All Forum Posts by: Ericka G.

Edward Hamill hmmm, yes this is in GA and it does look like she is breaking the law based on this as she is over the annual limit allowed. I will use this if she gets snippy again about moving the cars.

Ok thanks for the advice all. My gut says let her go, it being winter is the only thing that gave me pause. It is good to hear that there may be an uptick in interest in Feb as folks start to get their tax returns. In 10 years as a landlord this is the first time I’ve had vacancies during the holidays and it has been such a pain that I’m hesitant to let anyone go. I like the suggestion of making it seem like her idea to stay an extra month or two to avoid moving in dead of winter - she is also pregnant and due in spring. That said, it is clear she is “testing” me and I know I can get ~$200/mos more for her apartment than what she pays. I think the previous owner gave her a bit of a deal because it was winter. I will let her go and hope we have an early spring in ATL

I have an overall good tenant who i inherited from the previous owner who is polite, professional, and pays on time BUT she also appears to be selling/dealing used cars in addition to her 9 to 5.  This property is a triplex in a nice neighborhood - she has her own garage and long driveway, but keeps parking used cars in other tenants' parking areas.  There are currently 6 cars belonging to her at the property.  The tenant in unit B is super laid back and told her it is ok if she parks in his area since he only has one car.  Unit C has been vacant for this month but I'm trying to fill it and several people have remarked/questioned all the cars in the driveway - makes it look like a lot of people are living there.

I've spoken to her about this before and she always moves the cars when I ask her to.  Today, however, she sent me a terse response that she doesn't understand what my problem is (previous landlord never had an issue with it) and that she will not be renewing her lease, which expires 1/31.  Normally these units rent within a week, but winter is a tough time to find good tenants.  

Do I allow  her to continue parking all these cars just to keep her through the winter or should I say good ridance at this point?  

Crypto currency fascinates me, but I still don’t 100% get all of its nuances. We’ve been lightly invested in it since about 2013 and have seen the ups and downs. My eyes used to glaze over when my hubby tried to explain it back then, but now he has my FULL attention on this topic. I definitely think it is a big risk BUT the potential rewards are so vast that I think it is crazy not to dip a toe in with whatever amount you are comfortable gambling with. We saw our light coin investment almost triple in about one week...nothing else I’ve been involved in gives those kinds of returns so quickly. Litecoin is a bit different than bitcoin in that it is relatively quick and easy to buy/sell, but newer on the scene. Download the free coinbase app and you can put whatever amount you are comfy with into one of three cryptos in a few minutes: Bitcoin $19k/coin, Ethereum $700/coin, Litecoin $300/coin...but I believe you can buy in increments as small as $50. You can monitor your investment in real time on the app and buy/sell at any time. If nothing else, put a few dollars in for giggles - most of us on here can afford to “play” with a little cash (whether that is $50 or $50k depends on you) Why on earth wouldn’t you play with something that can potentially triple your money in a week or two? Just don’t “play” with anything you aren’t prepared to lose and set guidelines for when you will fold/walk away...just like Vegas but digital, no plane ticket or hotel room required.

Corriene McKeown I can totally relate to the unusual, nomadic pilot wife lifestyle and understand why you’d want to settle a bit now and have your hubby home more with little ones. I’d love to try living abroad for a while like you guys did. To answer your questions - our situation was very similar, selling was attractive because: $300k+ profit, a closing time window to avoid some big fees/taxes, and a year where we were a bit stagnant financially. I also had a very aggressive broker urging me to sell as he had a buyer ready go. Even though it made sense on paper to sell, I regret it. We came out of that flat financial period, I realized the broker was playing me, and we found another solution that would have avoided the fees and allowed us to keep the place another 3-5 years, but by then it was too late, I couldn’t back out. Based on my experience, I’d say don’t make a long term decision based on short term circumstances unless you both are at peace with the decision. You may not ever agree 100%, but if there is serious angst on his part about selling, hold on a bit longer. If you still feel as strongly about selling in 3 mos, 6 mos, or 1 year -decide together on a time to re-visit your options and go from there. It also boils down to whose feelings are more intense - is your need for more financial stability right now keeping you up at night more so than him selling before he is ready would keep him up at night?

