All Forum Posts by: Petur Karlsson

Hey everyone!

Sitting at 4 rentals, 7 units, currently in deleveraging mode, I figure it's time to play around with optimizing the little things in the enterprise.

I still haven't gotten around to finding the best (high interest?) checking account to link my rent deposits into and a credit card with the best reward offerings for real estate investors.

We intend to rehab and rent out our primary residence in tandem with a house-hack, so I figure we will be making lots and lots of payments in the relatively near future. It only makes sense to get the best possible cc rewards for the effort.. 

Oh and not to mention the fact that I can link the new credit card to multiple recurring utility/other bills and put them on Autopay...

What are your favorites? What card and financial institutions do you primarily use for your investment activities?

I greatly appreciate all answers, thank you very much for reading!

Someone might have said this already but....

LOW CEILINGS.

no thank you. It may have worked in the 1800s but most people aren't hobbit height. 

Thanks for the insights! Just got under contract on my first long distance BRRRR in Pittsburgh incidentally.

I'm excited to do this pivot from local investing, and the invaluable lessons that'll come with it. Pittsburgh is a perfect market in my opinion to get cheaper properties that offer a decent equity and cash flow proposition. Let's see if that turns out to be true!

Thank you all for the very constructive feedback! 

I took your advice, they've received the move-out notice and check list via Rentredi (virtual paper trail), we successfully listed, toured and signed up new tenants for the apartment already, utilities squared off on my end and communicated to them to square them off on theirs. 

Jan 31st they've agreed to do move-out inspection, security deposit will be released less any deductions, by mail and include statement and deduction receipts, within 30 days of the lease termination date.

 Feb 15th, the new tenants move in, in between I do turnover and tend to some minor fixes that had been on the schedule.  

Getting a $350 boost to the rent too! Funny how real estate challenges often turn out to be blessings and learning opportunities in disguise. Never terminated a lease, and now I could do it in my sleep!

Anything else I'm missing?

Hello everyone! 

The time has come... my first tenant departure.

They are not renewing their annual lease which expires January 31st. Their reason for departing is that they're buying a house but otherwise they have been rock star tenants. I don't think I'll have any issues with them vacating the property in time, but I'm wondering... 

Am I supposed to send them an official notice to vacate or anything similar? How do you "officially" resign the lease? Since leases automatically renew upon their expiration unless otherwise disclosed, I want to make sure I'm doing this correctly.

Any advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you so much everybody!

Ps.

I have a move-in move-out check list and plan to walk the property with them on the last day to verify the conditions before returning the security deposit. 

Anything else I should bear in mind when it comes to ending this tenant-landlord relationship?

@Nate Boykin my wife arranged for us to go to the Nutcracker Ballet in Philadelphia that evening- with my parents, who are visiting from Iceland. If there is any chance of moving it to the prior Thursday or Friday the 10th or 17th, Ill be there.

@Nate Boykin I can do Thursday October 28th or Friday October 29th. Family wedding on Saturday October 30th so would not be able to attend if that day was chosen.

Hope it works out and I get to meet you all soon! Looking forward to it.

@Joe S.

Nope thats the thing, its a great cash flow property with long term tenants that are very happy after the upgrades I brought and are still paying under market value despite the rent raises.

I’m not going to sweat the loss. But let this be a lesson for rookies buying rentals with inherited tenants!

@Greg Scott

Thanks for your honest response. I called a real estate attorney and the consultation alone is $150, whereas the amount in question is “only” $1,190.

I learned my lesson and made sure we had the security deposit accounted for at the next settlement, we actually avoided another $1200 repeat of the same.

You can rest assured that this won’t happen again.

@Jamie Kammers

Don't let go of such a great cash flow property, If you hold it for ten more years, who knows what it'll appraise for? If the market and demographics of the location are solid, I would personally keep it and refinance to pull the money out tax free. If you sell for a profit, you pay taxes on the gains instead of letting those gains sit in place and grow long term. Deploying the equity into other investments with a HELOC is also tax free and doesn't cut the cash flow the same way as selling it would.

Besides, don’t you want to build income streams? There’s gotta be a way to get more rental properties without selling the one you already have. You also said you have great tenants and they’re worth their weight in gold! Keep stacking them.