All Forum Posts by: Domenick T.

On point 1 - Be careful what questions you ask.  Avoid anything that could be misconstrued as discriminatory (e.g., how many children do you have?, age, etc.).

On point 2 - Most background checks will ensure the applicant is who they say they are via a SSN verification process so the DL is overkill.  However, if you want to make sure the person applying is the person who will rent the apartment then a photo ID could be appropriate.  

On point 3 - I don't think bank statements are necessary.  Simply inform them of the upfront costs and ask if they have sufficient funds.  Don't take the listing down until they've provided the funds.

What does your lease say?  It’s almost certainly not allowed if not in your lease already.  Most judges don’t like fines.  That’s why early lease termination clauses should include language that the tenant and landlord agree this is a reasonable estimate of the actual cost the landlord may incur due to early lease termination.  Check the TN landlord-tenant law to see if it’s specificity not allowed but I’m pretty sure it would be allowed if written correctly but I’m not a lawyer.

I started this way too!  Norther Jersey as well. 
My advice is you might want to reconsider the condo. I did this and it was a nightmare. They hated landlords and did everything to make my life miserable. Might be better to take the equity and reinvest in another property. Message me if you want more info on my experience and what to watch out for. 

I’m not familiar with south Jersey but you can find a lot of info online at City-Data and similar sites. Message me with any specific questions and I might be able to point you to a good resource. 

I use PetScreening.com when this comes up.  They will request all the paperwork from your tenant and make sure you comply with the law.  It tends to weed out the fake requests.

BP offers forms or there are other online services like EZ Landlord Forms.  Whatever you use, make sure it captures your local laws which can vary from the state.  This is especially true in major cities like Chicago, NYC, and LA.  A good landlord forms service will walk you through the steps and warn you about local restrictions and disclosures necessary.

No.  It's generally not legal to have someone sign away their rights.  Most states include language as such in their landlord-tenant laws.

Cozy is great for rent collection but tenants tend to avoid it for maintenance requests in my experience.  You can also use Cozy's tenant screening services but if you want a more thorough report you can go with RentPrep's manual screening service.  

I also use RentRange for rent estimate reports.  It's much easier than trying to gather all the local comps myself. 

Leases are tricky.  They need to reflect your local laws.  You can check with a local LL association to see if they offer forms or you can make one yourself with an online service like EZ Landlord Forms which will guide you through the customization process.

Cozy is migrating to Apartments.com sometime next year.  Read their website for details before making your choice.  I use Cozy too and am very happy with it but time will tell if the migration will be a good thing or not.

What kind of renovations are you anticipating?  They are likely capital improvements and cannot be expensed no matter when the property goes into service.  They must be amortized over the useful life of the property (27.5 years).  

Operating expenses you incur before the property goes into operation can be expensed but are limited to $5,000.  Any amount over that has to be amortized for 15 years.  Start up deductions are phased out if they exceed $50,000 overall.

I don't think there is much benefit of trying to rent it out and renovate.  Fix it up, track your capital versus operating expenses and get it rented as quickly as possible to someone who will pay market rent for a renovated apartment.