All Forum Posts by: John Morgan

I only charge a fixed amount of $75. It brings me an extra 8k/year of revenue that I don’t mind. I have several tenants that have been late for years. Not a big deal to me where some people stress over. They always pay late with the late fee so I’m good. If I charge more, I’ll probably have less late people. But I feel like $75 isn’t much and people are fine paying that. And I’ll take that extra 8k/year to take my wife out on dates. lol. That’s what I tell her, every time someone is late we go on a date with the $. Haha!

Quote from @Schola Eburuoh:

Quote from @John Morgan:

At lease renewal time, they get an extra $100/month increase on top of my normal increase. I hope they leave, but most stay. lol

Haha —brutal honesty and effective! Do you find that high-maintenance tenants ever get better with the right nudges, or is it usually baked in?

Curious how you decide which issues to treat as warning signs versus just part of the job.

I’ve only had a couple high maintenance tenants. Once I raise rent aggressively they seem to dial it down. lol.I take it case by case with warning signs. But a lot of it is just part of the job. Most of my tenants came from apartments that have a 24/7 handyman on call to fix minor things. I break them in and tell them I’ll keep rent low if they can deal with the little things that normally pop up over time. 

At lease renewal time, they get an extra $100/month increase on top of my normal increase. I hope they leave, but most stay. lol

Buyers have more leverage now with this environment. But not many can qualify or afford to buy. Sellers that need to sell will have to drop their prices quite a bit in most areas.

Go on Zillow and look around for rentals in your area to compare market rent. List yours on zillow for $100-$150 below market rent and it all rent out quickly. Thats what I do and this lets me choose from several applicants. If you ask close to market rent, then you won’t get many good applicants to choose from.

Leverage your way to wealth. Don’t pay off your properties until you hit your financial goals and don’t want anymore cashflow.

@Lindsey Voorhees

Hi Lindsey. I’m sorry about your brother. I live in Mansfield, TX and self manage 18 rental houses in the DFW area (Arlington, Grand Praire and Fort Worth). I know the area well and would be happy to help you with anything you need. I’ve also got a great trustworthy handyman who’s a tenant of mine I use all the time in case you ever want a second quote or opinion on repairs. I can give you a pulse on the current market here too and any advice if needed. I also self manage another 10 properties out of state so I’m familiar with out of state self managing if that’s something you would consider. And if you’re looking to sell with tenants in place, keep me in mind. I’ve bought 25 properties with tenants in place in the past. Sometimes it’s easier and cheaper for the seller so they don’t have to rehab them and deal with kicking people out etc. PM me if you have any questions. And good luck!

There are DSCR lenders that will do loans as low as 50k. I did a couple DSCR loans in September with purchase prices of 75k and 70k. I even put these loans in my personal name vs my LLC.

Vacancies within a few years crush profits. I look for lifers and want people who will stay for at least a decade. I keep them in well under market rent and treat them well. I look at my tenants as if they’re my partners. I take care of them and they’ll pay off my mortgages and pay me good monthly cashflow.

Chasing people around for late rent. lol. But I make an extra 8k/year with late fees so it’s not that big of a deal to get rent a couple weeks late every month with some people.