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For those of you who have rental properties out-of-state: Do you have any tips for how to identify legit, nonshitty property managers from afar? What are some red flags to watch for?
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Sep 9, 2018 21:04
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Christoph posted:For those of you who have rental properties out-of-state: Do you have any tips for how to identify legit, nonshitty property managers from afar? What are some red flags to watch for? Look for rental listings, check out the quality of the posting and details provided, call and talk to a leasing agent. Get a feel for how they come across to a renter. Then approach them as an owner. Ask to interview the property manager you’d be assigned. Ask for references. If they don’t cooperate it means: A) your rental is not worth enough to them B) they have enough business as it is and don’t have time or capacity C) they are poo poo Any of those three are reason enough to move on.
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Sep 10, 2018 04:12
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Also, the best advice for rental properties out-of-state is to avoid it. It's a huge headache! I mean, sure there's situations where the potential payoff can make it worth it, but god it's usually just a huge pain.
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Sep 10, 2018 15:25
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Thermopyle posted:Also, the best advice for rental properties out-of-state is to avoid it. It's a huge headache! Wouldn't a full service property manager negate this, or is there still anoying BS to handle remotely?
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Sep 11, 2018 04:01
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Thesaurus posted:Wouldn't a full service property manager negate this, or is there still anoying BS to handle remotely? When you get maintenance requests you’re basically at the mercy of the property manager unless you have someone local you trust. I kind of like that I live 500 miles from my rental. I’d be too tempted to drive by it all the time. Not so happy about it being in the path of Hurricane Thunderfuck.
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Sep 11, 2018 04:17
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Thesaurus posted:Wouldn't a full service property manager negate this, or is there still anoying BS to handle remotely? A full service property manager that you can be confident is doing their job is not an easy thing to find. Even then it's still a pain.
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Sep 11, 2018 05:51
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And expensive, likely eating anything that would make your investment profitable.
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Sep 11, 2018 09:45
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A half-competent family member or friend can give you as good of a value for managing your property as a professional can. I just have a family member who can take trouble calls (have some dependable handymen on speed dial) and chase tenants for rent checks and it has been working fine for my three places. edit: plus, wouldn't you rather toss a few hundred a month to friends or family than some bozo? edit 2: if you don't have any family or friends in said state, maybe find a goon lol Zero VGS fucked around with this message at 17:14 on Sep 11, 2018 |
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Sep 11, 2018 17:07
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My concern with using a family member is the chamtce that things could go to poo poo and I wouldn't want to poison our relationship. I'm always paranoid about mixing family and business. Still might be my best bet if the companies look like garbage
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Sep 11, 2018 19:16
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Thesaurus posted:My concern with using a family member is the chamtce that things could go to poo poo and I wouldn't want to poison our relationship. I'm always paranoid about mixing family and business. Still might be my best bet if the companies look like garbage You're right, but in practice it's one of those "you had one job" things that is really hard to mess up unless they willing try. You could instead offer the job to a half-friend that you wouldn't miss. 1) If tenant calls up with something they can't fix, they hop on Angie's List or Thumbtack to find a couple handyman quotes, or have them use a list of personnel you've vetted. 2) They collect rent (if tenants are paying in cash) and nag tenants if they are late 3) If poo poo hits the fan, they call you for advice My friends are useless stoners but they've managed it OK. Sometimes they let the tenants fall behind a bit on rent but lately I've switch to leases and late fees and that fixed the issue.
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Sep 11, 2018 22:15
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Jealous Cow posted:tips Thanks! I'll try that out. Thermopyle posted:A full service property manager that you can be confident is doing their job is not an easy thing to find. I'm still in the brainstorming phase, but my notion is to 1) research a city, 2) see if there is a good property manager in the area, and 3) THEN buy. If I can't track down a decent manager in the city then I'll take my search somewhere else. Buying and then searching for a property manager seems like the fatal error to avoid. Well, that and buying in the path of hurricanes.
