All Forum Posts by: Filipe Pereira

You probably don't "need" to. But if they have proved themselves as good tenants to you, then I would. I am a huge fan of not signing long-term leases until I feel tenants out a bit - sometimes their true colors come out a few days after closing, and sometimes it’s a few months. So just make sure you are confident in them as quality tenants before you sign a long term lease. 

First of all - no tenant should be calling you at midnight about a dishwasher or disposal going bad @Jimmy Chao. If they are, then they need better tenant training. Tell them to call you in the morning for non emergencies :)

It's a great idea to add the electricity now for future potential use - especially if it's already gutted. 

As to the rent question, it totally depends on your market. We have a local 'higher end" market here in central ct where it's basically a requirement. In sub tier markets, it's an added bonus that will attract a larger tenant pool (which decreases vacancy) but it doesn't necessarily translate to more rent in your pocket at the end of the month. 

@Paul Anderson, if you are looking for a lease for CT - I am happy to share mine. It's 13 pages long. If you aren't in Connecticut and still interested in looking at it to potentially compare/add clauses to yours, I'm still happy to share mine with you. 

The industry is better when we all have strong leases. 

@Travis Watts

Thankfully it looks like the republicans may retain some control here and the chances that Biden's tax plan passing are pretty low. 

Republicans should be very thankful and should count their blessings while they can because (once again) the polls did not show the eventual result. Biden very well could have won and controlled the house and senate which would put a lot of us in not so fun waters as I'm sure some sweeping tax law would have been introduced.

My main concerns are 

#1 Elimination of bonus depreciation

#2 Elimination of 1031 Exchanges

and the income tax change on earners above 400K. Not because I make 400K....but because one day I'd like to! LOL

@Travis Watts

So am I the only one sitting here wondering what your first business is @Stephen Keighery?? LOL 

@Kyle Keller - listen to @Mike Wood - those are years of wisdom speaking!

When a traditional water heater goes out, it's 1,000 to 1,200 to get a new one. When an issue arrises with a tankless one...well, get your wallet out and hope for the best. 

Not only will the upfront costs be cheaper, but the cost to maintain the traditional units over their lifetime should be cheaper as well. We have a few Navien units spread across our Connecticut portfolio, and while they are great when they work, they are miserable when they don't. Furthermore, not every plumber is trained or equipped to work on the Navien units, making it harder to find techs when something does break. 

If you plan on owning the property longer than the offered warranty on the tankless unit I would go with a traditional water heater.

Your hands are tied at the moment @David Ade. Even if they do respond, the CDC allows tenants to sign a covid-19 related form basically saying they've been financially affected. If they sign this form there is nothing you can do until 1/1/21. Sit tight and hope for the best. 

https://www.cdc.gov/coronaviru...

Having one water meter per house is very common across the tri-state area (NY, CT, NJ), and judging by these comments, it's equally common across other parts of the country as well.

While you can implement some kind of a bill back system, keep in mind that you will be capped by whatever your market allows you to do. In other words, if the market rate for a 2-bed 1-bath unit is $1,000 in your Market, and you plan to build a tenant $50 a month for water, they are going to realize very quickly that it is more expensive to rent from you than it is to rent from the neighbor down the street who is renting a unit with water included for $1,000 a month.

There's a very logical argument that you would therefore have to discount your rent to attract the same tenant. Furthermore, some tenants like to know that their costs will be fairly fixed, and having a water bill is one more variable that they will need to account for.

Hey @Travis Oakes, congratulations on getting your first one! It only gets easier from here.

I typically introduce myself in person and leave a letter behind with general Information, such as how to reach me, how to report a maintenance issue, where they can send the rent, etc.

It's probably easiest for them to just send you a text or email regarding issues given the volume of units you have. If your goal is to do this at scale, think about implementing some sort of system such as a Google form. You can see an example of this on the tenant portal section of our property management website, linked below. If you need help setting up something similar, just reach out. I am happy to help.

If they are not text savvy, have them mail rent to a PO Box in your town if you're not comfortable with them dropping it off in your mailbox. If you know that you only plan on living there for a year, start training them to mail it in now. It will make your life easier during the transition, or that of the property manager should you go that route in the future.

I’m an open book, ask away. Is your property in Terryville, CT? 

@Carmel Duffy  If he's not abiding by the lease, AND he's month to month, why haven't you given him his notice? Where I come from you're told to "sh*t or get off the pot!". It's time, lazy boy!