All Forum Posts by: Beth L.

@Adam Craig IMO, if the siding is in good shape, just pressure wash and keep it white. Save the money. Paint or change the shutters. I would stay neutral by going with a traditional black. Don't paint the brick. Paint the door an interesting pop of color, but still something that would appeal to most people, maybe a shade of red, burgundy or eggplant.

I have a duplex with the same design, brick bottom and siding top with shutters. Very traditional. I plan on doing just this, since I really dislike blue and green on houses. It's used too much.

@Account Closed We have a duplex in which the electric is metered separately but the water isn't. Also, in our city, the water cannot be changed out of the owners name, so the owner/landlord has to pay the water bill and is solely responsible for it anyway. So I just averaged the amount of the water bill and increased the rent to cover it. In our area, it is common to include certain utilities in the rent, so it is not an issue.

@Eric Pocker It can be helpful to have in writing or at least discuss with them your rules before they apply to rent your unit. Giving them information about your policies could help them determine if they even want to live there.

We have a strict no dogs policy and non-smoking property (they can't even smoke outside on the property). These kinds of things are important for them to know before it shows up in their lease.

I have always communicated this to them on the initial phone interview and again at the walk-through, before they apply. I, too, am also considering putting these in writing to provide as part of their tenant handbook. 

@Dick Rosen Thanks for your input!

@Gita Faust I am currently using Quicken Rental and have each account set up separately within the program. This works for us, since the LLCs flow through our personal return. I categorize each entry as to which property it relates to and the reports it prints works well for our CPA.

I guess I'm just trying to figure out the best process now, before I get into it and then need to change it.

Thanks!

So currently we have a number of duplexes being held each in its own LLC, with separate bank accounts and everything. I feel that before this venture gets too large, that I should create a Property Management LLC to be the "face" of the business. This is the name that I will use to answer calls, post rental signs, use in all paperwork to the tenants, etc. Then each of the buildings are like separate owners for which I am managing.

How do I handle the logistics of this? What is the best way to do the accounting? Have the tenants send rent to the PM and then the PM will send the income minus a property mgmt fee to each of the building LLCs? All or some expenses run through the PM and offset the income? For specifics, I can check with my CPA and RE lawyer, but they aren't experienced Property Managers. :-)

Anyone else use a PM company to handle all of their rentals set up this way? Any words of wisdom would be awesome!

Thanks!!!

@Barry Smith 

 Do you have the link to this webinar? Can you post it, please?

On the subject of utilities, for my area, the water and sewer has to stay in the owners' name, and if within city limits, also trash is included. Some landlords send the bill to the tenants and ask them to pay for it, but I have found that tenants are unreliable in paying the landlords back. So I pay for the water and just raise the rent to cover an estimated amount. I am sure that it is different in each city.

@Carlos Flores 

 We have a short term rental house in FL and we use VacationRentals.com to list it. Just this week they started to accept online bookings. Prior to this, we arranged payment on our own with the guest. We always email a booking form (rental agreement), also ask for a copy of their drivers license, and send them a PayPal invoice at the same time. This way they can review the terms of the rental BEFORE paying. However, we don't consider their reservation locked in until we have received all three things.

I am sure that different sites have different rules and each owner could probably decide for themselves the rental process.

@Mike Bargetto I looked into Airbnb for listing my property, but it looked like the owner only gets the payment AFTER the guest checks in. Our policy is full payment with no refunds within 6 weeks prior to arrival. This is customary for the area. Is that how Airbnb operates?

@Sam Leon 

Those things seem fine for a disposal, but probably not avocado skins. I do things like that in mine all the time and no problem. Maybe the disposal is not working properly or she is not using any water. Anyway, here is a list of do's and don'ts for using a garbage disposal.

http://www.horizonservicesinc.com/reference/tips-articles/plumbing-drain-cleaning-garbage-disposal-dos-donts

On a side note...we purchased a duplex with a septic. The rehabber had garbage disposals installed. The tenants had been using them for a year before we found out that you can't have disposals with a septic system. The food waste ruins them. We had to have them taken out.

@Tiffy W. Yes, I use my home address since that is also my business address. However, I don't like giving it out to tenants. May have to do something else soon.

You could install a locked drop box at the building for the tenants to put their checks in. And then drive by to pick them all up. Also you can give the property a look over while you are there. Especially if you don't drive by often.  

@Tiffy W. I use SparkRent to collect my rents online. Since they are deposited directly into my bank account, I don't have to drive around picking up checks and depositing them, and waiting for them to clear. However, this may be a problem if you have tenants that don't have a bank account or the internet.

I had considered using a PO Box for all business mail and use it also on the leases. But for now I use my physical address, since the thought of driving to the PO Box every day to check it is unappealing.