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Sep 11, 2018 22:16
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Christoph posted:Thanks! I'll try that out. I'm thinking along the same lines as you. I'm looking at areas, then combining the realtor/agent/property manager search all into one (many states require a property manager of multiple properties to be licensed agents anyway), giving them very specific criteria of price range/style of home. Property managers can be cool bird dogs because they don't want to manage a lovely property, especially if you can chase more business their way. My original hypothesis was that they want to be left alone (and I'm sure that's true for oversaturated companies) but the more I actually read and research, the more I notice that "manage the manager" is not just a cliche.
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Sep 14, 2018 04:34
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There's so much stuff that either property managers just don't do or, at the least, I wouldn't trust most of them to do. For example, what happens when there's a hidden water leak and now you have a mold problem? You just going to leave it up to the manager?
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Sep 14, 2018 19:41
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Just curious, on this topic, once another party is doing the management, what's the moral justification for rent extraction? I know for me, the fact I'm the one who gets the call, goes physically and fixes the problem with my own labor and skill, lets me sleep just fine at night asking for fair market rent from people who's names I know and have developed a relationship with, even if it's based on a financial arrangement. If I offset that to someone else, AND I couldn't even meet the renter's once because of distance, I don't know I would feel like I was doing much to earn that rent check or that I could be sure I would think of my renter's as people.
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Sep 15, 2018 10:02
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poopinmymouth posted:Just curious, on this topic, once another party is doing the management, what's the moral justification for rent extraction? You're helping the management company employees make a living, effectively creating jobs and stimulating the local economy.
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Sep 15, 2018 11:16
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baquerd posted:You're helping the management company employees make a living, effectively creating jobs and stimulating the local economy. To be more clear: what service is the landlord providing in this situation that the renter is paying for?
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Sep 15, 2018 11:32
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poopinmymouth posted:To be more clear: what service is the landlord providing in this situation that the renter is paying for? They are responsible for the liability, tax, and maintenance risk on the property and bear the ultimate costs for each.
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Sep 15, 2018 14:16
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poopinmymouth posted:To be more clear: what service is the landlord providing in this situation that the renter is paying for? They are the capitalist in this situation. The thing of value they are bringing is money (and typically creditworthiness). They are bearing the risk that their underlying asset will be damaged or destroyed in a way that is not covered by insurance and/or causes loss of income on the asset for a period of time, as well as the risk of vacancies and market condition changes.
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Sep 15, 2018 14:39
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poopinmymouth posted:Just curious, on this topic, once another party is doing the management, what's the moral justification for rent extraction? It is certainly your right not to be a long-distance landlord or hire property managers.
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Sep 15, 2018 15:23
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Christoph posted:Thanks! I'll try that out. Do you currently own any rental properties? If you are not an experienced landlord I would strongly advise that you not actively seek investment properties outside of a distance you are comfortable traveling same day. At absolute minimum you need a trusted friend or family member that can physically lay eyes on the property for you on short notice. Even good property managers rarely can provide you with a level of trust and service that you are going to need when bad things happen to your property or your renters.
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Sep 15, 2018 15:27
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poopinmymouth posted:Just curious, on this topic, once another party is doing the management, what's the moral justification for rent extraction? I mean...where are people going to live?
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Sep 15, 2018 17:56
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If you really want to get into it, some kind of ground rent would be rent extraction, while your improvements are a capital investment with a finite life and maintenance needs, with a return on/of capital invested considered necessary for a functioning housing market.
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Sep 15, 2018 18:31
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Any advice or suggested resources on how to write a thorough and proper rental agreement? I winged it at first but now that I'm trying harder I would like things to look more professional.
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Sep 15, 2018 18:44
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Goobish posted:Any advice or suggested resources on how to write a thorough and proper rental agreement? I winged it at first but now that I'm trying harder I would like things to look more professional. Use a boilerplate lease from your state association of realtors or a similar source. Don't try to write important legal documents from scratch.
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Sep 15, 2018 18:48
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BEHOLD: MY CAPE posted:Use a boilerplate lease from your state association of realtors or a similar source. Don't try to write important legal documents from scratch. Yeah I used this one: https://www.ilrg.com/forms/lease-res/us/ma My lawyer skimmed it over and said it was fine, I'm using it for 3 different properties now.
