All Forum Posts by: Alison Brenner

Negotiating a security deposit amount is not a red flag for me, especially with over $10K in estimated moving expenses (professional movers) and move-in costs (1st month and security).
Did you properly screen your applicant? Perform a credit and background check? Obtain proof of verifiable income, which you then verified? Confirm residential history and communicated with the current landlord/manager? Does he make 3x the rent? No eviction history? Does he meet your minimum credit score requirement? Any affordability red flags, like high loan payments?
If you properly screened the tenant, I wouldn't worry he is trying to negotiate the best deal possible. Can you really blame him for trying?

Does anyone have a referral for a SB 721 inspector (elevated walkway inspection law) in the So. Cal. area? I am specifically looking for an inspector who is sensitive to the conflict of interest clause in the law and understands that the work must be performed by a separate entity. Thank you for your time.

Building on @Nathan Gesner post:

If I interpreted your post correctly and neither an estimated or final disposition has been mailed, return the entire deposit and fire your PM. As of the date of your post, you have violated California law by failing to mail an estimated or final disposition within 21 days of move-out.

If your PM didn't drop the ball and did mail out an estimated disposition, you need to discuss the security deposit return process. Conducting final inspections within 24 hours is a must. You will not prevail in a California Court if your PM permits weeks to go by before inspecting. Was your tenant offered a preliminary inspection during the two weeks prior move-out as required by law? Something like damage to flooring might have been noted then.

As for useful life (this is term used in California law), your PM is correct in taking the useful life of component into consideration. Check out the security deposit section of this handbook. https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/California-Tenants-Guide...

As for the turn around time, I wouldn't be thrilled if my PM sat around twiddling thumbs for 10 days. If your property rents for $3500/month, you just lost over $1100 while your PM did nothing to move process along.

Hope this helps.

My agent would say all adults over the age of 18...regardless of marital status. I totally follow your train of thought and don't entirely disagree.

Here's the thing. As landlords, we are better protected if all residents over the age of 18 have their own renter's insurance policy. It's not our job to assess the potential longevity of a couple's relationship or whether one partner may file for divorce or leave the relationship within the next 12 months. We need to establish SOPs that can universally applied regardless of how stable the residents' relationship seems at the time of move-in. Hope this makes sense.

My insurance agent advised that all tenants, over the age of 18, should have their own policy. Renter's insurance protects tenants' property and landlords' property. Let's say Person B sticks a travel size deodorant down your toilet and floods the residence while Person A is traveling for work. You are going to want to file a claim against Person B and hold Person B accountable for the damage.

Ellie,

My partner of 20 years, James, and I manage my C- buildings from about 10 miles away. We are workaholic DINKs. James visits the property once a day, every day. Here’s a glimpse of our last 72 hours:

• On Saturday night, two kids trespassed and broke the security gate lock at one property. On Sunday, James spent an hour repairing the lock. By Sunday afternoon, the lock was broken again. Surveillance footage shows the same two kids repeatedly throwing a soccer ball against the back gate. Since the kids live in the building next door, I decided to warn their parents before having them arrested for trespassing. There’s always a risk of retaliation.
• On Monday, I reached out to the key holder of different property on the same street. He’s an OG with tear tattoos. Graffiti is becoming a problem again. The key holder explained that the gang has new initiates, who are trying to prove their worthiness. He will speak to the gang this week and request that the new initiates tag elsewhere.
• Today, I am working on my small claims evidence binder for court on Thursday. After spending 20K on a remodel prior to move-in, the tenant chose to hang more than 50 items from the ceilings and walls. She then patched every hole herself and painted over the patches in the wrong color paint. But hey, it’s California…the tenant is suing me for 3x the deposit and may win.

Here's my reality. The financial and time commitments will never make sense. The idea of selling the properties pops into my head at least once a week. My cash-on-cash return is less than 2%...and that’s without professional management.

Hope this helps.

Andrew Padilla at Olson Duncan. He pulled a rabbit out of a hat when Mercury dumped my 1962 6-unit builds last year. No claims; just age.
Best of luck. This Cali insurance thing is dreadful.

I have a "keep me out trouble" deposit with an eviction attorney. Relying on my eviction attorney for occasional guidance is somewhat helpful but not ideal. I think a better resource for your purposes is the Fair Housing Council of OC. Ask for Denise Cato. She is an invaluable plethora of knowledge.

If you do find a great landlord-tenant attorney willing to guide landlords, please share the contact info. I've been searching for two years, and the only ones willing to assume the liability of advising me on daily operations didn't pass the smell test. My solution is to use my eviction attorney for tenancy-related questions and my real estate attorney for anything involving written contracts. They are both amazing but Denise is untouchable when it comes to Fair Housing related questions. 

Hi Bruce,

1) Check to see if your property is exempt from AB 1482. It very likely is exempt. You must send a formal notice informing the tenants that AB 1482 does not apply before sending out a rent increase notice. Use a template because the wording must be precise.

2) Check City and County rent control protections. If you are in OC (not Santa Ana), you probably don't have to worry about rent control unless the law changes at a later date.

3) Check your lease agreement for wording about rent increases and comply with the terms.

4) Make sure Newsom hasn't declared a state of emergency...which often trigger rent freezes.

5) Once you confirmed that your condo is exempt and no local protections apply, send a rent increase notice for any amount. The notice must be sent at least 90 day in advance for increases over 10%. Remember to inform your tenants that the property is AB 1482 exempt before sending any rent increase notices. Be mindful of proper service requirements. For example, rent increase notices must be posted and mailed.

This is NOT a statewide registry. This is a local protection implemented at the City and County level. As far as I know, there is no State law that can absolve you of your obligations to the City of Inglewood or the County of Los Angeles. You have to register the property and then apply for an exemption. Best of luck.

https://www.cityofinglewood.org/DocumentCenter/View/20142/Re...

https://www.cityofinglewood.org/1479/Inglewood-Residential-R...

https://www.hpregistry.cityofinglewood.org/#/homepage