Corriene McKeown It seems that the majority are urging you to sell...the main thing that gives me pause is that your husband really doesn’t want to. I was in a similar situation last year - with everyone on biggerpockets and in my family (including hubby, who happens to be a pilot like yours, btw!) advising me to sell a property I was conflicted about, so I sold and while it may have been a “smart” decision that was VERY lucrative, I regret selling and probably always will. If your husband already has one property that he regrets selling and your family is doing ok without the sale, I’d recommend you not to pressure him to sell if he is telling you it doesn’t sit right with him. You don’t want him resenting the pressure or blaming you later if the market continues to go up. If Denver wins the Amazon headquarters as many predict, things could really explode...or maybe they won’t. Either way, you are cash flowing nicely and doing ok financially, I wouldn’t push him to a decision that he will possibly regret and resent you for. If you really feel your family needs the money, that is a different story - sell; otherwise, hold off until you BOTH feel 100% about selling.

I wish I’d known to trust my gut about my broker on my only sale to date. He reminded me of a snake when I first met him, but the lure of a quick and lucrative sale made me over-rule my gut. I will NEVER again have a broker who I don’t like/trust or who doesn’t see the specialness of what I’m trying to sell. He lied so much that I have considered suing him, but hopefully karma will make it right :). I also wish I’d know how difficult it is to back out of a sale as a seller if you change your mind about selling. Sigh.

I have an aversion to overly rigid criteria. I’ve been a landlord since 2007 and currently own 8 units; hope to expand to 10 in 2018. Still feel like a newbie, but I have had a TON of tenants over the years. Haven’t had to evict anyone yet -knock on wood ;) The few bad eggs I’ve had paid late but did eventually pay. For me credit has been the biggest indicator of tenant quality. Bad credit = problems (generally speaking). One of my “bad” eggs was a tenant who I allowed to pay 4-6 months in advance lump sums since he had bad credit, but was a med student who got lump housing stipends. His older brother co-signed for him and he was a friend of my cousin’s, so I gave him a shot. Nice guy, but he was a wreck with his finances and a total pain as a tenant...that said, I’m sooo happy I got that $ up front, otherwise I prob would have had to chase him down every month. All that to say, I’ve never accepted a full year up front but MIGHT consider it depending on the circumstances. we should have standards as landlords but there are often grey areas - especially if you are renting in B and C areas versus A. So, I look at each applicant as a whole. I have a checklist of 5 categories I screen on and can work with someone if they pass 4 of the 5 and I don’t get a bad vibe, let’s talk. Some things I don’t see ever budging on, like a prior eviction.That’s a deal breaker for me. My point is that while there are some hard and fast rules that work for most, none of this is gospel and I’m sure that there are some solid potential tenants out there offering to Pay lump sums to overcome not presenting the perfect application package. We also don’t all have the luxury of selecting from an endless line of perfect tenant candidates either...

Tim Porsche this is a tough one, but I think if your local laws allow you to accept a full year’s rent and you get a good gut feeling about her, then the upfront payment adequately covers the biggest risk, which is that she will move in and not pay rent. If you are worried about her trashing the place - perhaps ask to visit her current residence or to speak with character references? She clearly isn’t a perfect tenant, but most aren’t at the ~$700 price point. I have rented to a tenant in the past who paid 4-6 months up front to offset his bad credit and he was a PAIN. He was in medical school and wanted to pay in lump sums when he got his housing stipend each semester. After the first lump sum finished, he was late for his next lump sum installment...I was happy when his year was up, but he did pay and left the place in fine condition, so it wasn’t too terrible. Based on that experience, if someone offers to pay up front, I’d actually only then rent to them if they do In fact pay up front. They offer because they know they are either bad with money or perceived as a risk for some reason. Mitigate the risk by getting the rent upfront OR pass on that tenant completely. Given that we are heading into the holidays/heart of winter, I’d move forward with the tenant paying a full year up front. Good luck with it!

I’d get out of NYC as quickly as possible and put $ down on a duplex and live in one side while letting the tenant in the other side pay my mortgage. Or, if you stay in NYC try to buy into one of the low/middle income co-ops while your income is still on the lower end of the spectrum there but you have ample savings...good luck with it!