All Forum Posts by: JD Martin

Personally, I wouldn't do it. It's a different situation when you are selling the house outright, in that you won't have any relationship with the new owners down the road, when the inevitable feeling of buyer's remorse sets in. In this case, the buyer's remorse will set in as they are living in your house. If you have priced your property so low as to have competition to rent the property, I would either consider that a way of getting the best tenant, or raise the price so as to raise the bar and exclude more applicants. 

In some other countries, what you are talking about would actually be normal, but my experience in the US is that this is not normal, and I think it would generate hard feelings. Just my 2 cents. 

How much work are you having done? A one-off low-cost job here and there, I would go with who does good work and can be trusted without being watched like a hawk. If you are talking 6 figure projects all year, I would get bids not to keep them honest, but just because it makes good business sense. Sometimes there are reasons that one contractor can do a job much cheaper than another, and give you the same quality of work, and it also lets the contractor that you have a relationship with off the hook - meaning that sometimes they will feel obligated to take on a job for you, even though they are not the best option, because of the relationship. A lot of people, contractors included, don't know how to say "no", and will get into projects way over their head, experience level or profit level.  

 Good thought! I considered that as well, but repainting around the nails is a hassle. Whoever invented paneling should be kissed, and shot, in that order :)

I think you have to consider it from the point of view of your market, rather than your tenant. I know *a lot* of rental properties in Florida have pools, which is understandable given the climate. Does not having a pool put you at a competitive disadvantage? 

Where I live, I wouldn't own a rental with a pool, but that is more because of the limited climatic opportunity to use the pool coupled with the maintenance, upkeep and repairs associated with pools, as well as my market's indifference (and sometimes outright hostility) towards pools. In the grand scheme of things the insurance & liability aspects should be minor factors; millions of people have pools, including rentals - that's what insurance is for (you are heavily covered, right?). 

I guess what I am trying to say is if the pool makes sense from a marketing viewpoint, you should be considering putting it in yourself, irrespective of the tenant. If you don't need it to keep your place rented, you shouldn't put it in just because the yard is ugly and the tenant wants a pool. 

I agree with Mitch. At those numbers he is going to find a hard time getting someone to take that on. If he has it financed, and the tenant doesn't pay the HOA fee, he is probably at negative cash flow himself.

 Actually, I thought of that re: items falling, and also considered that (apparently) Command strips sometimes remove the paint when they come down, especially if people don't take them off the wall properly or if the paint is a low sheen, which is what we use. Thanks for the thoughts! 

I think if you took money worded as a deposit, without some type of forfeiture claim, you will have to return those funds. If your lease is worded as you say, then it doesn't sound as if it were ever consummated, which would render the deposit unnecessary. If, for example, the person never paid the deposit either, but signed the lease, and you signed the lease, would you consider the terms applicable? I wouldn't, and I would let a court tell me differently if the tenant wanted to try to sue to enforce the lease. I would simply tear up the lease and go forward. Since he wants out anyway, you're off the hook there, you just are down the river a little bit for having no tenant now and having held the place for someone. 

Thanks for the replies! That is pretty much what we decided to do...not a big enough issue to worry about. Never had paneling to deal with before, so wanted to get some feedback, but I think the gamut of holes was just the fact that no one had filled them for 20 years :)

I agree with everyone posted here; you really have "roommates" more than you have tenants. When I was in the military I had a number of living arrangements with friends very similar to what you posted, and most of them were not good situations by the end. It is inevitable that someone will consume a much larger portion of resources, degrade the common areas, etc, and then you will be in an uncomfortable position. 

One lesson learned here is to require the deposit and first (and maybe last) month's rent to be paid in order to validate the lease. That is how my lease is worded; if they don't pay first, last, deposit, the terms of the lease have not been met.