Investor · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
10y
Do them one at a time as tenants move out on their own. You could influence the worst of the bunch to move out by increasing rent, not renewing their lease, etc..
Investor · Philadelphia, PA · Member since 2015 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
10y
Do them one at a time as tenants move out on their own. You could influence the worst of the bunch to move out by increasing rent, not renewing their lease, etc..
Rental Property Investor · Belleville, IL · Member since 2015 · 82 posts · 19 votes
10y
If you can afford it, wood lament is a better long term solution. I am starting to look at the new wood looking tile as even a longer term solution.
I agree with the others. If the tenants are paying and not complaining then hold off. Get an idea of the costs for the flooring and start putting money to the side for when you do have that turnover.
Real Estate Agent · Southington, CT · Member since 2008 · 5k+ posts · 3k+ votes
10y
congrats on your first purchase. You will learn quick that when you have tenants who pay on time to just leave them alone and don't disturb them in their natural habitat! Basically, don't do anything to screw it up! If something goes wrong they will let you know.
Rental Property Investor · West Bend, WI · Member since 2015 · 931 posts · 598 votes
10y
I totally agree with others, do one at a time as thy move out, Jack rent to gt people to move, an then rehab them. consider Vinyl plank flooring, it doesnt swell at the edges like laminate does, alot of it has lifetime residential flooring, there are several kinds, the kinde that glues to itself like Allure, the Click together kind, loose lay, and glue down, all great options without the problems with laminate.
DHS/Investor · Bowie, MD · Member since 2015 · 149 posts · 65 votes
10y
yeah waiting for each tenant to move out seems like the best option. Plus while they are in their you can still save for rehab cost for once they move out. Kinda like a win win situation, tenants paying and you are saving.
Construction Trucking Owner / Operator · New Bedford, MA · Member since 2015 · 133 posts · 37 votes
10y
It seems everyone is suggesting to wait on repairs or upgrades until tenants move but isn't there some tax incentive, right offs or such, to investing in your rental properties every year?
Investor · Bossier City, LA · Member since 2015 · 55 posts · 21 votes
10y
Maybe you can talk with your tenants. Offer to do all of the repairs one room at a time while they're at work, in exchange for a modest increase in rent. You can convince them that they'll love the new look/feel, and it's like getting upgraded to a newer apartment. Just have them move their furniture/personal items to another room each day. Obviously this only works with repairs that are quick... doing a complete kitchen demo and rebuild isn't likely going to happen in the 8 hours they're gone. But if they want a fresh coat of paint, they'll work with you. If they don't, then not a problem, you can wait until they leave.
If you want to completely rehab your rentals you should wait until the tenants leave. Take advantage of the on-time renters now... the new ones may not be as good as your current ones. Don't rock the boat too much.
Congrats on your first property! I think it would be wise to wait until you have turnover in the units before starting to rehab the units. I personally am partial to laminate flooring, but there are situations where we use carpet. I don't specifically know about your units and if they are side by side or over unders and the properties age, but we will use carpet as an additional soundproofing measure on our side by side stairs and our over under bedrooms to create the lowest sound profile possible. You might be caught off guard depending on the property floorplan if you switch out the carpet to laminate or vinyl plank and start getting noise complaints, just food for thought.
Investor · Narragansett, RI · Member since 2013 · 8k+ posts · 4k+ votes
10y
If you have common repairs that must be done inform the tenants and work with them. We bought a 5 unit and it needed a roof , we communicated with the tenants. Common hallway repairs were staged so that they could have access to one entrance to their apartment. Electric work notification for replacing electric panels went out to the tenants letting them know when and for how long electric would be out (most were at work).
The other thing we have done is do new kitchen floors when our tenant was away, she was extremely happy about that. If you feel you have to replace flooring that is a good way to go.
Investor · Minneapolis, MN · Member since 2015 · 173 posts · 53 votes
10y
Robert,
You are correct when you fix something that's broken you write off the expense for the year. When you improve something you depreciate it over many years. This is all well and good but generally speaking you don't do the work just for the write offs as its still less money in the bank vs not having done it at all.
Improving a property and getting more rents and/or better tenants is another matter.