All Forum Posts by: Peter Falk

Yes, this is definitely not a Statewide question, but one you need to investigate at the local level.  Madison, WI has in my opinion largely regulated short term rentals out of making sense in most cases (30 day max short-term rental if you aren't renting out part of the house you actually live in), so within the City of Madison, largely left to maybe a furnished month to month option.  Other municipal areas have no/very few specific ordinances on short term rentals.

I agree completely that within most all large markets/cities, you can find a range of returns from single family homes that have high owner occupant demand and priced to where there is no cash flow as a rental and maybe hope for a break even and future appreciation/rent growth, or go to what may look good on paper (lower purchase prices in troubled areas) and deal with more possible rent collection issues, evictions/turn over, property damage.  If you screen tenants and manage places well, definitely have seen people do fine working in more the C class rental space.  There at least is always rental demand out there for more affordable options.  Long way to say, I don't know if you can just focus on cash flow and pick a market that way without the whole picture of what you are investing in (neighborhood, condition, etc) and if you go with a cheap place in a troubled area, do a good job of managing the tenants/property.  

Yes, I'm not an attorney, but WI statute is from my reading as well 12 hours to enter with notice to tenant (mail makes no sense as it takes days to arrive) so would just email/call/text, and no notice if a clear emergency situation.

Another good reference source for current short term ordinances would be short term rental managers- should be present in most tourist areas and likely happy to chat even if you decide to self manage and save the 20% ish short term rental management fee.  

Sounds like the tenant is not wanting to cooperate because they aren't happy about the sale (maybe fears over a new owner and higher rents/poor service).  If they have a longer term set term lease, would remind them that the new owner will just step in as the new landlord and can't change the lease terms during the set term lease. 

 If it's an existing property with a mailing address, the typical WI Realtors Assoc. approved Offer to Purchase defines the property being purchased just by the mailing address (street address, city and county in WI are all entered).

If it's a set term lease (not month to month), it will just end on the last day of the lease if not renewed/extended with a new lease or amendment extending the lease term.  I would give your tenant a heads up that you won't be renewing the lease (if you think she may take it better could say it's to do major updating to the unit, but you do not have to give a reason for not renewing a lease (not an attorney, but what I've been told).

If it's month to month, pretty sure it's 28 days before the next rent payment is due minimum notice (for either party) to end the lease.

Thanks for sharing. Glad to see Milwaukee on the list as a WI metro market. Hopefully Madison, WI will take note and ease up on some of their anti short term rental ordinances. Unless you rent out a room in the actual property you are living in (and the owner is there when rented out), you are limited to 30 rental nights max a year of short term rentals (and they won't accept a short term unit or ADU within a multi unit building where the owner lives in a different unit and wants to short term rent a vacate unit. The regulations only apply to stays less than 30 nights, so think most furnished rentals would just go mo. to mo. and seek a rental premium for being furnished and flexible term.

If you get an individual tenant building on a true triple net lease (where tenant does maintenance, pays the property taxes, etc.) other than finding a new tenant when they vacate, you should just be collecting the rent checks each month and not much else to do, other than make sure they are keeping the property maintained.  If the tenant is paying the landlord common area maintenance fees to cover their share of expenses, then that would be more involved with manager/owner hiring the companies that do the lawn care, etc.

For 3 beds, I do think tenants would appreciate having a second bath, even if it's in the basement and less convenient to the bedrooms.