Rental Property Investor · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2017 · 24 posts · 7 votes
Hi Everyone,
In a lot of the books I am reading, as well as some of the podcasts I have listened to, many landlords have talked about adding a clause to their leases to give anywhere from $25 to $100 a month back to the tenant if they handle maintenance issues themselves.
Has anyone had success in doing this? Are there any nuances to this approach? What does the legalise look like in your leases?
Realtor · Boulder, CO · Member since 2016 · 3k+ posts · 5k+ votes
7y
How many tenants does it take to change a light bulb? Three: one to set the ladder up, one to hold the ladder and the other one to burn the house down.
Real Estate Agent · San Antonio, TX · Member since 2017 · 814 posts · 466 votes
7y
Maintenance is one of the hardest things to do. I bet most Tenants will call you to fix things that are broken, which is very different of what maintenance is about - be proactive and not wait until they degrade to the point of major fixes or replacement.
Proper maintenance is key for the usual life of any particular equipment to last.
You can let the Tenant provide maintenance or fix things of less than $50. BTW I put that in my leases. I would not let the Tenant hire or work with anything related to water/leaks, or electrical for obvious reason.
For good/OK properties, 5% on your $1500 rent, equals $75/month. Are you giving them the authority to spend $75/month and be in charge of your assets? What if they hire a contractor with no liability/insurance and they injured during the maintenance call? Big big no! You may be risking your investment just to save a couple bucks/month.
I wouldn't do it. Make them change burned bulbs, air filters, and the like using their money.
If you pay them for no "service call", you are promoting even less maintenance in your property. It just doesn't make sense.
Real Estate Coach · Venice Beach, CA · Member since 2012 · 6k+ posts · 3k+ votes
7y
I'm late to the chain so I might be repeating what other people have said, but I would never want my tenants handling maintenance on their own. They could either just not fix things or if they do fix them, they could do so with terrible quality. All of which could cost me a lot later. So it costs me a lot later AND I was paying them every month to do so? Nooooo. I wouldn't do it.
Real Estate Broker · San Marcos, CA · Member since 2012 · 6 posts · 5 votes
7y
@keithnelson When you know how screen residents properly and have a system in place to check,relying on a tenant to do basic maintenance is simple. Not a “joke” just successology.