All Forum Posts by: Erin Dreher

Welcome to Bigger Pockets! I am a property manager and realtor in Arkansas. I would be happy to answer any questions you may have if you consider this area. Main focus is on central Arkansas but I have some connections in Northern AR also. This is a great place to network and meet connections that are interested in the same things. 

As a property manager we require all maintenance requests to be submitted online through their portal. We use AppFolio also. There is always someone that has a hard time with it but those people usually have someone here that speaks English or is has a relative that understands technology and can do it for them. We actually have a clause in our lease agreement that states you will be charged a $50.00 fee for submitting a maintenance request in verbally. We did that to try and steer tenants away from coming in to the office and taking up someone's time. 

We have also started using a program Property Meld - makes it real easy for vendors and tenants to communicate. The maintenance software Property Meld works with AppFolio. Something to maybe look into... if it saves you time you spend dealing with maintenance issues. 

I agree with @Richard F. - if she is of legal age she should be on the lease. I would make sure you look at the wording of your lease about this also. You don't want to set yourself up for something if they should happen to split up - you automatically have a squatter situation. I would also remember there is a reason why he is asking you not to add her. It may be her past history, credit either way it doesn't sound like a tenant you would want. 

Screen both of them and make them both sign if they are both going to live in your property.

It depends on the market you are in. What type of house/neighborhood your in. We may do them for a property inside a gated community. It seems like even though the people that tour seem great they will not all pass our underwriting department. I feel like there may a good deal of time wasted on meeting people for tours and then they don't qualify. 

In places like Denver, CO or Nashville, TN where the market seems to be all upper end this is probably a necessity. 

I think video tours and good marketing pictures are the way to go!

First thing I look for is a fenced backyard for pets. I do ask owners to put a weight limit on what we will accept. Something like - owner accepts one small pet up to 30lbs.  I personally have a 80lb black lab and we are constantly fighting shedding problems. It is a lot to keep up with. And though I might be a great owner and take care of my dog.... I know that not all tenants are going to be. 

If you do decide to do it make sure you take date stamped pictures of the floors, baseboards, doors at the time of move in so you have something to refer to at move out that would stand up in court. Make sure your tenant signs off on a move in check list with the condition of the property. Collect pet rent and non refundable pet deposit. 

First thing I would do is look up landlord law in Ohio. See if you have to do those things. I can tell you what you have to do in Arkansas but it may not be the same. 

We typically judge a house as abandoned by if they have removed their personal things. Example: Bed, bedding, toothbrushes, clothes etc... see if the utilities are on. If it truly looks like she has left I would change the locks and deal with removing the larger items. Stinks to have to do it but it may be cheaper and faster than an eviction. 

Owners either like Section 8 or they don't. I always try to lay the pro's and cons of using it. There are definitely things you need to keep in mind like that most of the tenants do not have income coming in to pay for tenant caused damages. So when they move out you will most likely be paying for the all the work that has to be done. There also could be a potential for more wear and tear on the house. If someone is home all day that is just more flushes on a toilet and so on. There are also no repercussions for housing tenants if they trash a house, they can still stay on the program and move on to the next property. 

On the flip side. Rent comes EVERY month. Though it is a slow process to get going it is consistent. And I have had a small percentage of tenants on housing that took good care of the property and stay for many many years. 

I think I would base the decision on the location of your property. If the area is Class C or low income it may be best suited to use Section 8 so that you can get more in rent by using housing vouchers.

I have a soft heart also and turned over the management of our rental property to the company I work for. I made the mistake of renting it to someone that I thought I was "helping out". At least I know our company goes through a serious process to screen them and then will back the tenant placement. 

Mistake learned! 

I think I would be past the point of making any deals with tenants that made it clear that they are not paying or moving out. In my mind they should not be trusted any further. I would instead focus my time and energy finding a good eviction attorney. Some real estate attorneys can get through an eviction faster than others. That has been my experience so I would shop based on how quickly they can get this in front of a judge and what the costs are for their services. 

We have a house in Pensacola - we aren't doing Air BnB yet but plan to. We chose that area because its closer to people that drive in from surrounding states. I am sure there is a market down southern Florida. To be honest what part of Florida that has beaches is bad! Everyone escapes and takes the vacation to the Florida beaches. Something else that enticed us was that have made quite a few resources there. Talk with some realtors down there and see if you meet one that really is connected. 

I know a few.. happy to share some folks that are well connected with contractors. property managers, cleaners etc.