All Forum Posts by: Sanjeet Dighawa

@Richard F. Thank you so much for your detailed reply! I closed on this property in March and had the tenants move in this April, so I don't have any historical figures regarding kWh usage to compare against. I will still call the utility company to give me the figures for last year but I doubt that they will share details on a prior customer. My handyman has been changing the filters every 30-45 days. He did mention that the filters were too dirty and the outside condenser unit needed some cleaning with garden hose. I am planning on sending a HVAC person just to be sure and ask him to take the temp readings to validate functioning of the AC.

The other laundry list items has been -

A door that will not lock completely - changed the door.

Toilet flush handle that was not working completely - got that fixed.

3 squeaky closet doors - got them oiled.

Window blinds that lets too much light in - told them to get their own blinds.

This is all alone in last 30 days.l, before that there were no issues. I see this pattern starting as soon as I told them no for the 3rd additional pet that they wanted to keep.

I do feel that offering them to move out may be one of the options but given the winters are starting soon in Minnesota not sure if I will get any quality tenants.

My tenant has been making a long list of maintenance request since past one month when I have denied their request of adding one more pet citing HOA max pet policies. The last request is for HVAC maintenance based on their electricity bill. This is what the request says -

"My last a/c bill was $300. In no universe should it be that expensive for a home this small especially considering it doesn’t even feel that cool. My old house at over 3500 square feet was never ever more than $250 and that was for an extremely hot summer month for a family of 6. And the fact that it never even feels that cool in here, not even on the main level, let alone upstairs. Sometimes i find myself having to lower it to 62-63 degrees just to get some relief."

I am first time landlord of the 1700 sq ft townhouse in south of St. Paul where the HVAC was replaced in January this year by prior owner. During home inspection while purchasing this property, the HVAC unit tested fine for heating in Feb this year.

Any suggestions as to how do I process this request?

Thank you everyone for your time and effort in replying to my post!

I have signed a 2 year lease with this person. Thank you again!

@Bjorn - Thank you for replying!

@Bill - Thank you for replying. The person has gone through a divorce and is selling their primary home.

Hello BP,

I am working on screening applicants for my first rental property.

So far I have few applicants but the strongest one is from a Lawyer. This person is even ready to sign a 2 year lease however the others are not.

My hesitation comes from the fact that this lawyer specializes in real estate (mentioned commercial). Although the applicant checks all boxes, I am concerned that they can/will get litigious given their background. Given this will be my first experience being a landlord, I am making every effort for a smooth sailing.

All other applicants comes with some strings attached.

Please suggest if I should/shouldn't move with this lawyer as my first tenant.

Hello,

I am new to real estate world and working on closing my 1st deal thanks to all the tips and tools shared by you awesome folks here!

Please help me with this - is it important to open a business checking account for income and expenses? why this cannot be achieved through a separate (dedicated) personal checking account? I see all banks imposing a transaction fee after a certain number of transactions. I am just trying to find out if this is a cost that can be avoided or not.

Thank you,

Sanjeet.