tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Nov 29, 2020 7:13 PM
tenant positive (by Mike [TX]) Nov 29, 2020 7:42 PM
tenant positive (by Hoosier [IN]) Nov 29, 2020 8:32 PM
tenant positive (by NE [PA]) Nov 29, 2020 9:05 PM
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Nov 29, 2020 9:35 PM
tenant positive (by NE [PA]) Nov 29, 2020 9:39 PM
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Nov 29, 2020 9:45 PM
tenant positive (by Mike [TX]) Nov 29, 2020 9:49 PM
tenant positive (by NE [PA]) Nov 29, 2020 9:54 PM
tenant positive (by NE [PA]) Nov 29, 2020 9:56 PM
tenant positive (by Nicole [PA]) Nov 29, 2020 10:12 PM
tenant positive (by Nellie [ME]) Nov 29, 2020 10:37 PM
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Nov 29, 2020 11:03 PM
tenant positive (by Mike [TX]) Nov 29, 2020 11:36 PM
tenant positive (by Small potatoes [NY]) Nov 30, 2020 12:06 AM
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Nov 30, 2020 9:26 AM
tenant positive (by Mike [TX]) Nov 30, 2020 12:42 PM
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Nov 30, 2020 2:29 PM
tenant positive (by PG [SC]) Dec 1, 2020 5:58 PM
tenant positive (by BRAD 20,000 [IN]) Dec 2, 2020 2:00 AM
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Dec 2, 2020 12:37 PM
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 7:13 PM Message:
I texted my tenants this afternoon to let them know that it was time again for another quarterly maintenance check and he texted back and said "No can do, She tested positive for COVID and he has to quarantine till after next week."
I told him BS your getting a maintenance check! Just KIDDING!!! Calm down, I know some of you got a little excited.
I told him that I hoped she was okay and then I asked him if she had symptoms and he said she was over the symptoms but he didn't know if he had it or not and so had to quarantine.
He told that December 12th would work for him and asked if that would work for me. I told him yes and asked what time.
Point being, if you are respectful towards each other then things work better. A few days delay is fine with me given the circumstances.
I was wondering if this might be something that came up eventually. We will see how things play out. --73.120.xx.xxx |
tenant positive (by Mike [TX]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 7:42 PM Message:
Bingo! You hit the nail on the head. Screen correctly , get good tenants and treat them with respect. I’ve been doing this for over 20 years and not hardly a problem at all. --73.166.xxx.xxx |
tenant positive (by Hoosier [IN]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 8:32 PM Message:
Well done. Hope your tenant stays healthy and the maintenance check goes well. --99.92.xxx.xxx |
tenant positive (by NE [PA]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 9:05 PM Message:
I know you're new at this. That quarterly maintenance check will get old after the 2nd or 3rd property. I have units I haven't been in for years. --70.44.xxx.xx |
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 9:35 PM Message:
NE, are you not concerned that your units could be getting trashed or that your tenants have brought in unauthorized pets or guest?
Are you not concerned that your properties could need maintenance that you are not aware of? --73.120.xx.xxx |
tenant positive (by NE [PA]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 9:39 PM Message:
Nope. I used to be, but not anymore. --70.44.xxx.xx |
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 9:45 PM Message:
So, you just wait until they tell you they are moving and then go see what you have? --73.120.xx.xxx |
tenant positive (by Mike [TX]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 9:49 PM Message:
6x6 I have to agree with NE . Not only will you get tired of it but I f rented a house and my landlord came checking every 3 months I would be moving.. if you have good tenants there is no reason to go check. I usually take a/c filters once or twice a year and replace the one that’s there and leave the others. I have all good tenants who respect me and my properties. They know I expect them to keep them nice and they do.
If I see something out of kilter the once or twice a year that I do go I let them know. But honestly,if you have good tenants they will take care of the place and let you know when something is wrong.
Unlik.e most people on here I’m very friendly with my tenants. A typical, I’m still friends with every tenant I have had in the las 20 years, I have never had to clean a house after one moves out, I have never had to kick anyone out. And I have had rents paid late
only a handful of times in 20 years.
If you get good tenants and are good to them they will be good to you. I know this goes against what most on here do but I have never had one bit of damage in 20 years. And like I saiid, no evictions and they stay along time and leave the homes spotless. What else can I ask for? Even my out of town rentals are no problems at all and they are 4 hours away. --73.166.xxx.xxx |
tenant positive (by NE [PA]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 9:54 PM Message:
What Mike said. I can add that good tenants are going to call you with a problem. When you see texts or phone calls from good tenants, your heart should jump because something's probably wrong. PITA tenants you'll hear from somewhat regularly and be in those units more frequently. Like Mike, I have very little damage at move out and most times they're "eat off the floor" clean.
