All Forum Posts by: Jonathan Swartz

Hi Sandra. Came across your post and didn't see any responses. Let us know if you want to connect and chat. Happy to share our experiences.

Could not agree more @Brittney Peabody. Every deal can't and won't be a homerun. Especially with properties you are going to hold, you have to play the longer game. Give me a good home in a great location that can provide reasonable cashflow. For us, turnover and vacancy is the biggest expense and risk so we are willing to take less cashflow for a property we know will stay rented with great tenants because of the location, schools, etc. Sacrificing tenant stability and consistent appreciation on the alter of short-term cashflow is a bad move, IMO.

Totally agree @Filipe Pereira and good advice. It really is a civil issue that the neighbor would love to make a landlord issue so we will solve the dog problem for them.

Thanks @Debbie C. Agree that without an official citation, eviction would be tough and again, aside from this, we have a consistent paying, low maintenance tenant. Ultimately it feels like just something the tenant needs to work out with their neighbors until the city sees enough evidence to issue a citation and a judge to rule against them. If and when that occurs, we have a different path to take as that is a more clear violation of the lease by failing to abide by local laws.

Looking for some additional perspective from the BP community.

We have a tenant who's dogs are creating an issue for the neighbors. Over the past few months, we have received multiple complaints on our tenant's dogs who continue to bark. In speaking with the city Animal Services, the dogs are not barking to the extent that a citation can be issued, however there continues to be a likelihood that things will progress to that point. The tenants have, according to them, purchased a special collar to attempt to quell the barking but that does not seem to be helping. It has escalated to the point, between our tenant and their neighbors, into quite a stressed situation with the neighbors complaining frequently and growing increasingly angry over the lack of resolution.

Clearly our Lease Agreement would give us the right to seek eviction due to violation of the "disturbing the peaceful enjoyment of your neighbors" clause and if a formal citation were to be issued, the "not breaking any local laws" clause would be as well. The tenant pays their rent on time, every month. 

So here is the rub. If our tenant weren't a renter and were instead the homeowner, there is no recourse the neighbors would have for our tenant having a barking dog. The city could cite them should the barking rise to the level of violating city ordinance but at this point, that is not the case.

So given this is a neighbor issue, it doesn't seem like a tenant/landlord issue until if the city were to issue a citation, does this seem like something worth pursuing an eviction over? Clearly we would have cause given the somewhat subjective violation of the "peaceful enjoyment" clause, but it feels kind of gray without the city citation causing the more objective clause to be violated.

Love any perspective our peers can share.

Thanks @Account Closed. Appreciate the insights. Mind me asking with whom you went?

Curious on any feedback for NREIG. We just connected on a quote from them.

Welcome to Dallas @Account Closed! Ton of ways to start out. Depends on your goals, time, skillset, and money you have available to you. We are happy to talk and share some perspective but I'd take an honest assessment of the things mentioned prior and from there, determine your first move.

If you are not handy or have experience fixing a home, a renovation would be, at best, just expensive. Perhaps something turnkey would be better. Not as much cashflow but lower risk and gets you started. Requires more money however. See how everything is a trade-off?

Shoot us a DM if you want to set up some time to chat.

Best of luck!

Congrats on getting the first deal done. That's the most important step you'll take. Can't stress enough how key it is for you and your spouse to be 100% together on this journey. Talk to each other, discuss any fears or concerns, and have a real dialog so that you can move forward as partners.

Best of luck!

@Kevin M.

Longtime TenantCloud users. It's gotten much better over the past few years. Day to day it does everything we need. I will say that the accounting side is sufficient but not a replacement for an accounting tool like QuickBooks.