tenancy".  How is a landlord going to prove that a statement like that is false? 

If they were responsible for the septic being pumped and that was because of misuse, they should be charged.  If it was simply because of normal use and there were a lot of people using it, then you should re-evaluate the size of the septic versus the property.  Personally I would be planning on having the septic pumped regularly and include it as part of the rent cost.  You'll probably be running into this issue if you have people that like to have gatherings regularly or after a large party on the property.  Better to be proactive than reactive if possible.

As for the idea of "I really want them to find somewhere else, but that's a different discussion", why is it?  If that's what you want why *****foot around it?  Don't be passive/aggressive here.  Know what you want and go for it.  If it is out then end the lease and find new tenants.

If it was her ESA but she wasn't living there then it was the boyfriend's pet.  An ESA is for the person that has the certificate issued to them and the accommodation is made for the person with the ESA.  If she has a letter stating it was an ESA, and that letter is prior to her moving out then she shouldn't have been charged a pet fee or pet rent for the time that she had an ESA and was living there.  Once she moved out and left the animal, it was no longer providing support for her and lost the right to be in the apartment.  She was to take the support animal with her to the new place she was living so it could provide her the emotional support she needed.

I'm looking for someone who can rebuild some brick steps for me and do some stone pointing. The guy I used to use has since retired and is enjoying his retirement too much to come out for this.

I'm looking for someone who can rebuild 3 brick steps for me and do some stone pointing. The guy I used to use has since retired and is enjoying his retirement too much to come out for this.

As with all investments it depends on the situation. Turnkey has its place. So does fix-and-flip, fix-and-hold, and buying at market rate off the MLS, syndications, and all the other potential real estate options out there.

It's the same reason that in the mutual find market there are emerging market funds that historically offer double digit returns all the way down to bond funds that offer low single digit returns on investment.

It's also why some people are heavily into Class D rentals while others would never leave Class B properties.  

Every investment comes down to the individual, where they are in life, and what they want from that investment.

Not everyone wants a buy and fix.  Not everyone wants to wait 20 years for appreciation.  Not everyone wants to be hands on (that's why some people self manage as opposed to getting a PM).

Turnkey investments, just as all investments, have a place because it fits what some people are looking for. If someone wants a BRRR then turnkey (generally) isn't for them. If someone wants to be in a hands on buy and fix, turnkey isn't or them. If someone wants to find a property and self manage then generally turnkey isn't for them.

For someone like @James O., and many others, turnkey is perfect for where he is in his life/investing and what he wants.

Me, I am very hands on.  It's why I stay in the greater Philadelphia market.  It's why I buy somewhat distressed properties.  For me, where I am, and what I want. that fits.  Does what fits me fit everyone?  Heck no.  For someone who works 50+ hours a week, have a very active family life, and isn't mechanically, inclined what I do is not in their wheelhouse.

@Gregory H. is dead on with what he says.  The water remains in my name for my properties and the bills get mailed to me.  I pay them then the tenant gets it invoiced back to them with a copy of the bill.  It becomes due with the following month's rent.  Easy peasy.  No arrears, no liens, and you get to keep an eye on it to head off a potential problem before it becomes one.

@Nathan Gesner That's what the LCP does.  When a landlord signs up for that, they are entering a cooperation program with the utility.  They agree to respond and provide access when the utility needs access for shutoff, meter reading, maintenance, etc.  The one good thing about the program is it puts the onus back on the utility for monitoring and enforcement.  The utility is to notify the landlord if/when there is a problem and it absolves the landlord of the lien if they cooperated when requested...as long as the landlord provided the access when requested.  There's, I believe, a 10 day response window for the landlord after being contacted.  If they aren't part of the program, there's a chance for big problems.

Being part of the LCP is supposed to prevent things like this from happening.  As long as the entire balance is from the time you were in the LCP, this is a residential property, and you responded to any emails/phone calls/letters from PGW, you should be protected from a lien on the property.  

You mention it might have accrued before entering their program.  If that is the case, then yeah, it stays with the property and you're going to have to collect from the tenant.  The LCP is not retroactive, it's from the time of registration forward.  PGW may also want the issue resolved before they will turn on gas service for a new tenant.

@Nathan Gesner natural gas service, in Philly, is provided by the Philadelphia Gas Works which is a publicly owned utility service.  It's treated the same as how a water utility is in many parts of the country.  The bill is with the property, not the tenant/consumer.  It's a lienable item here.