All Forum Posts by: Pearla White

@Pearla White what do you do that brings in 200k? just curious

As a private landlord I would agree as long as I could background check your sub-lessees. 

My PM I'm sure would not allow this.  They're just not in the exception business. 

Hopefully this specific property is owned and managed by a person vs Corp or entity, but at this pricepoint it's less likely is my guess.  Good luck either way!

@Pearla White

No, my lease clearly states no sublease. I did have a tenant Airbnb one of my properties. Needless to say, he did not last long.

Sounds like you are a doctor, and in that case I am very confident in your job prospects and thus my ability to collect what you owe me.  Back when I was managing my own units, I would have said yes to this arrangement.  Now, I have a property management company and they'd probably say no, and I'm not going to do anything without them because I don't have time to deal with tenants.

You will find a mom and pop landlord to do this.

But, please take my advice: You should *buy* a place. If you are a licensed doctor (or dentist, or veterinarian), there are like 101 lenders who will give you a loan for zero down on a primary residency, with no PMI. It would literally cost you less to move in by purchasing a place than by renting a place.

Worst case scenario, you decide to move out and you just rent the whole place out and basically break even but get appreciation and pay-down.  That's my unsolicited advice as someone who was in a very similar situation to you before I started buying every piece of real estate that I could.

Quote from @Pearla White:

Quote from @Forrest Williams:

You should be able to take responsibility for your tenants and be the one on the lease. I would advise you put everyone on the lease though. Otherwise legally the others could trash the place and you'd be on the hook if they vanished in the night. It would be easiest to all apply together in my opinion. What are you going to do if the landlord says no, you can't add new tenants?

Your last line is precisely why I made this post. I would be surprised one could occupy a 3+3 and not be allowed to have another person come in, provided they pass a background check. What happens to people who get engaged or need a parent to move in, either of which will Riley have a weaker financial profile. 

The difference is adding a family member vs adding a roommate. If you want to add a roommate I can 100% say no, because that's a change to the lease terms (I rented to you and you alone). Adding a parent, spouse or having a child are all changes in familial status and would be fine. The familial change would actually be covered by fair housing legislation, though even if it weren't I would still allow the addition as a normal change in life circumstance. 

From your title I thought I'd say no, but reading the description and more about your situation I'd be inclined to say yes. In my mind you're simply asking to move in with roommates, the difference in a normal RM situation is you don't already have two friends that you're looking with. But you by yourself seem to be able to qualify, so I can qualify you and we agree to some ground rules for your RM then I'd be comfortable with the coming/going.

Not having done this before I don't have a guideline, but my initial thoughts would be:

• Clearly define are these 30 day stays or less than 30 day Airbnb type stays? 
• Assuming 30 day + stays my tenant criteria are XXX (credit score, income, criminal etc), and you need to qualify each RM at that standard
• Maybe we stablish a minimum timeframe for each RM e.g. 3 month etc to reduce turnover...though that's less important I think
• Once you've chosen someone you and I do a single page addendum updating who it is you're renting to (or you at least agree to the minimum information you will keep in the event I need it). This is so I know who is/isn't in the home, but I will not be interfacing with them, that's your job. 
• When you leave everyone else goes before hand, and all issues, damage etc are on you alone (you can pursue the RM for what they should cover)

Depending on the interest I already have in the property I may be looking for a bit of a rent premium. All things being equal if I can rent to a family for $4,500 then why rent to you with the possibility of a more involved tenancy? But for an additional $300-400/mo maybe that works. You would still likely save quite a bit on your monthly costs while being in the location you want, and I get a premium on the rent.

You should be able to take responsibility for your tenants and be the one on the lease. I would advise you put everyone on the lease though. Otherwise legally the others could trash the place and you'd be on the hook if they vanished in the night. It would be easiest to all apply together in my opinion. What are you going to do if the landlord says no, you can't add new tenants?

I would not be keen to lease to someone who's going to let two unscreened tenants live with them. Yes, you may have screened them, but as a landlord I have no proof of that. And I'm not sure what your standards are, maybe you're fine with a 550 credit score for example. If you only want a student to live with you and screen out everyone else, that potentially puts ME at risk for a fair housing violation. Unlikely, but an unnecessary risk.

If you were fine sharing an apartment I would potentially consider letting by the room and putting my own tenants in the other rooms, however that is much more of a headache than renting out the unit as a whole. The best proposal you could make would be to have your roommates ready when you apply. If you make over 200k, you shouldn't have much of a problem qualifying, even if your other tenants aren't great.

Hi Pearla,

I self-manage my properties and often get inquiries like this.  I simply ask that all adults that will be living in the property apply.  It doesn't matter if the rent all comes from one individual or multiple, but it needs to be made clear that you're not the one screening and selecting your roommates.  That option needs to remain with the landlord as they have the ultimate duty of ensuring the property is leased properly.

If you can, start looking for potential sublease options now and apply jointly.  That would be the easiest way forward and I don't foresee any PM or small landlord having any issue with that as long as it applies with the local zoning laws.

Good luck!