All Forum Posts by: Mala S.

As an Airbnb host your tenant is keeping your place in hotel level cleanliness. You should be happy about this! That be said, you should be getting a cut of the profits. He is likely making 2-3x the rent. You should charge him enough to cover any additional insurance and to make it worth your while. However Don’t do it if any of the below apply. If the rental is in a multi unit building and you think Airbnb will cause a security risk to your other tenants, or make them complain about it- don’t allow the Airbnb to continue. If your rental is the perfect “party house” -don’t allow Airbnb. (If it’s not a party house it is unlikely someone will try to throw a party there) I would not recommend doing Airbnb yourself unless you have a lot of time on your hands. I’ve done Airbnb before and found it too much of a hassle. If I knew that someone could successfully run an Airbnb in one of my units and I could charge extra to let them do it, i would.

I have had people offer to pay 4-12 months up front before and I have even accepted it twice. Typically it is because their is something about them that makes them an undesirable tenant and they may have been rejected by a few landlords already before getting to you. You should find out what her reasons are. Bring up credit check and see what she says. In my case the reasons were the following: - one person was relocating to the nyc area but had no job lined up yet but significant savings. He wanted to pay 12 months but I didn’t do it. -another young woman was moving out of her parents house for the first time and had no credit history. Her dad came with her to see the apartment and when I brought up credit check her Dad offered to pay 4 months up front plus deposit. I accepted with her Dad as guarantor. She was a great tenant, I have no regrets. - I had a young man from Europe come to nyc for a well paid internship. He had no credit history in Usa and only needed 6 month rental. He paid above market rent, 6 months up front. He was a great tenant, no regrets here either.

Matthew Paul & Ray Schumacher thanks for for taking the time to respond. I’m glad to see responses from contractors on this question. I would love to get your perspective on this: 1. how can I ensure that the job will be completed within the agreed upon timeframe? Bonus for completing on time? Penalty for going beyond a certain timeframe? Which works best and what are reasonable $ amounts for these for a 80-100k project? 2. How can I know if the timeframe the contractor has promised is doable? 3. How can I verify that the contractor has enough of a crew available to handle the job? 4. How can I make sure the contractor makes my job a priority and doesn’t disappear into another job? 5. Is it problematic to hire out some of the work separately myself to remove workload from GC and get the project done faster? I will be bidding the job out in the next 2-3 weeks and I will be consulting an attorney about this also but I want to go into conversations with contractors with as much knowledge as possible so as much input I can get, the better. Thanks again.

I am about to embark on a reno project for my multi family in New Jersey and just wondering if any of you have advice on what to include in a contract with the gc. The reno will include a bathroom remodel, 2 kitchen remodels, 1 new bathroom and new flooring. Any crazy stories and “I wish I would haves” would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks!

You should definitely go with memory foam because it does not allow for bedbug infestation. I have a Casper, Tuft and Needle and Tempurpedic and they are all holding up fine. I had the Casper in my Airbnb and had no complaints. But I would say go with the cheapest one that is still made in the USA (other countries allow the use of carcinogens in manufacturing process).

I’ve gotten a loan while being at my job less than a year. The lender was more concerned that I have been working in the same industry for several years and there was no gaps in my employment. Since you said you travelled for a year and were not working, this may be an issue. Check with a lender and see what they say about it. Don’t go online or to a big bank. Ask around for a recommended direct lender or credit union and talk to an experienced mortgage lender ( not someone who is just a phone screener checking off boxes in a software program).

I agree that Hudson county is solid. It seems like the market is super hot now but I believe there is still room to grow. Very convenient commute to Manhattan and as young professionals with good income continue to be priced out of nyc and stigma of living in nj becomes less of an issue, Hudson county will continue to grow. Much of the housing stock in union city and jc heights is very dated. Not enough flippers here imho. Any “good deals” will require rehab.

Ughh, that’s what I was afraid of. Thanks from r the input. I will call my lender after the holidays and see what they say.

I would try to legalize it if we were you. It may end up being a very simple thing to do. You should get an architect to advise you on what it would entail. You stand to lose 100-200k! Unless you are in a big rush to sell, why wouldn’t you spend a little time and money to save 100-200k? Btw, dob hired many more staff lately so processing times are much faster than they used to be. I don’t do this type of work but if you need a referral for an architect who does pm me.

I don’t like using Zillow for rent estimates. Although the best is to have real market knowledge through experience, some other methods I have found useful are Rentometer.com (although sometimes they seem on the low side) And Craigslist ads for comp rentals.