All Forum Posts by: Michael Fundaro

@Rebecca B. a big benefit of seller financing is the flexibility in negotiations it allows for.  100% financing comes to mind here.  With the right negotiations, it can be a lot easier to get 100% financing from a seller than from a bank. Granted, that only works when the seller owns the property free and clear.  

That's just one example.  Basically, there are times when it can be advantageous, and times when its not... it really depends on your situation and the deal you are working on... but I certainly wouldn't rule it out completely as an option.

@Ryan Richard

Does anyone recommend a good book about real estate tax law?  I want to at least have a basic overall understanding of it before getting into the details.  

Hi all,

We have tenants signing a 12 month lease.  They are 3 roommates, one of which will be moving out in the spring.  After screening them, the remaining 2 are both good candidates and can afford/pay rent after he leaves.  Originally, they did not want to include him on the lease.  We agreed to allow him to remove himself from the lease at any time, but while he lives there, must be on the lease.  So, I'm hoping you can help translate some of the legalese in this clause of the lease our attorney provided us (his standard version):

"If more than one tenant has an interest in the security deposit and one tenant vacates the Premises prior to the termination date of this lease and the other tenant remains, the vacating tenant may not transfer his/her interest in the security deposit to the remaining tenant unless we receive a notarized statement by the vacating tenant indicating that the vacating tenant waives his/her interest in the security deposit."

So, by allowing him to leave the lease at any time without penalty, we are saying that we won't need a notarized waiver of his interest in the security deposit.  Which we are fine with.  So how do we phrase this to say, "you can leave when you want, but if you split the security deposit with your roommates, you will not receive it until the end of the 12 month term"?

I couldn't get a hold of my attorney today, so i figured I'd see what BP had to say while I wait to call him tomorrow.

Thanks!

I would try whitepages.com for phone numbers.  If you have their name and address it should be easy to find their number there.

Thank you all! They've already seen the place so we know they are serious. We requested a full application from the boyfriend.

Hi All,

My girlfriend and I just bought our first duplex and are about to rent out a unit (we are house-hacking). Our realtor pre-screened a bunch of applicants, and she finally sent one to us that met the criteria.  Income is 3x rent, no evictions, good credit.  After looking at the BP ultimate guide to screening tenants flowchart our next steps are:

Criminal record search

Calling previous landlords

Calling places of work to verify employment

So my question is, how would we go about setting up an in-person meeting? I'm just going to call my realtor and tell her we want to set it up.

Another concern we have is that on the application, they listed one of their boyfriends as an additional person living in the apartment, but the only information we got was his name. Should we request his income and reference information as well? Or would just a background check suffice, since the other two applicants qualify on their own.

Thanks!

Hi all, My girlfriend and I are closing on our first house hack in two weeks. We are planning out the terms of our lease and are deciding on whether or not to include water in rent. The property is a duplex on one water meter. Water will be about $120/month, we got an estimate from the water company. There are currently tenants that plan to stay. The tricky part is that they are friends of the seller and are paying well below average rent for the area. We want to raise rent to a fair market value, and also tack on another 50-60 dollars and include water. We're just worried that it will be too much of a jump for them and be left with vacancy right off the bat. So what have some of you house hackers done for the water bill? Seems like it would make the most sense to include it. Thanks!

Thank you guys. I guess its still pretty obvious that I'm a newbie. Chris and Wayne, thanks for shedding some light for me. It really makes me glad I found this site. 

... Duely noted.