All Forum Posts by: Account Closed

@stephen e.

Thanks alot for bringing this up. I didn't realize the discrimination laws had different implications here. I know we still have them, just thought the selection process would be the same. 

@Roy N.

Thanks for the info Roy, really appreciate it. I'll start reading the landlord and tennant act. At least now I have something to look for and I might not fall asleep so fast. 

@Steven E.

Thanks for your input, some really great points.

@Millie D.

Thanks for the advice, I think $35 per application is reasonable as it barely covers the background/credit check.

Yes, makes sense. 

good point also...

Thanks for all the great comments. I'll be attending a municipal course for landlords on Thursday so I should be able to clarify the laws then. The application formalities are a great point to use for disqualification.

Hi all, I've been a while researching and learning about renting my first investment property and I finally posted my rental ad this afternoon. Our market is pretty good in Edmonton and I've received a phone call and 6 emails so far about the house. 

To pre-screen I've used the following minimum requirements on my reply emails/phone conversation.

-Salary must be equal to or greater than 3x rent

-No previous evictions

-Good references from all previous landlords

-Credit/Background check will be performed at applicants expense

I'm left with 3 viewings scheduled for this week. Hooray! After I get over the excitement of possibly getting a renter I start to think about some of the information I got on the phone call. 

The lady asked if the minimum salary was for an individual or household. I say household. She says "Ok, we'll be fine then....between myself, my boyfriend, his brother and his cousin we meet that". This gives me pause but I couldn't think of anything else to say/question so I went ahead and scheduled the viewing.

Now, I don't have anything concrete and the application will give me more to work off of but I'm getting a gut feeling that this won't be the best set of tenants. 

I guess my question is this, can you decline an applicant based on a feeling as long as it's not based on race, religion, age, etc. I get a bit of conflicting information when reading tenant screening blogs. For example saying to look at a tenants car condition for an indication of cleanliness but later saying that you should clearly let an applicant know why they were rejected (would you tell them it's because their car was dirty)?

Thanks for any help to this nervous newbie. 

@Cory S.

@? brings up a list of people who have posted in the thread you can tag. (except it doesn't seem to be working right now.)

@Cory S.

 Hi Cory, I wouldn't worry about rental vacancy rates being an issue in Edmonton. There is a shortage of rentals in most areas which is a nice plus if you're looking to get into it. Most agents I've talked to are adamant that a decent rental in a good location will be easy to fill for years to come. 

Your scenario sounds a lot like mine. I work in Edmonton for a wellhead supply company. We've laid off a few people already and are forecasting more during breakup (Alberta oil patch slow season). I'm not too worried for the same reasons you shouldn't be worried. 

#1 if you get laid off you're still going to have to live somewhere and pay for it regardless. You might as well get qualified for a mortgage while you can. Lock in the interest rate for 5 years. There's a lot of room to improve your situation in 5 years (in case interest rates rise).

#2 if you buy the house and rent the downstairs unit you're actually saving yourself money every month. If the worst happens and you do get laid off you'll have a lower monthly payment to come up with. 

#3 average prices were still forecasted to rise a few % points this year (Feb market forecast). They may show as flat right now but will not crash unless this oil price drags on for years.

Last thing - the $300,000-$400,000 priced housing in the city are showing the least amount of days on the market (location dependent) so you may need to act soon.

P.S. to tag people you just type @ then start typing their name until you see it pop up at the bottom of your post box. click it and your rolling.

Greg

@Mason V. 

Those bucket wheels are pretty crazy. Heres a link to the biggest one. 

http://www.mechanicshub.com/Fun-and-games/World-Re...

@Mark McGrath 

Hi Mark, from Edmonton here. Welcome! 

It could be worthwhile looking at Etown or Calgary in a few months after the oil prices start affecting housing costs. Could be a few deals to be had. Massive layoffs in the last few weeks. I'm not entirely sure if this will be a benefit or a drawback but I figure people will still need rentals to live in.