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All Forum Posts by: Steve T.

Steve T. has started 5 posts and replied 11 times.

Hi everyone,

I'm seeking your insights on two aspects of my two-family home. Your expertise and experiences in real estate investment and home improvement would be greatly appreciated.

  1. Potential Layout Change: I currently live in the main floor unit, which is a versatile 1-bedroom but has the potential to be a 2-bedroom. The existing layout includes:
    • A front entrance leading to a room with a walk-in and a coat closet. This serves as my living room but could be converted into a bedroom, as it has an existing door frame.
    • Small Hallway to the adjacent dining room/off-kitchen area with a back entrance and a half bathroom.
    • My small one bedroom room, off the living room

    The previous occupant used what is now my dining room as a living room, and my current living room as a bedroom. I was considering knocking down the wall between these two rooms to create an open concept space. Would removing the option for a second bedroom in favor of an open layout negatively impact the property's value? Rather than favoring an open concept, one bedroom?

  2. Hardwood Flooring Restoration: I discovered original 1930s hardwood flooring beneath the current layer of LVP and plywood. This same flooring is visible in my living room which I had refinished. I'm contemplating removing the LVP and plywood to refinish the original hardwood. This might require some TLC in certain areas, but I'm inclined to preserve the home's historical character. I was also told that the hardwood floor looks like it was never refinished before.

    Would restoring the original hardwood floors offer a good return on investment (ROI)? If it's not significantly impactful ROI-wise, would you still recommend proceeding with the restoration for aesthetic and historical preservation reasons? Especially because I live in this unit and consider this my home? This decision ties into the potential wall removal, as it would create a unified flooring experience from the front entrance.

I'm not planning to move in the near future, but I am considering these changes with both current enjoyment and future value in mind. Your thoughts and advice would be greatly valued.

Walking through front door while under construction

Thanks!

Hi everyone...I'm exploring real estate investment opportunities in warm locations, particularly for the winter months. I live in Southwestern Connecticut, and am looking for places that are not only ideal for escaping the winter months but also have strong potential for rental income/future resale value of the property. So the goal would be to have it rented during spring, summer, fall..and maybe I'd use it for a month or so during the winter to escape the northeast. Also it would have to be a location that's within a reasonable flight distance from JFK or LaGuardia airports. I have some rental experience with the 2 family home I own. I live in one unit, rent out the other unit, and rent out the detached garage for storage. 

Here are my key criteria:

  • Warmer climate/More daylight time than Connecticut during winter
  • Good potential for rental income and property appreciation
  • Affordable property prices with a good ROI potential
  • Quick flight from NYC

I've considered cities in Florida, Georgia, and SC. I'm particularly interested in areas that haven't yet experienced a real estate boom but are on the cusp of growth.

Additionally, I'm looking at options for managing these properties. I'd be fine with doing it myself, but I'm not sure an airbnb setup would be good because of people constantly coming in and out, and risk of it being vacant. I also looked at platforms like Mashvisor for finding and analyzing potential properties but would love to hear if anyone has experience with these or other tools.

I would greatly appreciate any insights, experiences, or advice you can share, especially:

  • Recommendations on specific cities or neighborhoods that meet these criteria
  • Tips on managing properties remotely
  • Thoughts on using platforms like Mashvisor for property analysis
  • If this idea would make sense to do

Thank you in advance for your help!

hi everyone again..I was getting ready to just increase their rent.

Right now they pay 2150. 

https://www.zillow.com/stamford-ct-06902/rentals/?searchQuer...

If you look at the above you can see thats really below the market. You can see the pictures of the unit in my original post. Multiple sites say 2600-2800 is market average when i put in my address and bedroom/bathroom amount... I'm not trying to be greedy i just want to make sure I get a fair rate from them. What do you think would be fair? I was thinking around 2400-2600 would be fair considering everything but it is a huge jump from 2150..Need to send them a message soon as 2 months before their lease expires is coming up

Thanks

Hi everyone

I'm a landlord from Stamford, Connecticut, and I'm seeking some advice about my two-family home. Here's a quick rundown:

  • Location: Situated on a nice dead-end street, just 0.7 miles from two local parks/beaches.
  • Property Layout: I reside on the first floor, and I rent out the second floor.
  • Second Floor Unit Specs: It features two bedrooms, a full bathroom, an in-unit washer/dryer, access to the backyard, and one parking spot in the driveway.
  • Tenant Background: They've been dependable and quiet, currently in their third year. Their lease is due for renewal on 3/1/2024.
  • Rental History: The rent was $2000 in 2021, increased to $2040 in 2022, and is currently $2150.

