All Forum Posts by: Kimberly H.

I am no lawyer....but IMHO that is illegal. Requiring something different of a protected class (family status) is by definition discrimination.

Just got this from a real estate broker representing potential applicants who I know nothing about, and, we are offering it only as a 2 year lease anyway but as we all know people don't read..."My clients have directed me to present the following requests/ options. They would like a long term lease, and have asked if the landlord would be interested in receiving the monthly rental payment in cash? They also asked if the landlord would be open to waiving the security deposit in lieu of the long term lease and monthly cash rental payments?"

These people sound like real gems already.

If I perceived it as a threat I would have your husband call the police.

@Soh Tanaka Self showers in general were having problems with people who were not really applicants scheduling showings. I know Showmojo tweaked their software to minimize this problem.

Hi @Carl King,

There are some great REIAs in the area, 

http://chicagoreia.org/ who meets in 5 suburbs as well as downtown Chicago, and 

https://www.ccia-info.com/ who meets I think in Lombard now or somewhere close, not sure as I am way more active with the first one.

They both do have speakers from time to time that sell stuff, but the networking is really helpful. The Chicagoreia group has had some pretty great speakers, people from HUD come into to speak about section 8, eviction lawyers speak, and had contractor showcases with the contractors and lawyers they use, and a *lot* of people in that group that are actually flipping or buying and renting properties successfully, as well as members who do private financing for flips.

Best of luck!

Interesting option if your in an area like Chicago where if you make one small mistake with the security deposit interest you can be on the hook to pay the tenant 3x the security in damages. Besides that, I am not interested in debating with this company if they think my damage claims are real or not to get them to pay out, and what if they go out of business in the interim.

I just had someone get like that just after we accepted them and emailed our standard next steps email. They were represented by a real estate agent, who I called and told that agent,"I am not going spend my time explaning/defending why we run our business the way we do to your client. Your client can decide to move forward or not." She didn't, thankfully.

This is all the same person for a 3 bed single family detached house, available June 2nd.:

Applicant writes all over the application and an email to not contact her current landlord, "I don't want you to contact my landlord yet because I haven't advised them of my intent to move and don't want to until I am approved and a new lease signed...each year I plead for a new lease for my own protection and for theirs...I am fairly confident that the past is an indication of the future in this case so I want to wait until our lease is signed."

Lol, as if! And that just sounds weird and doesn’t make any sense, what landlord wouldn’t want MORE notice? But she is retired, lives alone, and has nearly 1M in her retirement account and an 800 credit score so I figure worst case she’s collectible.

I call this persons RE agent and tell her that isn’t happening. The agent is like,"Well, she said that if you must contact the current landlord go ahead" and mentions something about that landlord never fixing anything and that was why she didn’t want me to call.

I call the current landlord, and she is glad that the tenant wants to move, saying they want to sell the home and get out of owning rental properties (they are in their 70's), and this makes it easier for them. When I bring up the repair comment, they angrily tell me of *all* the instances they have been over there right away to fix something. And it sounds like the applicant’s son’s monster dog is there frequently on weekends but I can’t get a straight answer on how often the monster dog is there.

There is no previous landlord to call. The applicant states on the app that she smokes outside, has a Greater Swiss Mountain dog that she 2x a year babysits for her son (Googling I find out they weigh 110-150 lbs!). 

So we accept, make the security 2x the rent, and propose lease signing and funds collection the next day at the applicant’s home. So then I get an email from the applicant,” Why a double security deposit…I cannot obtain certified or cashier funds in just one day.... My check from my investment account is no good? You will find out in a couple of days if my check clears. After all, I'm not moving until June…I have had and still have a horrid cold and therefore my home is a "sick" home. I do not recommend that folks come to visit me. If you must, then you must but I wouldn't.”

I’m not going to get into a debate with an applicant over terms that we use for all applicants, so I call the real estate agent, basically telling her about the email from her client.  She later updates me saying her client is getting the money together.  A few hours later she calls and says her client no longer wants to move forward with the house. I’m satisfied that a PITA just weeded herself out.

We use it with the lockbox, and require them to send their drivers license. We like that the system asks the prescreening questions and handles the scheduling of the showings, although I have had the very same people with very same contact info re-answer the questions until they pass and Showmojo didn't block them...but they have made blocking people who don't meet the criteria way easier now. They are always working on making the product better. 

@Nathan Gesner curious to know why you stopped using the lockbox after two months?

@Nathan Gesner

So what ended up happening with this lawyer tenant?

Originally posted by @Nathan G.:

@Patrick M. you are wrong. I rented a single-family home to an attorney with great credit, income was 6x the rent, and his Landlord reference was excellent. On my scale of 1-30 he scored a 28. So everything looks good according to an objective screening process and he was a pretty good tenant for the first nine months or so. Then he started running late, three months in a row and was fighting me about late fees, 3-day Pay or Quit Notices, etc. He was 15 days late on the third month so I sent him our printed policy regarding rent payments, late fees, etc. This was his response:

Dear Nathan:

Thank you for your recent correspondence. You have contacted me on several occasions to collect an outstanding debt you claim is owed. I am contacting you to formally request validation of the alleged debt concerning this account and to inform you that I hereby dispute the validity of this debt.

I am also requesting you provide documentation showing I am, and should be, the party responsible for paying for improvements made to the property I rent. As you recall, I spent $1,130.00 for the removal of the tree, stump, petrified wood, installation of more gravel and labor associated therewith. See attached Invoice.

Through this letter, I hereby request proof that I am indeed the party you are asking to pay this alleged debt, and for proof that there is a binding contractual obligation to pay this alleged debt. Please provide adequate validation of this alleged debt, including but not limited to documentation of:

• Complete payment history, the requirement of which has been established via Spears v. Brennan, 745 N.E. 2d 862 (Ind. Ct. App. 2001);
• The agreement bearing the signature of me, wherein I agreed to pay;
• The letter of sale or assignment from the original creditor to your company. (Agreement with your client that grants you the authority to collect on this alleged debt.) Coppola v. Arrow Financial Services, 2002 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26788 (D. Conn. 2002) - Information relating to the purchase of a bad debt is neither proprietary nor burdensome. Debtor must clearly phrase their request to obtain: the source of a debt and the amount a bad debt buyer paid for plaintiff’s debt; how amount sought was calculated; where in issue a list of reports to credit bureaus; and documents conferring authority on third party to collect debt.
• Documentation of the creation of the debt with your collection agency.

Under FDCPA Section 809 (b), you are not allowed to pursue collection activity until the debt is validated. You should be made aware that reporting a collection account is indeed considered a collection activity. Boatley v. Diem Corp., 2004 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5089 (D. Ariz. 2004.

Please be advised that I am enforcing my rights under the FDCPA and under Wyoming's Landlord/Tenant Act, and that this correspondence shall in no way reflect a waiver of any of the rights prescribed under either of those Acts which are not expressly asserted herein. Please cease your collection activity until I receive confirmation through the above information requested. Please also direct any future correspondence to me in writing.

I had a strong, written lease agreement. We also had a written agreement detailing what improvements he could make to the landscaping, that all changes would be done by professional landscapers, and that he would pay for every dime of it. This was at his request, by the way.

I'll put that in front of a judge any day of the week.