All Forum Posts by: Karyn T.

Hi all,

   I've been off the site for a bit, getting my brick and mortar business up and running and now back to get started on my 2017 real estate goals.  However, I'm running in to a little snag....I need a GOOD virtual receptionist.  I would prefer a company located in the US, and with English native-language employees, simply because I've heard so much negative feedback from colleagues and friends about companies using non-US-sourced companies.  I know the cost is likely much less, but I simply do not want to lose business because callers get frustrated with the receptionist's accent or misunderstanding of our (admittedly complicated) language.  Also....I simply want to keep the jobs here, if at all possible.

Please post up who you use and your experience.  I will consider foreign options, but only if they REALLY exceed anything we can offer here in the States.  Thanks!

It is NEVER a good idea to laugh at, harass, or blow off clients (potential or established).  You never know when that person may "come around"....or who they know.  Now, that does not mean you need to kiss-a$$ every potential prospect or client since some people simply can't be pleased.  

True story with myself just a few weeks ago:  I was in need of a new, large piece of equipment for my office.  The item I needed costs well into the $100K range and competition between the suppliers is keen.  They are also well known for "disappearing" after their commission has been paid.  I was looking for a company that would at least provide some advertising support, a decent warranty, etc.  Much like someone who might be considering an expensive, luxury car.  I reached out to the company that I was most familiar.  All this rep had to to was be "nice" to me, tell me about his product, and work me a decent deal, and he would have taken home a sizeable check.  Instead, he sent me a credit application.  BEFORE telling me about his products.  When I emailed him back and let him know I was uninterested in taking a hard hit on my credit before even having learned about the products, let alone without an acceptable deal drawn up, he emailed back to "get back with him" when I was ready to fill out the credit app.

Needless to say, I went elsewhere, and my expensive piece of equipment will be delivered on Monday.  Someone else will be getting a big paycheck.  When he checked back with me last week (a month or so after the last contact) I sent him a succinct email informing him of his mistake. 

Moral of story:  Don't be a jerk.

Welcome Dede!  Always good to have more women interested in investing!  So many of our mothers, sisters, and daughters don't understand the value of having your own business and investing in general.  It's FREEDOM. :)

Ummm, Medicine is NOT a fast way to make money, nor is it a lucrative career at this point.

First, it takes 12 - 20 YEARS to become a doctor.  That's 12-20 years the rest of you get to spend accumulating and investing, enjoying holidays and weekends, starting a family, etc, while your doctor friend is working for free or minimum wage as a med student or resident 80-100hrs a week.  Eventually, they'll come out of training with several HUNDRED thousand in student loan debt in a job market that no longer allows you to "hang a shingle" and make your fortune.  No, you're an employee, just like everyone else AND you're in the highest tax bracket in the nation while get ZERO tax writeoffs because of it.

Trust me, medicine is NOT the easy road to wealth....and this point in history, it's a quick road to insolvency, if you're not careful.

That's exactly what I'm worried about. I am not an attorney, so I can't interpret it better than you, but I was "imagining" me telling her about the rental increase, and then suddenly having her complain about stuff needing to be fixed - thereby triggering the statute. As it stands now, we have mailed (next day, certified, restricted signatures) her a non-renewal notice, prior to any complaints. We have not talked to her directly, nor responded, so we should be fine....unless she puts up a fight, of course.

Thanks Greg, we are tending to agree at this point.  I am actually in my office writing the non-renewal letter now.  If we decide to keep the house, fine.  If we decide to sell, fine.  If we decide to re-rent, fine....but it will be to a fully-qualified, credit-worthy applicant.

Thanks for helping me work through this in my head, all.  Sometimes, when something is too close to you, it clouds the vision.

Thanks all! I know I need to take command here....we've been regretting the 2-yr lease for over a year now, lol! So it sounds like the best answer for *me* is to write a dual letter of notice of non-renewal (with wording to allow for default to month-to-month, which is what happens in Washington, from what I am reading in the statutes) along with a 3-month notice to increase rent. That will give them the 90-days required notice on rent increase & hopefully stop any potential sudden "complaints" that would bar me from non-renewing the lease (Washington statutes seem to say if there is an open "complaint" about a rental, you can't evict or non-renew or it's considered retaliation). You know, the more I write, the more I just want to get her out, sell, and buy 3 or 4 cheap properties...... I love real estate and rentals, but when it's your OWN home.....ugh.

Basically, we don't want to give them another long lease, so would rather it default to a mtm by expiry.  That being said, even if they stay mtm, we need to increase the rent substantially.  If they are willing to pay the market-value rent, I might be willing to let them stay longer, but want the option of non-renewing the mtm, in the event we need the house back for ourselves, or we decide to sell (she is NOT the type who would allow viewings).

Make sense?

Almost 2 years ago, we rented out our personal SFH. The tenants are professionals, who had hit upon hard times during the recession and their credit had taken a severe hit. They also had 3 large dogs (we have 2). Because I am in a sister-profession I understand, intimately, that even REALLY responsible people can have a run of bad luck like they did. I was actually transitioning jobs as well, at the time, so it seemed like a win-win for all involved. We put the rent at a level that they could afford, but one that was a bit below our actual costs of ownership and upkeep (ie: we subsidized their rent in exchange for peace of mind and ease of transition on our end). Well, other than about $20K in plumbing issues the very first month of rental, all has been good, quiet, and rent paid on time. They asked for "first right of refusal" if we were to offer the house for sale, which we were fine with, knowing that 1) they are still years from qualifying and 2) we are unlikely to sell.

Late last year, I contacted them to see what their idea on continuing the lease vs buying was, and I got a fairly terse response back that it was "too early to decide".  Fair enough, but I let her know that we would definitely have to increase the rent substantially at the next renewal, if we allowed them to stay.

Meanwhile, I've been taking (locum) jobs all over the country to buy time until the lease is up (my jobs provide housing), I can terminate, and move back in.  Today, she emails me (just short of the 3 month end-of-lease window) to ask what the rental increase would / will be.

My questions are:
Should I respond, informally, at all (ie: by email)?
Since my preference is to simply end the lease (so I can have my house back), and Washington state apparently lets you send a lease termination letter up to 3 months in advance (from what I understand??), should I simply send the lease termination letter and call it a day?
Should I offer a month-to-month at the increased rate (the increase would be about $800/month more)
Is their "right of first refusal" terminated with the lease or with an offer to purchase, knowing they can't qualify?

PS -  the tenant apparently has previous professional real-estate knowledge so I want to keep everything on the up and up, and not leave her any loopholes to exploit.

Will insurance be an issue??