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Sep 28, 2018 16:29
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Goobish posted:Any advice or suggested resources on how to write a thorough and proper rental agreement? I winged it at first but now that I'm trying harder I would like things to look more professional. It's very important to use rental agreements that have already been tested through litigation in your state. You should have a local realtor association or other online resources that can help.
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Sep 28, 2018 16:43
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Google "[Your State] Board/Association of Realtors Lease" and see if you can find a PDF not hidden behind a paywall.. It'll be a great lease written by a team of expensive lawyers tailored to your state's landlord tenant laws that licensed Realtors /brokers in your state use to represent landlords and property managers.
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Sep 29, 2018 00:52
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goku chewbacca posted:Google "[Your State] Board/Association of Realtors Lease" and see if you can find a PDF not hidden behind a paywall.. Hint, the site I posted, you can just copy and paste the text into a Word doc and it doesn't break any of the spacing. I guess if you gently caress with enough of it, it won't break copyright, like that science paper you half-copied out of the encyclopedia.
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Sep 29, 2018 02:48
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I'm having a huge issue with water coming in my ceiling from somewhere outside. The Condo Association inspected it several times, and thinks its the sliding door on the unit upstairs is not sealed properly. The owner upstairs is nice enough, but I think he's just as tired as I am of all this poo poo. Also the association hadn't said anything to me in a year, but since I called, they remembered that I have 5 people living my two bedroom unit. One is a baby, but its still apparently against the condo charter. They had my cousin evict his unit with 5 people, as well as the 5 that were previously living in the unit above mine. The association guy said he's going to be sending written notice "soon." Definitely not a conversation I am looking forward to having with my tenant. Thermopyle posted:Also, the best advice for rental properties out-of-state is to avoid it. It's a huge headache! Let me tell you, its loving awful. I'd have sold if I still wasn't going to lose $10k on the mortgage and realtor fees. edit - I read through the entire binder of condo charters, association rules and regulations, master deed, and "declaration of covenants, easements and restrictions." Not one thing mentions maximum occupancy. I talked to a real estate lawyer, he said it sounds very unusual and isn't normal to put maximum occupancy rules in place. I talked to a property manager who said it sounded really strange and impossible to enforce, but that the association "could make my life difficult." My tenant's real estate agent said the same thing, its crazy that any rule like that would exist. She is talking with her stepmother, who is a police officer, whatever that might do. This association guy seems like he's full of poo poo and just trying to bully us. They normally don't scrutinize anyone unless someone's been complaining - and I know neighbors might be complaining - I've seen Facebook comments. Its a bunch of horseshit. If he says something again, he's going to have to produce this document with this rule, because I don't have it. FogHelmut fucked around with this message at 18:35 on Oct 16, 2018 |
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Oct 15, 2018 17:33
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Sadly I have to kick out a subtenant. 30 days notice and everything, I'm going to offer to help him find a new place since he's gone for work a lot. Are there any templates out there for this in Colorado? I want to make sure I do it right. If not I can contact my landlord and ask him for something like that, but we want to give it to him sooner than later. Or is this a situation where I should talk with my landlord anyway? It's a subtenant situation where I'm on the lease, the landlord knows he's there, but he's not the leaseholder.
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Oct 15, 2018 20:02
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FogHelmut posted:I'm having a huge issue with water coming in my ceiling from somewhere outside. The Condo Association inspected it several times, and thinks its the sliding door on the unit upstairs is not sealed properly. The owner upstairs is nice enough, but I think he's just as tired as I am of all this poo poo. I'm not sure what state you are in, but around states have laws about that. In Oregon you have to permit two people per bedroom minimum (which is the federal requirement) however it is strongly recommended you allow 2 adults and one child per bedroom, lest a discrimination complaint for a too restrictive occupancy cap be upheld.
