All Forum Posts by: Michael Peters

Are they just hosing down the waste instead of cleaning it up?  If the neighbor is getting liquid waste run off I can understand their frustration.  Is the yard is the same condition it was provided in?

Agree with @Bob Okenwa here.  As you stated nothing wrong with the fence.  The tenants breaking the rules is forcing you to fork over $3K to allow them to continue doing so.  The potential of an artificial damn issue could also be relevant.  

I would give them the option of covering your entire expense or remove the dogs.  If you choose to not charge pet rent I would at minimum require an additional security deposit to cover you from any future loses.  If you don't act on this now it very well could lead to civil action by the neighbors, damage to the property, or the tenants taking advantage in other ways.

I would recommend always providing an additional breakdown when a tenant disputes charges.  You don't have to go crazy just enough to justify the charges.  Most won't do anything and just want to be heard.  I'll tolerate it to a point before letting them know we've provided justification for each charge and will be unable to answer any more questions.  Some will ask for before and after photos.  I simply refer them to the condition catalog and provide after photos only as needed.

Lastly, don't ever waste your time arguing over deposits on the phone.  You can get sucked into hours of back and forth trying to find everything if the tenants is determined enough.  I ask them to send an email with all items they wish to dispute and why before providing any response.

Property required a full cleaning?  Include 20 or so photos clearly demonstrating it wasn't done.  

Yard cleanup?  Include a few photos showing the condition of the property at move out.

Utilities? Include date breakdowns for each statement outstanding.

You can also request a credit on the transaction as a replacement deposit to be used when the tenants move out.

I would pull out anything you can to invest in 1 or 2 more BRRRRs.  You'll start to scale really quickly if you keep this up.

Brad is correct you would need to document any charges.  Did they pay rent up to the point that the new tenant moved in?  Another large chunk could be your marketing expenses which is my early termination clause.  Most states allow you to charge for reasonable vacancy and marketing costs associated with the unexpected turnover and any normal charges beyond wear and tear.

I would exercise your inspection clause and walk away.  Nothing about this is turnkey and I would serious question their ability to manage or rehab a property.  #11 alone is enough to make a lot of people walk.  I recommend looking for a different company that takes pride in their work.  Sounds like they did a bare minimum cosmetic rehab and ignored all the important aspects of the property to save money.

I would leave it to the tenants to provide themselves if they truly want it.  We don't provide any ongoing security systems for our 350 unit portfolio and its just another expense on your end.  If anything it just creates issues with needing access to the unit for inspections or repairs and the tenants forgetting to deactivate it.  I've had alarms go off and was unable to reach the tenant once.  Had to wait around for the police to show up to explain what happened.

I would make sure to ask for their City Registration and Proof of Vaccinations.  Since they cared to reach out you can most likely trust them to care for the new dog.  Doesn't hurt to walk the property to ensure you don't have any pet damage before signing off.

If it happens again you could potentially send in a plumber to scope the plumbing system to see if they can locate the culprit.  It may not turn up anything but it could be worth the cost if it occurs again.  

I would agree that with the extra revenue and higher class tenant this can help attract a W/D adds enough value to keep.  @Joe Splitrock has another good point with the Ice maker issues.  Refrigerators accessories and garbage disposals are my biggest reoccurring issues.