All Forum Posts by: Robert R.

What is the intended purpose of the pistol? Target? Hunting? Plinkning? Concealed carry? What level of experience does he have with firearms? Does he own other firearms?

Like real estate, there are a lot of variables when it comes to pistols/rifles.

http://www.zillow.com/howto/DataCoverageZestimateAccuracy.htm

They do a pretty good job of explaining their numbers if you do some digging on their site. It is location specific though, as not all numbers (sq ft, bd/br, lot size, year built, etc is reported. They even state that it is NOT an appraisal.

My brother worked as an estimator for a public adjuster and was recently licensed. 10% of the whole claim is standard. If only 10% of the difference is offered, get it in writing. Also, having both names on check, having check go directly to PA, etc is standard. PA's have a vested interest in providing quality service to you, whereas an insurance companies interest is muddled once it comes to a claim.

Their services are worth it in almost all cases. Personally, I would hire one for any claim over $10K.

They can also live/breed in cracks around the water source, ie missing grout, cracked tiles. So these need to be dried, treated, and sealed if present.

Shanequa J. Solid colors do exist, but it isn't readily available like the armstrong tiles you can get at any HD/Lowes. It's meant for accents and borders, not whole floors. The seams, dirt, and uneven wear would be incredibly obvious in a solid colored floor, which is why most tile has that speckle pattern.

To everyone considering VCT:

As a flooring purist, I would never suggest installing VCT in a normal residential setting. It's ugly and creates an institutional feeling. It is a great product for large, heavily trafficked, commercial spaces. VCT has a long wear life and predictable long term cost, as long as it is properly maintained.

The shiny tiles you encounter in hospitals and large stores are the product of this frequent scheduled maintenance: daily dry mopping/sweeping, periodic wet mopping, semi-annual stripping and waxing.

Do you want to perform this maintenance as a landlord, would your prospective homebuyer?

http://www.armstrong.com/pdbupimages/194617.pdf

If it exists, or very low end and tenants don't mind, leave it by all means. Otherwise, look into other flooring options.

I have about 10 years experience in the flooring industry (installation, cleaning, maintenance). VCT is a commercial product, meant for commercial applications. It should be stripped and waxed every 6 months, with heavy use. Could probably go a year or two with very light use, but entryways and other high traffic areas would dull sooner. It is generally not a great product for residential purposes because of this periodic maintenance, which is a messy process. If it isn't maintained it dulls and holds dirt, but the tile will remain. So, it may be acceptable to low end rentals.

When switching from VCT to another type of flooring, you rarely need to remove VCT. VCT is so durable it can have a second life as subfloor.
You can install padding/carpet directly over it. You can also install laminate directly over it. If it is glued down well, you can install vinyl/"linoleum" directly over it, although you should fill all gaps with thinset first. If going to ceramic, you can install the subfloor directly over the VCT.

The difficulty in removing VCT varies greatly, depending on type of glue used, age, time of installation, humidity, temperature, type of subfloor. Sometimes tiles will pop off on there own, other times you can spend 5-15 minutes per tile using heat gun, chisel, and scraper. I've removed VCT that has taken chunks of sub floor with it, concrete included.

As far as refinishing to shiny concrete, this is doable, even refinishing hardwood can be possible. However, if your prospective tenants dont like the "cold" feeling of VCT, I don't think concrete would alleviate that issue.

In defense of pitbulls and all dogs. Typically, a dog's behavior is ultimately dependent on the owners. Most responsible dog owners would identify dangerous behaviors and take steps to correct it, or make sure the dog is always properly secured. Also cat urine is far worse as far as I am concerned with clean up.

Anecdotally, I had a roommate with a pitbull; this dog was one of the sweetest, most well trained dogs I have ever known.

As a land lord, I suppose one needs to balance the risks/rewards of pet owners as tenants.

Congratulations!

In my current non real estate position, as lab manager, I've transferred almost all of my "paperwork" to digital copies; digital quotes, digital POs, digital invoices, digital forms, online databases. I couldn't imagine doing it any other way, well I can because I have some studies still stuck on paper, but its reduced organizational fatigue greatly.
To anyone on a paper based system, I would highly recommend digitizing as much of your documents as possible. But be sure to have proper back up, at least 3 different physical locations. I have my computer's hard drive, my USB stick, and a RAID on our university network.

Also this may be relevant information. I already have a BA in Psychology and BS in Biology. So,myself, family, and others question the need for another piece of paper...

I am going to seriously look into opportunities in Texas, I've always wanted to live in a warmer climate and I enjoyed my time while I was traveling in Texas.