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Oct 19, 2018 05:57
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FogHelmut posted:I'm having a huge issue with water coming in my ceiling from somewhere outside. The Condo Association inspected it several times, and thinks its the sliding door on the unit upstairs is not sealed properly. The owner upstairs is nice enough, but I think he's just as tired as I am of all this poo poo. Both you and your tenant would have Fair Housing claims against the condo association based on familial status discrimination if they try to enforce that occupancy restriction, unless it’s an extraordinarily tiny condo.
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Oct 20, 2018 00:37
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The best they got is it's a HUD guideline/recommendation. But that's for adults, as far as I can tell. It's a 1000 sq ft two bedroom condo. The identical unit upstairs had a similar family situation for at least five years. I would know because I lived in my condo and knew them before I moved and started renting it out.
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Oct 20, 2018 07:11
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FogHelmut posted:The best they got is it's a HUD guideline/recommendation. But that's for adults, as far as I can tell. Yeah, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that it is probably a fair housing violation for them to retroactively place restrictions on family size.
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Oct 20, 2018 17:11
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Agreed. Contact your local NFHA affiliate.
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Oct 20, 2018 17:48
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Apparently the maximum occupancy is mentioned on the floor plans, though not anywhere else in the documents. The floor plan for each unit has a little square in the corner of the page "Maximum Occupancy". The two bedrooms all say 4, the one bedrooms all say 3. He said they have evicted before based on this and have gone to court and won. Whether or not this is true, I don't know, but I can't afford to pay eviction fees or court fees. The only reason I am a landlord is because the condo is worth less than what I bought it for and I can't afford to sell it. Everything I'm reading says while the HUD guidelines are for two per bedroom, it would likely be a family discrimination thing, especially as the children are 6, 4, and 1 - not just against the association, but also me if I had given some bullshit excuse to not renew the lease, or currently move to evict them myself. And even if the lease and master deed and all that have some kind of limit, it would not be legally binding as a contract cannot go against the law. I'm having a difficult time seeing any other path than having a lawyer between myself and the condo association if they are going to continue to press the issue and issue fines. FogHelmut fucked around with this message at 19:11 on Oct 22, 2018 |
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Oct 22, 2018 17:11
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If there is no by law or city code that you are violating and the occupancy isn't a patently unreasonable nuisance to the neighbors then you are probably fine. The condo association per se does not have a landlord tenant relationship with your tenants and cannot literally evict your tenants. What they can probably do is levy fines against you and place liens on your property. If you receive any communication from the homeowners association suggesting that you will be fined or that any other action will be taken against you due to claimed occupancy violations in your unit, it will be well worth your money to pay an attorney a couple hundred dollars to write a letter in response demanding a basis for their claim if there is truly no by law or city ordinance that limits your occupancy to less than five.
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Oct 22, 2018 20:55
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Yup, that's exactly what I was told today - I talked to an attorney today, he said that neither I nor the Condo Association can evict my tenant if they had the baby after they moved in. Additionally, they have the right to continue to stay with or without a new lease unless I have reason to evict. The Condo Association may attempt to fine me or place liens. I don't know if that means I will have to pay, but once I receive anything in writing, my attorney will be speaking with them.
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Oct 23, 2018 17:54
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FogHelmut posted:Yup, that's exactly what I was told today - What location are you in that doesn't allow you to end a lease at the end of the term? Presumably because of rent-control laws? Since otherwise you could just increase rent 50%.
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Oct 23, 2018 18:03
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Devor posted:What location are you in that doesn't allow you to end a lease at the end of the term? Presumably because of rent-control laws? Since otherwise you could just increase rent 50%. New Jersey http://legalcounselnj.com/2015/01/16/leases-expire-tenants-leave/ quote:New Jersey law. Specifically, “No landlord may evict or fail to renew any lease of any premises covered by…this act except for good cause….” N.J.S.A. 2A:18-61.2 (emphasis added). If it ends up that the Condo Association is allowed to fine me $10 per day in addition to the tenants legally being allowed to stay, then the rent is going up $3650 per year. FogHelmut fucked around with this message at 18:51 on Oct 23, 2018 |
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Oct 23, 2018 18:43
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