All Forum Posts by: Cathy Svercl

1. if you found the property on the County zoning map, it is in un-incorporated Pinellas County with an address in Dunedin.  so if you talk to anyone, it would be the County.  if you are not sure, the Property Appraiser's webpage will tell you which Tax District the taxes are paid into, either City of Dunedin, or un-incorporated Dunedin Fire District area.

2. the Property Appraiser's webpage will tell you some of the Building Permits for the property.  for other permits (if un-incorporated County), research the property at www<dot>VelocityHall<dot>com.  dividing a house into 3 units would have required a permit at any point in living memory.

3. most areas require a Landlord/Rental Tax be paid.  check if the current owners are paying that.  if not, you would have to right any wrongs, including turning the property back into single family, if required.  however, some areas of City of Dunedin do allow accessory dwellings.

4. anything could be re-zoned.  you have a better chance if the property is located adjacent to a different zoning district.  some building officials will give you a verbal, un-official response before you start the re-zoning process.

Central A/C.  your "nicer" neighborhood requires it.  i would expect to pay about $4,500 per A/C system.

transfer the title of the property into a land trust.  123 Main Street Land Trust.  pay the transfer of title fees to Tallahassee (not your County Tax Office).  your mortgage's acceleration clause is not affected because you are still the beneficiary (owner) of the property.  choose your trustee carefully (use your RE attorney, for example).

don't confuse a Land Trust with other types of trusts.

Chet - we have a triplex in Clearwater, and happy to share our insurance agent's name with you.  Cathy

a completely new system costs about $5,000.  this includes inside unit, outside (condenser) unit, and repair of easily accessed ductwork (required by law).  not included is new copper, or costs if new unit is larger and has to be located elsewhere.  installation requires a permit, and permit requires an energy form calculated by the A/C company.

if you just need either the inside or the outside unit replaced, make sure the old unit that remains uses the new R-410A freon (since 2010), not the older R-22.  R-410A is more efficient, but uses higher pressure, thus the upgrade of your old copper tubing.

we had a new tenant move in and immediately start having toilet clog problems.  after a few un-clogging sessions, i had a plumber come out and pull the very old toilet.  toys from a previous tenant had caught in the trap at the toilet/floor level.  so we didn't charge this tenant.  but in the future, we will be able to keep better tabs on issues before a new tenant moves in.

in our triplex, we prefer the tenant to call us first, then we'll send out a plumber.  better than having them call a pseudo-plumber that ends up making a bigger problem.  we agree with paying for the repair, then allowing the tenant to pay us back over time.  (we have low income tenants.  other landlords nearby with middle income tenants suggest the tenants make the call to a short list of pre-approved plumbers/other repair person.)

@ Mike Reynolds - the R609 you refer to is specifically "Grouted Hollow unit masonry", which is different type of construction from R606 "General Masonry Construction". i would have to assume your local soils are full of clay, requiring a fully grouted wall.

Miami Dade as well as the rest of Florida follows the Florida Building Code, which is based on IBC & IRC.

we all make the leap eventually. it's definitely scary, but you'll never know everything. and having a good group of people surrounding you, you'll have the answer to any problem that comes up!

welcome, Alan. the greater Tampa Bay area (including Sarasota) is filled with RE investors of every kind. start attending meetings in your area, and you will run across many who have been investing for 30+ years. they attend the meetings, and share their info. invaluable.

www. auction.com - i'm sure there are others. also, your local Courthouse will auction off properties - they'll have a list of properties and the auction dates, as well as instructions for bidders.