All Forum Posts by: Linda S.

Please paint the house!   It instantly turns me away, it looks mustard color, which makes me think the inside will have lots of wood paneling and be outdated.  

I think new paint and getting rid of the small bushes blocking the windows would be great! 

@Jerry Benson,  one thing I'd suggest, because we had a similar situation, where it seemed like the tenants constantly complained.. is to remind them that "renting is  a 2-way street, and you want them to be happy, so if they aren't happy in the house or they think too much is wrong with it, you'll let them out of the lease early"... along those lines, it's professional, courteous... but also indirectly tells them to stop complaining or leave.   Also remind them that they signed the lease in as-is condition, and while you strive to continually improve the property, you don't have direct plans to fix XYZ, however it is in your long term plan... stuff like that, it acknowledges their complains, and I'm sure you do plan on doing more stuff, just not right now.    Hope this helps!

@Roger P., love the quote "would you rather be right or rich?"  

My question for you-- is it a good tenant? Have they paid on time and do they take care of your property?   If it's their primary heating source, then in my non-legal opinion, you'd be at fault because you have to provide heat source.   If it's a secondary heat source, they would be responsible for the $360 because you didn't authorize or agree to pay. 

While it would feel good to shove it to them, evict them and give them the mental middle finger for causing you additional stress, and costing you an additional $360... it feels a heck of a lot better IMO to have a good tenant and keep a long relationship, and consistent rent.    It will cost you significantly more than $360 in lost rent if you evict or don't renew their lease, let alone talking about evictions with attorney fees $$$$$$, than to just eat the $360 as a capital improvement (sounds like it needed to be done), and then have them sign an additional agreement stating they know they can't hire anyone, and if they do, they're responsible.    You were going to pay the $$ to get it fixed anyway...   Firm but fair is my opinion. 

Let me just say, I quickly wanted to read your post because I absolutely understand your frustration.   

Bad contractors I think make up about 70% of the stress of renovating!  It makes me very, very angry, when I'm like throwing money at contractors, and they do a poor job, or make it obvious it's not a priority.  Dealing with bad contractors, omg makes my annoying just thinking of the bad ones we've had!  If we have a bad experience, we are quick to fire them after the agreed work is done.   Can someone tell me why picking up your created trash, is a luxury not included with contractors?? We don't take a risk about them doing stuff to our places, not worth it.    If we ever had a really, really bad experience, where it's a legit problem and not just poor service..  we'd report them to the state board. 

@Kawsar Ali,  we just installed those last month, so I don't know, although they are use as a secondary heat source to the main system, so it shouldn't go up a lot.    Our electrician suggested we do those over traditional heaters because it's less likely to overheat.   Below is the one we got:

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Fahrenheat-2-000-Watt-240-Volt-Forced-Air-Heater-10-5-in-L-x-12-25-in-H-Grille/1082595

I don't think there's a set number, but the amount of crime will link to the rent you'll get, as few people want to live in high crime areas, so rent is normally cheapest in the worst areas.    I'd drive past the house a few times, if there's obvious  "activity" lots of people walking,  or cars comping by often to a specific house, those are the types of things that cause us to say no.     If you really like the house, give the police dept a call and ask them about the area.  We install a extra lights on all of our properties as a deterrent.   

We had a similar situation, where our tenants were complaining of it being too cold, even though the HVAC was recently serviced and told it was good, so we installed some infrared wall units to help with the individual rooms, only cost about $300 and they have been happy ever since! 

If you search BP for "Auction.com" there are a few great threads  on it.  I  use it and got  a great deal on a house, however the buying process isn't fun.    Their closing team is horrible, and very poorly managed.   It's a stressful process, but the deal was great!

Wish I could help @Austin Nelson, I've only done cash deals.