All Forum Posts by: Tricia O'Brien

I have a rental home in Modesto CA (single family home - 3 beds/2 bath ) with a vacancy I want to fill by Thanksgiving.  Many of the applicants through my property manager have 2 cats or 1 dog. Initially, I wanted to take 1 cat only, no dogs, to minimize the risk of property damages, but now I'm thinking of expanding my criteria to get the vacancy  filled.  How can I minimize the risk of losing $ ?  My property manager requires people with pets to pay a pet deposit of a few hundred dollars and have renters insurance that covers the animal.  What can I do to protect myself against the possibility of the pet causing $4-$5K in damage to the carpeting and/or yard ?  Can I specify that the renters insurance covers up to $5K in property damage and $300K liability? Is one dog more risk than 2 cats?  What about $50/month pet rent in addition to the pet deposit ?  Is that realistic in the Central Valley of California? Any replies would be appreciated! Thanks.

I have rental property income from one single family home. I have always reported the rental income on Schedule E ("Supplemental Income and Loss") form with the IRS and not schedule C because I hold title in my own name, not in an LLC or S corporation. I want to continue reporting the rental income on schedule E. A new property manager I might hire sent me a W-9 with his sample management contract which he'd like me to sign. I have 2 questions:

1) If I fill out the W-9 for them, will I still be able to report the income under schedule E and not schedule schedule C with the IRS?

2) If I want to be sure I get a 1099 from the new property manager at the end of the year with the rents received, should I fill out the W-9 or  just give them a copy of my social security card?

Any replies would be appreciated!

Thanks Ashton Astillero!  How much do you think it would cost to get the gas separately metered? There are two one bedroom units downstairs and one two bedroom unit upstairs.  I am told the gas connections are in the attic.

Thanks for the suggestions!  Is it legal in Indiana to require people to pay a % of a gas bill based on the size of their unit? So if it's a triplex with one unit having 50% of the square footage, that tenant pays 50% of the bill, another tenant pays 25%, etc. I have heard that is illegal in some states / cities.  Are property management companies usually willing to deal with that constantly changing number?

I recently evaluated a 100 year old triplex in Indiana where the landlord pays gas, water, trash but electric is individually metered (and each unit has electric heat).  The units all have a gas stove/oven and share one gas water heater.   Inspection of the rent rolls for 1 year showed the gas bill was typically $15-$20 per month. However, in Dec to March it jumped to $45 to $135 per month, and in March it was $435. When I asked the property manager about the spike in gas bill, he said he thought the people in the 2 bdrm unit were probably using the gas stove to help heat the unit.  I have not made an offer on this place because i was concerned about this situation... both the safety hazard and the increased cost to owner. What's the best long term solution for this type of problem?  Is it worth owning a place like that for 5-10 years if you can get it resolved in one winter? I understand this is a fairly common problem in low end units in the Midwest...because electric heat is more costly than gas but some tenants don't know that or budget for that at move in. Any replies would be appreciated!

Can anyone recommend a good tax preparer / enrolled agent in Anchorage?  I want some assistance in figuring out depreciation and how various purchases (new roof, new furnace, etc) will affect my tax liability on my single family rental house.  Would be willing to pay by the hour for a consultation. Any replies would be appreciated!

Hello Jon Holdman,  Is it 15% on the $45K in this example because 15% is the capital gains tax rate?

I am trying to understand how much depreciation I will have to pay back to the IRS if I sell my single family rental home that has been a rental for 5 years. Is it the full cash amount I depreciated or the amount of depreciation multiplied by my effective federal tax rate? Hoping someone can help!  For example, I'll use these approximate  numbers to explain:

Cost basis of building: $135K

Depreciation;   $6K per year

Period of Use as a rental:  5 years

Total Depreciation: $30K

If I sell it now at a profit and my effective federal tax rate in the year of sale is 20%, what do I owe the IRS for depreciation?  $30K OR  $30K  x 0.20 = $6K  ?

Any replies would be appreciated!

Can anyone recommend a good independent insurance broker in California for a landlord policy or dwelling policy on a single family rental?  I want to get a new insurance policy (or at least liability coverage), but due to some weird things with the house most of the big companies (Farmers Insurance, AAA) won't cover it.  The house is in Modesto CA.  Any replies would be appreciated!

Hello Terry Lao,  How much was the deductible for the home warranty on each of your fourplexes? Tricia