Quarterly is a waste of your time if you're screening properly. --70.44.xxx.xx |
tenant positive (by NE [PA]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 9:56 PM Message:
Also, who cares if that tenant is positive. If you have to service the unit, they can go outside. Especially if it's an emergency. This is not a get out of jail free card. --70.44.xxx.xx |
tenant positive (by Nicole [PA]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 10:12 PM Message:
I've also never done quarterly or even semi-annual inspections. Until a few years ago I collected rent and that got me inside. Until a few years ago I did the great majority of general maintenance and upkeep myself so that got me on the properties and often times inside. Every time I have a service call, I go with the service person - I do not allow the tenant to work with the contractor. That gets me inside. I seldom have anyone stay longer than two years (except my 18 year tenants!!).
If I had a ton of properties? Different method required. --72.70.xxx.xxx |
tenant positive (by Nellie [ME]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 10:37 PM Message:
Yeah, we don’t do maintenance checks, either. I feel that we are going to get bitten by it one day, but haven’t yet. It is pure laziness and we are pretty laid back types. Our lease is around 18 pages, so there is that. We do currently have some poor housekeeping tenants, so I am bit concerned about them. We may have to do checks with them, as they also do have cats. Husband and I have not yet decided. --70.16.xxx.xxx |
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 11:03 PM Message:
Thank you all for the replies. I have had problems in the past but I did not screen well at all. I am a little concerned with what I have worked for and am risking. I guess I am a bit of a control freak. I will give it some thought on the inspections but they have never acted like it is a problem. In fact we usually have a friendly conversation. --73.120.xx.xxx |
tenant positive (by Mike [TX]) Posted on: Nov 29, 2020 11:36 PM Message:
6 x I am like you. I work hard for what I have and I take extreme pride in my properties and keep them in excellent condition. After a little more than 20 years I still worry a little especially if they have kids or animals. But , like I said I have never had any damage done and like NE said all my tenants have left the p,aces so clean you could eat off the floor.
The way I look at it is I feel like o screen pretty good. I don’t put a lot of stock in their job or previous landlord because when I was younger I would quit a job at the drop of a hat. But I’m the kind of person that will do what I have to do to make money so it was never a problem.
And I used all the tricks of previous landlords we’re friends who answered the phones .... same thing for work. I even would have girlfriends rent the place but I would live there and I would pay rent. But I always took great care of the place.
The way I look at it if I have to worry about what they are doing in my house then I did screen good enough. I have 2 other full time business s so I don’t have time to worry about this. The biggest thing I look for besides my own opinion of the people is their credit. I have found above everything else the better the credit the better the tenants.
I know sometimes it’s hard to find people with perfect credit but they will usually come along pretty quickly if your offering a nice place. Even my out of town properties i get excellent credit people and they are mobile homes.
I get more for my mobile homes than a lot of people get for stick houses in this town. Because I take really good care of the places and make the property a place you would want to live.
It all boils down to...... offer a great place to live at a reasonable price. Screen well and use your common sense. Then after they move in treat them nice and with respect If you do this you won’t have problems, your properties will be returned without damage and clean and you will have nothing to worry about. It’s a hell of a lot easier than taking just an average guy who will be late with the rent, damage your property and if you don’t have to evict him will leave the place a mess...... which type of landlord do you want to be? --73.166.xxx.xxx |
tenant positive (by Small potatoes [NY]) Posted on: Nov 30, 2020 12:06 AM Message:
I do not do quarterly inspections either. I have mostly better tenants now that I ditched the pm. I fixed up units over the years so there is less breaking down. I am friendly with most of them, some I never see. It can take time to figure out if they are responsible. That said, good tenants go bad randomly. I'm not going to spend my time inspecting units to find out. Like Mike said most do not want to see you.
Where I am upping my game is w furnace filters and I don't trust most tenants to service them, so I will (ideally) be in units more this heating season. As for covid, I have farmed out more work so I'm not in units. It's a direction I want to go in anyway. That said I have to meet an electrician who is servicing a blown electric baseboard heater. It shorted out and burned a hole in the wiremould. So I'll have to touch up behind him, and I'll do another service call in the building. Still learning how the previous owner did things, and where things run. --24.194.xxx.xxx |
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Posted on: Nov 30, 2020 9:26 AM Message:
Thank you all again for your comments.
