All Forum Posts by: Brian Van Pelt

@Jonathan Lane

The short answer is "it depends"
. If you can acquire the property for the right price.
. If there are tenants already in the property and the length of their remaining lease
. If you have to go through a lengthy court process to forclose
. The condition of the property
. If it has had any issues that make it almost impossible to rent (asbestos,mold,meth house)
. And many many other issues ......................

Any competent carpenter can build these, I would speak to the same person who installs your kitchen and bathroom cabinets.

According to the Fair Housing Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act:

• Even if a landlord has a no pet policy in place, the law does not consider service animals as pets and therefore the service animal is exempt from such a restriction.
• Service animals are allowed anywhere a person would go, including food areas that would normally restrict an animal’s presence.
• Landlords cannot charge a pet deposit or pet fee for service animals, however the tenant is liable for any damage that the service animal may cause.
• Landlords can require written verification from the tenant’s health care provider that they are disabled but cannot ask for any specifics about the disability.
• Landlords can require written verification from the tenant’s health care provider that the service animal is needed.
• Landlords can request copies of the animal’s health records to prove the animal is in good health, parasite-free and immunized/vaccinated.
• Landlords can write warnings or even evict a tenant with a service animal if the animal is disturbing others, posing a threat to others or causing considerable damage to the property.

In other words, you can ask for appropriate paperwork concerning the tenant’s need for the service animal and to verify the animal’s health. 

. Federal Housing Financing has program of mortgage forbearance for Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae loans for 5 or more unit buildings.

Collect payments, Subtract Fees, Remit Balance
Quick Books:
Class would be the different properties, Customers would be the actual units, and job is the tenant. Then use items for the non-inventory or services or inventory you have going on, to track everything from repairs and maintenance to rent. Memorize invoices too for monthly rent payments, and use Merchant Account Services to take credit card payments.

No need for fancy software and monthly fees. This set up can handle 1 property or 1000  and works with multi unit properties too.

Also decreases the annual accounting cost because any any accountant can download your files and understand the set up.
And yes it can also track Maintenance by either using Quotes or Job Cost as your maintenance tracking.

@Renata Shoimer


. Any change in lease terms requested by a tenant because of COVID-19 needs to be documented via a lease modification signed by Landlord and Tenant or else you risk ending up in a he said/she said situation if it ever goes to court.
. If a tenant asks for a lease modification because of a loss of job permanent/temp/reduction in hours/reduction in pay. Make sure the Tenant provides documentation.
. Don't make the assumption your tenants can't pay rent because of a temporary loss of job. Recheck their lease application. Anyone with large balance savings or 410K balances can and should pay their lease.
. Process late notices as normal. File for evictions as normal. Again this is just documenting according to terms of the lease.

This will be a trying time for landlords, but by documenting everything, and following the terms of your lease, you will have the proper documentation later if you need to go to court or if you need to talk to YOUR lender to ask for a loan modification.

@Jack Bobeck You are incorrect, states have not frozen rent payments. 

. Some states have delayed evictions NOT rents. 
. Federal Housing Financing has program of mortgage forbearance for Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae loans for 5 or more unit buildings.

The article you mention is only about states delaying evictions.

Contact a few Brokers and ask for their top Investor Realtor. A good investor realtor can data mine for you . I create mailing lists for my investor clients that are better then companies like ListSource. (I have a computer consulting background).

I charge a T&M fee to create,produce and update these lists
I print,stuff and mail their mailings for them
Part of my service includes Buyer Agency and an agreement to List any properties they fix and flip.

These services and fees are reasonable to pay as it helps you achieve your goals.

Interview a few agents and find a match that suits your needs.

Any agent can do this for you, but only a good agent can do it well for you.

LOL, I now see you are an agent, you can do this through your MLS

You can collect rent in a different name, you may need to register the name with your LLC as a DBA - Doing Business As
It all depends on your state.



https://startupsavant.com/how-to-file-a-dba-in-pennsylvania

A few years ago I received a collect call from the county jail, inquiring about a property I lad for Rent. Don't think he would have passed the background check.