All Forum Posts by: Terry Hollinsworth

@James York     Different people will always have different views about this and there's the saying that

"A man convinced against his will, is of the same opinion still."

My experience initially with Section 8 in Cleveland was very negative because of the inspectors. No standardization, being very unorganized, etc.  I call it short term pain for long term gain. Deal with some red tape, unorganization and nonsense up front.....to know that you will have a tenant that (in my experience) will stay longer on average than many cash tenants and most (if not all) of your rent money is guaranteed. 

Luckily I had also dealt with Housing Authorities in Alameda County and Contra Costa County here in the Bay Area so I knew NOT to expect to pass the inspection the first or even second time. I also know that when you screen the tenants properly that makes a world of difference. I personally screened the Section 8 tenants in all of my rentals, including the ones in Cleveland. Many of my colleagues have asked why am I personally screening them when I have a PM that should be doing this. My answer is simple. Nobody will care about your property as much as you. After I screen them, then I turn it over to my PMs to actually work with the housing authority to sign the packet, place the tenant, etc. 

 Nobody can guarantee a perfect tenant, cash or Section 8. But I sure sleep well at night....especially this past year knowing that none of my Section 8 tenants went on a "rent strike". In fact a few of them lost their jobs....and the Housing Authorities simply started covering their entire rent. 

I like having a few tenants that hold section 8 vouchers. I market my properties at market rents and I put all the applicants to the screening process. If a section 8 tenant happens to be the best applicant then they get the unit. I have had some really good experience with section 8 tenants. I had one bad experience with a section 8 tenant but that was my fault. I never should have moved her in.

I have had some really good section 8 tenants. Example, working mom that put her self through college, a Vietnam vet that was the most clean and organized tenant I have ever had, another one actually priced her self out of the program because she started making too much money at her job.

You have to treat them like any other tenant credit check, back ground check  and employment verification. This information builds a story on how responsible they are and gives you an idea of their past rental history. 

I feel that the people with bad experiences do not properly screen their tenants. There's definitely a trick to making it work. Remember, anyone can qualify for section 8 but that doesn't automatically qualify them for your property.

This has nothing to do with starting a political debate. It has to do with starting a discussion. I feel certain that, much like myself, many of you aren’t aware of all the previous injustices done in housing. Anyone who knows me would expect me to make all the same statements seen in other comments. After reading this book, I’ve come to realize that the problems are greater than I had imagined. It goes far beyond calling someone lazy and assuming they could easily do better. I realize in the context of a forum it’s hard to fully understand, but if you knew me you’d know that I am absolutely an advocate for working hard and helping yourself over handouts. I simply think there is a case for public assistance far greater than what I had previously believed. You’re welcome to disagree and I’m most certainly NOT here for a political debate. Regardless of your thoughts on section 8, I’d encourage you to check out that book. It was eye opening to say the least. 

I'd rather rent to a hardworking undocumented immigrant that's working hard. 

As someone said, section 8 rabbit hole.

 Your dilemma is that the $21,000 insurance co check with your name on it actually belongs to the original roofer. You see you signed over your benefits (the $21,000) check when you signed the AOB so if you do anything other than hand that check over to that roofer and have your roof fixed you're actually in breach of contract. 

You only really have 2 options:

1. Tell insurance company price is inflated and the roofer is a scammer, they will cancel the claim and allow the roof replacement to be repriced. This doesn't really help you. You'll likely end up with A LOT more eyes on your claim. This will likely end up with a poor outcome for you.

2. If you have another roofer that will do the job for $11,000 and you are confident that the quote is firm. Then you effectively have $9000 (the difference between the two quotes) to bargain with. You might offer the original roofer $4000-5000 to cancel the AOB and walk away. Knowing how profitable roofing is I doubt he would walk for less than $5000. Note: THIS IS ILLEGAL. I AM NOT ADVISING YOU TO TAKE THIS COURSE OF ACTION.

Likely scenerio: The roofer solicited home owner stating he could get the property owner a "free roof" by negotiating with the insurance company then waiving the deductible (illegal). Roofing contractor then proceeds to inflate his estimate working hard to extract as much as possible from the insurance carrier. Roofer finally get the insurance co to issue payment and now property owner has been paid out but realizes he can get the actual work done for much less than the check in hand. Now property owner wants go with another cheaper roofer or patch the roof and get something else fixed or just pocket the money. Basically double crossing the roofer than worked hard and got the claim approved in the first place. But little does the homeowner know he signed a AOB (assignment of benefits) that is more than likely iron-clad and essentially forces the homeowner to use the original contractor to perform the work. If homeowner doesnt use the original contractor he's likely going to end up with a lien on the property.