All Forum Posts by: Darren Budahn

@Adam Juodis

I'm no lawyer but as long as you don't act negligently I'm not sure there would be a problem. Now if you said as landlord that is was your responsibility to remove snow and ice and then never did so, then I suspect you could be in trouble if a tenant injures themselves. But if you put in your lease that they are responsible for snow and ice removal I'm not sure how you would be liable under these conditions. I use leases that are written by the top landlord lawyer in my area to hopefully protect myself as much as possible. 

And, regarding lawn maintenance, I just tell them they are responsible for maintaining the lawn. i would not provide a lawnmower because I'm not in the repair business and also because I suppose you may have an issue with a faulty lawnmower and a tenant who gets injured. If they don't want to do it, I can hire someone, but will pass the cost onto them. 

I'm not sure if buying a 250k SFH is a good investment or not, but you should be able to find lenders who will let you use your HeLOC for a down payment on an investment property. Depending on what kind of financing you are using, 25% down is fairly common amount needed for down payment

I don't know your market, but it is certainly common in my market to make the tenant responsible for snow removal and lawn care in a SFH.

I'm from the Midwest as well and if you can find a reliable, competent, handyman for $30 per hour who is always on call I think that's very fair. That will be way cheaper than calling a licensed electrician or plumber for every minor fix that comes up. And, in my experience, if you start looking at anyone cheaper than $25 an hour their skill set will be very limited

Scale the Operation

No you didn't say ADA.  But it's rather hard to figure out what you are referencing since you provide no evidence for how illegal drug use is a disability.  Are you referring to Fair Housing Laws?  If so, again please show us where illegal drug use is a disability or a protected class.  

But, hey anybody can sue anybody for anything even if the law clearly is not on their side, so I guess we should all close up shop on our businesses because as you said, "when the dust settles you have a business and you will lose."  

The law states very clearly that recreational drug users are not protected.  You have offered no proof that they are protected.  But, nevertheless, the OP should be very careful because anybody can sue anybody for anything.  

You also said, "when you are standing in front of a judge you better have your information correct"....."because when the dust settles you have a business and you will lose."  Please describe why you think the property owner should be worried about losing in the scenario the OP laid out.  

You also said, "Or you can keep trying to outsmart a tenant that has been doing this their whole life with comments and innuendos to make you feel like the smarter owner instead of trying to provide a solution to rectify this situation and follow the law."  

Why do I need to outsmart a tenant when the black and white letter of the law is on my side?  

In addition, if you are referring to the Americans with Disabilities Act, illegal drug use is not considered a disability.  Here are two quotes straight from the US Dept. of Justice Civil Rights Division...

 "Casual drug use is not a disability under the ADA"

"In order for an individual's drug addiction to be considered a disability under the ADA, it would have to pose a substantial limitation on one or more major life activities. In addition, the individual could not currently be using illegal drugs"

@Steve Rozenberg  

Can you show us where in HUD's fair housing laws that recreational drug users who damage property are a protected class? Or, can you provide us recent caselaw where this happened? If so, I'll gladly admit I am wrong.

I guess it certainly depends on your long term goals.  Look to buy undervalued rentals and you can keep on cash out refinancing, essentially getting most or all of your initial capital layout back.  If you can find these kinds of properties and add value, you won't have to wait months or years to save up for the next down payment on a rental.