All Forum Posts by: Diego Corzo

Hi everyone,

Just to keep you posted. I spoke with the landlord again and was giving me a lot of trouble telling me that I was wrong. I told him that I have consulted with realtors, landlords and the Austin Tenant Council and they all concluded he was in the wrong.

I left telling him that I will talk to an attorney... 2 hours later he sends me a text telling me that he re-read everything and told me that he was going to send me the deposit and the pro-rated rent of December. :)

Thank you for your advice. It helped me feel more comfortable and confident when I was talking to him.

@Michael Seeker : Thanks for the feedback. I understood the same thing, that's the reason why I moved out by the 16th. This contract contradicts itself a lot.

@Sharon Tzib Thanks for the feedback. My thoughts exactly.

@Account Closed Unfortunately no. He said that he wants me to pay until Jan. 13th before he gives me my deposit back.

Hi,

I was a renting out a room in a house in Austin, Texas.

My lease was from Dec. 16th, 2012 to Dec. 16th, 2013. I gave him the keys on December 13th because I didn't want to renew the lease and I was heading to Florida. This happened unexpectedly because I had no idea I was going to move.

I left the house by Dec 16. but now the landlord wants me to pay rent until January 13th because that is when the 30 day notice ends (Dec. 13-Jan 13). I verbally told him I was leaving when the lease was going to terminate around Dec. 8th.

He said that the fixed-term lease automatically goes month-to-month unless I tell him, even though this is not in the contract.

This is what the contract says and it contradicts itself:

"The Rental Agreement will start Dec. 16th, 2012 and will be a one-year rental agreement. The Tenant must give written notice at least 4 months in advance to terminate and must pay rent for the described lease duration. The Landlord must give 28 day notice in advance to terminate or alter the lease agreement. The Tenant may move at any time during the last one month of the lease duration and shall notify the Landlord of the vacate date and pay a pro-rated rent for the time the Tenant occupies the unit"

What should I do? Should I pay rent until January? I paid for the month of December already and has a $500 deposit.

Thanks for help in advance!

Welcome Kristi,

First of all congrats on wanting to get involved in RE at such a young age. It is great that you already have such a big amount of $$$ saved.

I recently moved to Austin too and have been going to a few real estate meetups and trying to build my team here. My goal is to buy houses for cashflow.
I recently bought my first house with my father in Florida. If you could team up with someone with experience and learn from them, I will highly recommend it. And since your dad has experience, I bet he will help you a lot on your first couple of deals or at least get you the right connections.

Also, since you are in college, I will recommend that you do your best to graduate with as little debt as possible. Graduating with zero debt last year allowed me to save a lot of money (from my job) to buy my first home. I did worked a lot during college but it was worth it.

Good luck!

@Chris Cox I am not part of RENC, I just found out about them this week. I will see you tomorrow then.

Hey @Sev Kamensky ,

Welcome to BP. You will learn a lot in this website. I currently live north Austin was in a process of buying my first home. Even though it didn't work out, I learned a lot.
Also, there is a meet up this Wednesday at Blackfinn at 6pm. http://www.meetup.com/AustinRENC/events/149755552/

If you can make it there that would be great, if not, I am down to meet up some time for coffee and learn more about your progress in RE. Just PM me.

"Don't wish it were easier, wish you were better" -- Jim Rohn

Hey Riley, welcome to BP!

I am also a newbie here in Austin. My plan is to buy a house early next year and live with roommates so that I can live rent free. This will be my first property but my goal is to create passive income through rental properties. Just like you, I am a web developer for General Motors.

This forum will teach a lot and you can connect with others! Good luck!

Tim G. That is awesome. The Austin market is booming right now and I want to get started ASAP. I am trying to save as much money as possible to buy a house next year. Is your friend involved in REIA or any meetups here in Austin?

Hey Aaron,

I like the idea of buying a duplex and living on one side while renting out the other. As a young person is easier to sacrifice for a year or two when you know it will pay off in the future.

I am 22 years old right now and my goal is to buy a single family home and rent out the rooms while I live on the master bedroom. It's a bit riskier having roommates than tenants living next door but I believe I can find good roommates and live for free while they pay for my mortgage and other expenses. I will save as much as I can so that I can buy my next rental property in 2015.

Buying a duplex in another possibility so the best deal I find, I will take it. I am still a newbie but I am reading a lot of REI and trying to learn as much as I can from this forum and other sources.

Good luck in your purchase