All Forum Posts by: William Avery

I have a billboard tenant that consistently pays late and per the terms of the agreement I have been adding a late charge. Questions:

1) Is it ok to accept the rent payment without the late payment? Should I send the check back and explain that I don't accept partial payments?

2) What recourse do I have if they continue to ignore the late charge? Pay an attorney a few hundred dollars to try to collect a few dollars?

Congratulations on your success and being able to leave your job. I wish you continued success.

If the bid + expenses + repairs + unknown = profit then I would go for it. I have something similar now and it is going well. If there were existing plumbing issues you would most likely see evidence, mold, rotten drywall, musty odors, etc. If new broken pipes from lack of winterization then be very diligent when the water is turned on. Make sure everything is turned off first then watch the meter, if it is running then you may have a leak. I agree that the bank is probably not trying to hide anything. My guess is they have never even seen the house.

Just guessing here, the corporation has a lot of employees moving around a lot. These folks need housing but may need to move before the lease term is up. With the lease in the corp name the corp can negotiate a longer lease (cheaper) and put someone else in the house if the original folks have to move. Like I said, this is just a guess and I am interested in the real answer.

I also have a no pet policy on my rentals. This was a distressed property that I bought. The lovely smell helped me get a good price. :)

Thanks for all the suggestions.

On the paint issue, how old is the paint? Is it lead based and will it need to be remediated?

I have a property where one bedroom was used as a 'kennel' or pet 'outhouse'. I am having trouble getting rid of the smells.

Concrete floor. Carpet is gone. Tack strip is gone. All solid matter has been removed. Bleached entire area. Cleaned concrete with diamond bit floor maintainer. Sprayed entire area with pine sol. Sprayed entire area with white vinegar. Sprayed entire area with odo-ban. I have painted walls, ceilings, doors and trim.

And lastly, I have painted the concrete with two coats of paint.

Smell is much better but still present. My best guess is that the base plates on the walls are the problem now.

All suggestions are welcome.

Does anyone have experience with ozone generators? I see reviews where people swear by them. I see hotels use them. But the EPA website says they are not effective.

I don't like it. Where are you in the purchase process? Some contracts have language prohibiting new leases during the purchase process without the consent of the buyer. 

Make sure all deposits convey to buyer at closing and make sure you get an estoppel letter from each tenant. This will let you know if the tenant paid a deposit and the seller is not disclosing it.

You could go in there with a hose and wash it all down. I don't think water damage would be much of a concern. But, you might create an EPA violation. ;-) I had a house once with a smell problem. I removed the carpet and the smell got better. I removed the linoleum that was under the carpet and the smell got better. I removed the ceilings (with no insulation but with about a half inch of dust and the smell got better. I removed the interior walls and the smell got better. I bleached everything that was left but still had a smell. Then I vacuumed the space between the exterior walls and where the interior walls used to be. It turns out that the dust and dirt in this space was very aromatic. This last step finally got rid of the smell.