Strong Tenant Laws & How to Protect Yourself

[Paloma Wodehouse]

Hello,

I want to buy a duplex in an area with strong tenant laws. Beyond carefully vetting the tenants, how can an investor protect themselves from squatters if we want to sell years down the road? Or replace a bad tenant say who is paying? 

[Mike Hurney]

@Paloma Wodehouse I started by going to Housing Court sessions and hearing the Cases and their "Dispensation of Justice". I ended up with some rules, couple here:

1.Discrimination - Never Rent to Attorneys, Law students or Law Professors.

Learn all you can about the Housing Laws i.e. Federal Laws Prohibit Discrimination of 7 Protected Classes, Massachusetts has added 8 more:-0

2.Always know more of the Rules/Laws/Regulations than ANY Tenant. But don't let them know it.

It amazes me how many of our members at MassRealEstate dot net have an Asset worth $300-500k Rent it for .5-1% of value and hardly pay attention to it, yet chase a tenth of a percent in CD rates;-)