All Forum Posts by: Marcus Curtis

Does each unit have it's own heat source such as a furnace or do all units get their heat from one boiler or furnace? If all units get heat from a central boiler then it is touch to separate the utility costs to each unit. That leaves you with two options: Implement a ratio utility billing system (RUBS) or simply determine a flat monthly fee to be added as an additional cost to the lease.

RUBS might be challenging for a smaller 6-unit property as most utility management companies will want to take in no less than $100 per month to service the account (calculate charges, send out bills, accounting and reporting, etc.). You might be better off simply adding $35 per month gas utility charge to each tenant to recapture that expense- OR- simply dividing the actual monthly costs to each tenant while the owner eats 5-10% as a common area deduction (CAD).

That said, do check with local regulations on the matter.

Hi @Radley Estrada from what I recall, the Aiphone is a phone line based system, correct? Meaning, are you paying for a phone line or is it a direct, hard-wired system with a in-unit panel? Either way, these systems are indeed archaic.

My recommendation would be to update the system to a simple, modern version. You should be able to get this done for relatively cheap if it is a hardwired system. If it is phone line system it is still advisable to update it to a hardwired system as getting rid of the phone bill will be more than a fair return for you as an owner.

I would recommend a Jeron system. Very, very simple systems with nearly nothing that can go wrong with the. To find a contractor to provide and install these google your area for fire alarm and security companies. You will want one that does commercial work not a residential outfit. You can also call Jeron factory and see if they can recommend any installers in your area.

These are great amenities to have for your renters. Well worth keeping it but updating it to a more modern and efficient system.

Why skirt around the facts? Tell the potential tenant the facts of the matter (i.e. rental history, references, some "gray" areas, and on top of that the HVAC issues). Transperency is your friend. No reason to hide these items.

There are pros and cons, for the tenant, in each of the management types. At it's core, I believe it comes down to one thing; customer service. Often times we forget that our tenants are our customers; our bread and butter.

There are good companies (owners) and there are bad companies (owners). There are small, self-managed owners who take an abundance of pride in their properties, have systems in place, and are fair and reasonable with their tenants. There are also large management companies that fly by the seat of their pants, have lacking resources, and are- in short- completely disconnected from their tenant base.

As a generalization, I think it is safe to assume that most self-managed properties offer lower than market rental rates, form a personal (sometimes too personal) relationship with their tenants, and are eager to fix and improve their property in the do-it-yourself fashion (sometimes half-arsed). Larger Management companies can be hit or miss. The core focus for most management companies is to grow their portfolio and then grow their rents. They make money of the percentage of income. So, they may often send increases to the tenants once or twice per year, be sticklers on spending money on occupied units, and do whatever they can to squeeze every last dollar out of the customer. Then again, there are those that operate off of a set of standards, are more than fair to their tenants, and have all the systems and resources in place to be personable and dependable for their tenants.

It all comes back to the owner. Who calls the shots? If it is a small, self-managed owner who's go to tool is duct tape and caulk the I think a tenant would be much more willing to move across the road to the larger management company who operates to their own standards.

@David Barnett- Depending on what size property you are looking to lock down your trash expenses will vary. You can have a once per-week trash pickup on a 3 yard container for $200-250 per month. This would be more so for a 10 unit+/- property.

Water/sewer expenses, as you said, will vary. However, a good industry benchmark from Minneapolis/Saint Paul would be $30-35 per unit per month. Again, this is assuming a small to mid-size multifamily property.

I would expect to see price per window about 15-20% lower considering they are vinyl. It may be a cheaper option to go with the vinyl but have you considered going with an Aluminum constructed window? The local industry norm is about $350 per opening for a mid-level product. Thermo-break technology has come a long way in recent years and you can expect much more life and "ease of maintenance" by going with a more commercial construction. I highly recommend Quaker Windows. The benefit of a good aluminum product is many of the product lines come in retrofit configurations effectively eliminating the need for much exterior metal work. You can also get interior trim kits to button up the inside as well. Many people aim for a 10-15 year lifecycle on Windows. With the right product you can expect a 20-40 year life. Feel free to PM me if you want a couple good vendors to offer you some competitive bids.

Disposals = Maintenance = increased costs. If you have "high-end" units where you feel a disposal is a MUST for your prospective tenants then perhaps it is worth it. One way to keep the costs down is to inform the tenant that if they jamb the disposal or if a foreign object is found at time of service then they will eat the cost. Leave a disposal wrench taped to the p-trap so when they can you can ask them if they tried un-jabbing it. Here in Minnesota, I see $1200+ units without.

This is not a fun process to deal with. My company manages over 5,000 units in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro and on average have at least 10 bed bug units per month. It is especially bad in those properties where you have tenant profiles of people who typically co-habitat or have many family members in and out of the units. Generally, but not always. We use professional companies to handle this work. The majority of the time we opt for a heat remediation which is essentially a day long process where they bring in several industrial size heaters and bake the entire unit up to 140 degrees. This effectively kills all live bugs and any viable eggs. Your tenant will need to cooperate with this and spend a significant amount of time and effort in preparing their unit for the treatment. They will also have to find somewhere else to be on the day of the treatment. For costs you are looking at anywhere between $1,200-1,700 for a unit of that size. This includes the heat treatment and in most cases a chemical and powder treatment. When discussing the treatment options with the pest control professional ask them what warranty they offer on their heat treatments. Most offer either ab30 or 60 day warranty where they will come back and perform another heat treatment free of charge if the first is not effective. As far as who will pay for this: initially you will. However, our lease language specifies that the tenant may be held responsible for remediation of pests where management was not responsible. Nice and ants are typically an issue as a result obtuse building. Bed bugs on the other hand must be brought in. So, perhaps you check to see if they may have seen the "free" mattress on the curb and brought it in. This is usually the source- free furniture. If you shoot me a personal message I can send you a copy of the template we send out to tenants to get them to prepare for the heat treatments. One other piece of advice I have is to get BOTH units inspected. Often times the one who reports first are not the ones who had it first. Good Luck!

When you as a renter give a deposit for a rental unit it serves as a good-faith that you will follow through with your commitment in applying for the home. Imagine if one could apply with out any recourse of losing their deposit money. People would apply over and over again at different places until they were ready to settle. This wastes valuable time for the landlord to secure a renter which could translate to significant financial losses to the manager and/or landlord. Your best bet is to see if the landlord might refund your deposit if they secure a renter by the times ou stated you would move in.

Hi Brett! Thanks for your response and input. Once I discovered this was classified as a mixed use (and after I posted this here) I went to the city zoning office to see what I could do if anything to get it rezoned. There is still a glimpse of hope! This site I in a pocketed area of MF5+, mixed use, and SFR. The zoning official stated that it is not unlikely to get this reclassified and residential/mf because of its surrounding property types. Essentially, it doesn't fit in the neighborhood given its current use. The seller has agreed to move forward with the attempted re-zoning and will do whatever I need him to do on his end. I will do most of the leg work though. It will be a fun challenge to be involved in!