In assessing the local rental market, I see rent is trending way up in general. While not many specific examples of 2 family homes..I've noticed a significant number of high-rise apartments charging between $2900 to $3300+ for two-bedroom units. These are modern buildings with additional amenities, making it challenging to accurately price my somewhat dated unit. While these high rise buildings have amenities, I do think their should be value places on residential. Some people look for that. Also the high ceilings I have are not standard in any of these places. Given the changing market dynamics, I'm contemplating renovations to bring the unit up to current standards. This includes LVP flooring, quartz countertops, new paint, and modest bathroom upgrades. Say I were to spend 10k on renovations, which I think is more than what I'm actually going to spend..Post-renovation, if i were to raise rent to $2800, which seems fair.. I'd be able to recoup that money spent on renovating in a little over 1 year.

I want to get your input on the following:

  1. Renovation vs. Rent Increase: Is it more advisable to renovate or to simply implement a modest rent increase to around $2250 (about a 5% or more hike)?
  2. Managing Tenant Transition: If I opt for renovation, my plan is to communicate clearly with the tenants, showing them the proposed upgrades, and offering a preferential rent rate for the renovated unit. Additionally, I'd propose a rent discount during the renovation phase. Does this strategy sound fair?
  3. Post-Renovation Pricing: Considering the high-rise apartments as comparables, how should I price my renovated unit?

Thank you

Post: Dilemma with tenant

Steve T.Posted
  • Posts 11
  • Votes 5
Quote from @Nathan Gesner:
Quote from @Steve T.:

Terminate his lease.

Seriously, get rid of him. You had an agreement and he complained. You go through the expense of installing a separate meter and he still doesn't pay?

Get him out. Finish installing the meter. Find a Tenant that is willing to abide by your written agreement.


 yeah I was going to go out of my way and pay for July just out of courtesy because that's when we signed the lease... but now that he took it upon himself to take it out of his rent and add on June..that changed things. 

Yep he complained the first year because the electric bill was higher than he thought. I had no control over that and even told him that the rent was reduced in price because of that. Nowhere in this city are you going to find a storefront for 1500. Its large as well.

Post: Dilemma with tenant

Steve T.Posted
  • Posts 11
  • Votes 5
Quote from @Richard F.:
Aloha,

So the commercial Tenant has been paying electric for the entire property?

Talking is the worst possible way to convey new terms or a so-called agreement between parties. If the "new" Agreement did not specify that the split would take effect only after the meter was installed, without addressing the higher recent charges, or a specific starting date for the reduction in cost, it will come down to exactly what was written. Since you have apparently been charging him for all the electric, I would not want to explain that to a Judge. You should have been paying all of the electric, and including your estimated amount in rent for both units, or, install a submeter before you create such a problem.

 He pays for his electricity and the unit behind him. That's how the electric bill is just set up. I get my own electric bill for the laundromat.

Post: Dilemma with tenant

Steve T.Posted
  • Posts 11
  • Votes 5
Quote from @Theresa Harris:

Tell him no.  the new lease which they signed said after the new meter was in, they'd cover their part.  they still owe you for May, June and July.  If not, tell them to move and you will take it out of the deposit.

attached is what the lease states. Although he knew that this would take effect when the meter was installed. But also this lease was signed in July so he has no case for June at all as well.

He doesn't owe me for may June and July...He pays the electric bill and paid his rent. What he's saying is that I agreed to split the electric bill with the tenant behind him which I didn't...I said once the meter is installed and even then that lease was signed last month and we agreed to the splitting of the electricity in July (once the meter is installed)..nothing in june

Post: Dilemma with tenant

Steve T.Posted
  • Posts 11
  • Votes 5

Hey everyone,

I'm in a bit of a dilemma and could really use some advice. I own a laundromat that has a dry cleaner and a 1 bedroom attached to it. I've been renting out the dry cleaner at a low rate of $1500 for the storefront. The reason for this lower rent was that the tenant was responsible for paying the electricity bill for the apartment behind the storefront. That’s because the electricity wasn’t split up.

Things went smoothly from May 2022 to May 2023, but recently, the tenant has been complaining a lot about the electric bill. We did just a month to month in June, and in July we had a talk about me installing a new electric meter. 

In July, I verbally told him that once the electrician installs the sub meter that the electric bill will be split. I drafted a new lease agreement stating that I would have a sub meter installed by my electrician to separate the electricity costs. The tenant agreed to this arrangement.

Fast forward to now, my electrician is just about done with the sub meter installation, but the tenant surprised me by calling yesterday and saying that I owe him for June, July, and August. He even deducted the alleged electricity costs from his rent payment, even though that wasn't part of our agreement.

I'm not sure how to handle this situation and could really use some guidance on what steps I should take. Has anyone else dealt with a similar situation before? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

thanks Linda!

this is my first investment property so any suggestions are really helpful

thanks. The other thing I was thinking about was taking down that wall between the kitchen and living room. Do you think it would be worth it? Like an open concept kitchen

My father is a general contractor so I could get a little bit of a break with work done