Residential Real Estate Broker · Sacramento, CA · Member since 2014 · 54 posts · 23 votes
Hi all,
Thank you in advance for reading my post. I am currently in escrow on a triplex in Kansas City, KS. The leases/tenant structure is as follows:
Unit 1: Studio - Rented for $440 - One year lease (Ends May 2018 - just resigned)
Unit 2: Studio - Rented $480 - two year lease (ends May 2019 - Just resigned)
Unit 3: 2 bed 1 bath - Rented $625 - Month to month lease.
1) On Unit 1: the lease states that the tenant pays 2 installments for rent (she pays on the 1st and then again on the 15th). She also pays in cash. Do I have the right as the new landlord to renegotiate these terms? What is the best way to go about doing this? Mainly, I just can't accept cash... I probably could work with the two installments but that is a bit of a pain for me.
2) I am worried about inheriting tenants. The landlord says that unit 1 has been rented by the same gal for several years and unit 2 (just resigned for 2 years), is a great tenant that pays on time every single month. What can I do to validate this information and/or make sure they are good tenants?
If you can't tell, I am new to property management so any feedback is welcome and appreciated.
@Luis Silvayou can send the tenants a tenant estoppel certificate to fill out and sign. It is a form that is supposed to verify what the owner says are the rent amounts due and what has been paid.i an buying in the Kansas City market also so if you ever want to trade stories send me a pm
@Gordon Cuffe - Thanks Gordon, that is great feedback. Would I call the tenants directly or have my agent handle this? I'm thinking I could have my agent work on this with the listing agent, correct?
You can request a rent roll and payment history from the seller. The more info you can get regarding the current tenants, the better. Inheriting tenants is tricky and there are always surprises. You want to minimize any surprises on the front end and discover as much as you can about the property and tenants. Be sure to ask about security deposits and have them conveyed to you at closing. The tenants will be wanting those back down the road...
Unless it is actually in the lease that she can pay with cash (which I would doubt), just let her know after closing...but hopefully in plenty of time before her next rental payment...that you do not accept cash and she will need to switch to mailing money orders or (list of other acceptable options).
If the split rent is talked about in the lease, I think you're stuck with it until the next renewal, unless the tenant also agrees to change it to once a month. If the split rent isn't talked about in the lease, you can give her notice that the rent will no longer be split and the full amount needs to be paid on the 1st. But, even though it is more hassle for you, I'd just leave things as they are. I'm assuming it would be hard for the tenant to change the timing of how she is paying rent. She might not be able to do it at all. She might want to break her lease over it. Assuming the current owner is being truthful and she's on time with all her multiple rent payments, if it isn't broken, don't fix it!