All Forum Posts by: Andrew S.

@Natalie Sugden 

Perhaps you will need to consider allowing pets?  I know there are valid reasons not to, but you probably eliminate over half of your potential tenants right there?

I have a few properties with water heaters that are in relatively uninsulated spaces (utility rooms, garage, crawlspace, etc) and I want to insulate them with a "jacket".  What are the best (most cost effective) products people here have had success with?

 Brie,

I agree with you and others that this sounds like a tenant that is trying to play the system and there is a good chance that she "made up" the bedbugs as part of the story.  Also, you may have really favorable bedbug ordinances in your area (although, according to my lawyer, only limited case law exists on bedbug issues in most places).  That said, your life will be so much easier, if you can show that the bedbugs don't exist in the first place.

I agree with @Account Closed 

 - bed bugs can make this situation stickier than it would otherwise be.  It will be very good to know if there is any evidence (collected by the tenant and/or the exterminator) that, in fact, there were/are bedbugs present.  If there were then you may encounter more problems than you thought with the eviction, because bedbug issues are fairly untested in the court systems and they seem to occupy a somewhat special legal space as far as pest control issues go.  I have recently dealt with this problem and after consulting with a lawyer, I concluded that for my particular situation, I would not want to risk court proceedings.

If you think that the bedbug issue is bogus and want to make sure there are no bedbugs present, you can hire a bedbug sniffing dog to check it out for you (serious!)

I have to agree with @Sky Mikesell : if you really had bedbugs, a couple of hundred bucks worth of treatment is unlikely to have solved the problem and you should really have it checked out further so your next tenant doesn't inherit the problem.

 Keith, not that Bill G really needs my support, but in his defense, your initial question does read like you are trying to pull a fast one on the bank.  In spite of the sour taste, do read Bill's second point because he does explain a.) why his first post was a bit cryptic and b.) why he believes what you propose is illegal (as written).  Your last sentence about using a different property as collateral is very important, obviously.  That wasn't clear form the original post.

 I don't see anyone trying to impose political views here.  @Chris Martin appears to have significant experience in two markets, and he is making you aware of the potential issues.  I happen to be in the same market and I have extensively researched the topic - I'd love to be in section 8, but for me, and in this market, it doesn't make sense.  Yes, perhaps the Raleigh authorities are particularly challenging to work with, but I think it minimally serves as an example for what CAN (and in fact sometimes DOES) happen with section 8.  If your market is different or you choose to accept/ignore those concerns, then more power to you.   You should obviously forge ahead and play.

 I have such a tenant too and I find that doing "a few small things to establish goodwill" tends to backfire with such folks and just encourages (actually it basically guarantees) additional requests.  I do agree, of course, promptly fix anything safety related.

 As John said, 10 should not be a big problem if you have the right income/credit score to back it up.  Talk to a local mortgage broker.

such as @Amy Bonis 

 Consider "delayed financing" option - that way you can get money out in less than 6 months.  Works best for renovations, less interesting for turnkey.