All Forum Posts by: Patrick M.

Hi @David Smith, I am waiting on mine as well. I received a letter in April alerting me to my impending inspection. I have spoken to my buddy, another landlord of multiple buildings, he informed me that there is a few months delay between the letter and them calling to schedule the inspection. He told me that they will do a walkthrough- inform you of the problems, in writing. You have 6 months to make the repairs.

Ain't it the truth @Thomas Williamson.

Here is to hoping you get a cold caller one day that gives you the right price!

btw- for those who say put some wording in your add- I imagine you have never rented an apartment with a no pets provision. Man I stamp that all over my listings in all caps and yet 50% of the inquiries I get want to know if it applies to cats, small dogs, "I don't consider my dog a pet, he is a member of my family!", etc.

People want in on the game- That is a great thing for us. I watch what people are paying for multies now by me and it does not make financial sense to me- God bless them! I am convinced- at least in my market, that the best way to get any sort of a profitable deal is to get to the property before it hits the market.

I have gotten mailed solicitations- good for them, both my properties are always for sale but I have no intention of selling. That just means I have an extraordinary high asking price.

The man I bought my properties from was going through a divorce, medical issues and relocating. He was extraordinarily motivated and unloaded 5 multi-family properties for below value and he financed some. Had he gotten a post card or a letter he would most certainly have taken them up on it.

I can certainly identify with a lot of the above.

But the biggest struggles I have dealt with were all of the struggles as I was in the transition from joe shmo to Landlord. I was hardened very fast and had good back-up, but I think once we make that transition things go very quickly from struggle to nuisance.

There are many of us who don't make the transition- They are very upset with a person for breaking lease terms, but they are frightened of holding them accountable. The are emotional, avoid confrontation, pushovers, etc. For them every issue is a struggle.

I have had my fair share of troubles but I LOVE being a landlord and I consider myself very fortunate to have the opportunity.

I took on a box at the local UPS store when I came on board. You can access the boxes 24/7.

As an aside- I had a now ex-tenant call me at my home number when a dispute arose, he was never given that number and it was clearly meant as an intimidation tactic. Since getting rid of the no goods and shifting to Cozy I have phased out my box, utilizing my home address instead. I live 10 minutes from my buildings and to believe in this day and age that my tenants can't find out where I live is silliness.

.79 sq.ft. At HD.  Lakeshore pecan. Inspectors and potential tenants  think it is beautiful. I love it and install it myself.

How close to 3x is she?

I keep the same criteria. I recently rented to a retired teacher and I confronted her about my concerns that her pension and SS were just shy of 3x. She then confided in me that she watches her grand-daughter and her daughter insist on paying her $1000 a month. Confirmed and that satisfied me. She is one of my best tenants and she is very active. (I know a lot of landlords fear retirees because they think they sit home all day and use the utilities and add to wear and tear.)

I am sure retirees have a lower spending limit- so maybe you can play with it a bit- I didn't want to take a chance.

I couch every violation in a legal notice to cease which would be followed by a notice to quit. It worked wonders for me on cleaning up the properties of an absentee landlord and horrific (ex)tenants. Any professional tenant would know that any penalty I levee against them can only get me into small claims court- but a notice to quit is a different story.

Some people choose to cut the weed and try and make a little scratch. I pull the weed root and all and make a lot of scratch.

Think long term- clean house.

(And I am not even getting into the drama of "those aren't my cigarettes... but he's coming to get the car next... The old landlord promised me I....")