All Forum Posts by: David Krulac

We've added central air to all of our rentals, except one, which will be extensively rehabbed this summer and will have central air added.  When the heat is already hot air, most if not all of the existing ducts can be used.  But we have also added central air to house/apartments where the heat is hot water and have installed all new ductwork.  We have been able to steal a little space from closets or other space.

"Landlording" by Leigh Robinson 12th edition over 500 pages 

@Debra Orringer There are states with population increases and decreases.  Even within states there are areas/counties with increased populations and decreased population. In the 3 states where we have recently bought property we have invested in the fastest growing county in that state. I was in North Carolina last year speaking and did research there.  Of the 100 counties, 50 counties had growing population and 50 had declining population.  And the counties with the largest growth had populations that grew 20% over the last 10 years. I once went to a real estate auction and was talking with the auctioneer.  He told me that when he graduated from the local high school, there were the same number of graduates then as they were this year when his grandson graduated from the same high school.  Obviously over the intervening years, there was little to no growth in that community.  To me that was an indicator on whether I would be investing there.

@Shane Moore Many of our Section 8 tenants have been single mothers with 2 different gender kids, which requires them to have a 3 br unit. Many have full time or part time jobs. One was a low paid state worker, another was a LPN, while another worked at a day care. 3 people in a 3 br unit is the least number of tenants possible and therefore least wear and tear. Most of our Section 8 tenants get partial rent payment and only few have gotten near full rent payments. We have had section 8 tenants who were single elderly tenants, and we have also rented 4 and 5 bedroom section 8 tenants. They 4 br house was rented to a family with 2 parents and 8 sons. They could not find many places that would rent to a family with 8 boys. They ended up staying 12 years, and were very organized and good tenants. The 5 br house was rented to a 3 generational family, who came from another housing program for homeless, and the housing authority was housing them in a hotel. They stayed 8 years. The housing authority does yearly inspections, and sometimes spot inspections if there are some problems. One of our tenants had monthly inspections due to poor "housekeeping" issues; until they corrected the problem. Inspection items are pretty standard, no peeling paint, no cracked glass, railings on stairs (inside and outside including basements and attics), heat and electric to every room, and a range. The HUD approved rents for the entire country is on the HUD website.

@Nathan Gesner in Pennsylvania and I suspect in other tenant friendly states, what you propose is illegal.  Here there have been cases where they made the Landlord pay the past electric bills going back many years and costing thousands of dollars.

Today we are getting auto checks, Zelle, ACH as well as checks in mail

In Pennsylvania there is a law, possible in other states as well.  There must be a landlord paid meter to cover common areas, hall, basements, laundry, and exterior lighting. Here if the tenant finds out they are paying for any electric, they law provides that the landlord must pay for their entire electric bill even going back in the past.  In some cases the landlords has had to pay the tenant's electric bill going back many years.  In those cases it would be cheaper to install the third meter.

@Bruce Woodruff he was the head code inspector.  He told me that he spent 50% of every day cruising the neighborhoods looking for sheds, additions that have not been permitted.  At another property that we had, we were having the furnace replaced going from oil to gas.  Nobody was home except for the HVAC company working in the basement.  This same inspector entered the front door, uninvited, went into the basement and asked the HVAC company where there permits were.  They said that they did not have any permits and were only replacing an existing furnace.  The inspector said they still needed a permit.  The HVAC employee said we have replaced 200 furnaces in this town and never got a permit.  To which the inspector said, "You were wrong 200 times!"

we get tenant SSNs when the fill out the rental applications.

PS @Jen Geisler for me I would either pass on this deal OR I'd buy it at the price for the permitted building and assign NO VALUE to the unpermitted building.