Mike, thank you for explaining your process as I wondered how you did things so as to not have problems and end up in court. I would definitely rather go the hassle free route. Do you give them a move out check list on cleaning and things as WMH does? --73.120.xx.xxx |
tenant positive (by Mike [TX]) Posted on: Nov 30, 2020 12:42 PM Message:
6x actually I don’t.I know it goes against what a lot of LLs do but I am pretty friendly with my tenants. I’m a. People person . I don’t bend over backwards for them. Let me put it this way, if you get top notch people to move in ( and I still say credit is biggest indicator) these people know how and want to be good tenants. When I pick someone to be a tenant and I’m signing the lease with them I tell them in a friendly way that I work hard for the things I have and all I’m looking for is someone to pay the rent on time and take care of the place.they understand this. I bet I don’t spend even $500.00 a year on maintenance on each house. I get things fixed as soon as I know about them. I know a lot of LLs that don’t fix things or take a long time getting them fixed.
Bottom line is people with good credit are looking for a nice place to live and they have no problem with paying rent on time..... it comes natural to them. They stay longer. My a tenants stay between 2-7 years. And in wanting a nice place to live naturally they are going to take care of it. I know some on here think they are making a profit chasing people to court. They are in fact losing money with repairs to damage, rents not paid and time wasted plus the hassle of going to court. They aren’t making money . In this case they are chasing what is already lost and even with late fees etc. they could have invested the money if paid on time and be way ahead of things. Unfortunately some people live their life to the motto of “ ignorance reigns supreme “ I would rather be taking a vacation with my money in the bank than sitting in court with my phone ringing from the next tenant who can’t pay and tore my property up.
--73.166.xxx.xxx |
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Posted on: Nov 30, 2020 2:29 PM Message:
Thank you Mike --73.120.xx.xxx |
tenant positive (by PG [SC]) Posted on: Dec 1, 2020 5:58 PM Message:
6X6
Please don't forget tenants change - just had a young couple good for 18 months - She split - Guy went party nuts - almost had to evict him for non payment - he left the place a mess.
BUT my trash out guy had it clean in about 4 hours and got some furniture to boot. No real damage.
I use repairs and I started changing air filters as means to inspect. but as others have noted with multiple properties it may not be worth your time. --99.197.xxx.xxx |
tenant positive (by BRAD 20,000 [IN]) Posted on: Dec 2, 2020 2:00 AM Message:
6man,
We do 6 month checks. Put on pause in March.
I would never let my investments go for a long period of time TRUSTING a res to care for them or follow the rules, not matter how well they screened.
I have never regretted or felt the walk thru was wasted time. We ALWAYS find something to talk to the res about, even if it's to compliment them on great decorating or upkeep.
Screening helps but does not solve problems once they are in the home. Most LL screening is just financial, not on the care of the home.
Here are some real life examples of what we have found:
People change. Stuff happens. They split, They lose jobs. They get cancer. They die. No-good family moves in. They bring in homeless people or roommates. Their sweet little cherub at move in is now a surly Goth methhead punching holes in the doors. They bring home 5 pitbulls. 5 German Shepherds in a small fenced in yard which was now a mudpit. One started hoarding cats - 28. Their dog has puppies. They don't report the roof leak because they don't want you to raise the rent or they just don't care. On a small farm property they brought the goat into the bedroom on cold nights.
We also get photos of how they USE the property which I used in court to prove things like unauthorized animals, extra beds, rocking chair gouges in the wall, 44 screw holes behind the wall mount TV, or the rubber burnout skid marks on the kitchen floor from their moped parked in the kitchen.
We recently had 2 move outs that were absolutely HORRIBLE!
We had not done their walkthru in several months and then paused during the pandemic so basically a year without seeing the inside.
Worst roach/bedbug/cat urine infestation I have EVER seen in 42 years. We are still treating it 60 days later because live ones are still appearing.
We had rented to a decent single guy. His daughter moved in because she had a baby. The Babydaddy got out of prison and moved in. Somewhere in this her brother moved in.
Our quiet single guy res got fed up and moved out but continued to pay the rent for the next month or 2 to round out the lease and give notice. We did not know any of this because we did not do a walkthru.
He texted OUT and we found $5000 in cleaning and repairs. (9 foot ceilings but 12 drop ceiling tiles were busted out.
Another eviction, similar story. They had only been their since Jan so the July walkthru was put on hold. OH MY again. My houskeeper will not touch it.
Moral - ALWAYS check your properties.
For your covid person a few weeks wil not make much difference. If worried, use Ray's suggestion of a Facetime walkthru.
BRAD
--73.102.xxx.xxx |
tenant positive (by 6x6 [TN]) Posted on: Dec 2, 2020 12:37 PM Message:
Thank you PG and Brad.
Brad, thank you for the examples. That is exactly why I do quarterly inspections, for that just in case situation. --73.120.xx.xxx |
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