All Forum Posts by: Lisa Ryan

That's good advise, I'll definitely create a property info page and email that to people who respond to the advertisement. Would you mind sharing what your qualifications are?

Thanks! That leads me to another question - how far in advance do you normally sign a lease? I'm not moving until 7/3  but all my stuff is moving on 6/19. If I still have access to my house I'll be doing 2 weeks on an air mattress but otherwise I can stay with family a little farther away from work. I've advertised that 6/20 is the earliest move-in date and stated that I would prefer a move-in between 6/20 and 7/1. Assuming someone comes, sees the house, loves it, and everything checks out, they could sign the lease now for a 6/20 move-in, and then I'd just have to meet with them again on 6/20 to give them the key, right?

I could definitely see only doing showings 1x or 2x a week if it wasn't also where you were living, but since I'm living here I really don't mind someone coming over after work. I'm here anyways.

One of my friends has wood countertops in her old family home. They survived three children and 20+ years and have held up well.

Hey all!

I started advertising for my property 3 days ago and had a showing yesterday and another one lined up for Friday. Just as background info (sorry for the repetition if you read my other post) I had one property manager tell me $1,300 was fair market rent and another tell me $1,700. I personally think $1,300 is too low and $1,700 is too high, so I'm advertising $1,400 for a 2 year lease & $1,500 for a 1 year lease. Water not included.

Since this is my first rodeo, I wanted to get some insight into the proper order of doing things. Here's what I've done so far: (1) someone responds to my add on craigslist and I email them pre-screening questions (name, number, reason for moving, # of people & relationship, intended rental term, occupancy date, smoking, pets, approximate credit score, occupation) (2) they write back and if there aren't any glaring red flags, I call them & ask if they would like a showing (3) have the showing & give them application to fill out.

That's as far as I've gotten so far. The people last night seemed really great and they liked the place, but I haven't received a completed app yet (it has been less than 24 hours). I've also decided on using mysmartmove.com for screenings - they can pay via credit card directly and then it just sends me the report.

Fast forward to *hopefully soon* receiving a completed application and a credit/background check that I'm comfortable with. I guess I would have them come back over to the house, sit down at the dining room table, and get the lease signed? Do I need to explain to them what is stated in the lease and why or just sit back, relax, and see if they have any questions?

Also, how long should showings typically take? Last night seemed to go really fast. It went well, they definitely liked it & were friendly, but it was quick. Like 5-10 minutes.

Sometimes I hate my age, height, hair color, and gender. I feel like they're all rolled up into a quadruple whammy that make people take me less seriously. I still get carded for rated r movies, how is someone supposed to sign a lease with me? That's my insecurity talking, never mind it.

Thanks! I went to college down there (App State) so I'm a little familiar with the state. Looking forward to Charlotte's sun.

Just got thrown for a little bit of a loop. Talked with a different property manager today and he said he thinks fair market rent is about $1,700. I personally think that sounds really high! I just started advertising two or three days ago for $1,400/2 year lease & $1,500/1 year lease, both with a $75 water allowance and have someone coming over tonight to look - should I change the price on them? Maybe take out the $75 water allowance? I kinda feel like a jerk doing that, but money talks.

That's a lot of text! It brings me back to the studying for the CPA exam days that luckily are long gone. I skimmed but couldn't find it clearly stated, but this from a forbes article:

"Roth IRAs come with a special rule: you can withdraw the amount you’ve contributed at any time penalty-free and tax-free. The catch is that you have to have proof of how much you’ve contributed over the years."

http://www.forbes.com/sites/ashleaebeling/2014/05/27/the-roth-ira-mistake/

Thanks everyone for your input!

I have my first showing tonight at 7:30, eek! From the pre-screening questions I asked everything seems good. Husband & wife, 2 incomes, 2 kids, 680 self-reported credit score (of course I'll verify that).

I'll still need a property manager but I can save myself 1 month rent by finding my own tenants. I know finding good tenants is the most important thing, so I'll be diligent.

I advertised $1,500 a month with a 1 year lease & $1,400 a month with a 2 year lease, water up to $75 a month included. They want a 2 year lease, so essentially rent would be $1,325 per month.

I didn't factor vacancy into my calculations because I know that this property isn't super profitable and figure that, provided by experience, as soon as the 1st people move it (whether it's 1, 2, or 5 years later) I'll sell the property. Price it slightly below market and have it gone quickly. Charlotte real estate seems like the place to be & I'm considering dipping into my Roth IRA contributions (you can withdraw contributions penalty free, just can't touch the income) to put a downpayment on a duplex. I'm only 25 so I have plenty of time to build my little retirement portfolio back up.

I know it's definitely not a winner and I don't plan to hold it long as a rental property, but since I already have the property and don't know how I'll like being a landlord, I figure it's worth holding it for another year or two to see if being a landlord is something I can even handle. I know there are much better deals out there, but then there are all the buying costs and, if I don't like it, the selling costs.

I do have a fair amount of equity in the property. Philadelphia kills you with transaction costs (gotta love the 2% transfer fee when you buy & sell) so after it's all said and done, I should walk away with $50,000. However, I'm super lucky to have an awesome mom who loaned me $15,000 for the downpayment of my new house in Charlotte. If I sell my house I have to pay her back right away, if I keep it and rent it I have to pay her back over 1-2 years.

I talked to two property managers and they both said I could rent for $1,400 but if they found the perfect tenants it would be worth it to do $1,300.

I almost bought my first property a year and a half ago, but during the inspection things fell through. But now I think I have it. The numbers aren't too great, but here they are:

Rent: $1,300

Mortgage: $850 (approx 200 principle, 320 interest, the rest taxes & insurance)

Yearly taxes: $2,400

Yearly insurance: $800

Est. monthly repairs: $130

Monthly PM fee: $130

Monthly CF: $190

So why is it the perfect property? I already own it! I'm moving 600 miles away and have had my house on the market for 2 months with no bites, so rather then lower the price again, why not rent it out? I've also been wanting a rental property for a while, but recognize that I might absolutely hate it. Since I already have this house, it's not the same thing as going through all the buying costs again, getting a much higher interest rate (I got mine near the bottom, 3.375%), and then realizing I don't like it and selling it (more costs). Ideally I'd like something in my new city, Charlotte, which I think is a goldmine of good rental properties, but since I already have this humble NE Philly abode I'm going to run with it for now.

I'm in a 6 month contract with ReMax for selling my house that expires in mid-august. I want to tell my agent that if the house is not under contract by the end of May I'm going to pull it off the market and keep it as a rental. Any advise on how to do this? 

@Roy N. , thanks for the breakdown. Guess it's not such a good investment.

@Emma S. it's also walking distance to a hospital, so I think the tenant pool would be a mix of college students, nurses, & hospital residents. It seems like that would make for a low vacancy.

@Mary B. I looked at rentometer and it seems like there's a little room to raise rents - probably $50 a unit. That would at least offset the water costs. It only needs light cosmetics - carpet & paint.