All Forum Posts by: Peter M.

I let my tenants know as a courtesy. If you have their email addresses in a group you can send one email, BCC to everyone. You can also get a google voice number and just copy/paste the message to each one from your phone or computer. You can copy paste with your normal texting app too. It's only 4 units, I don't thing communication should be that much of a hassle for you. I do all of those things for my 4-plex depending on what it is. The only hitch I have is that I sometimes try to translate the message into Spanish for one of my tenants. If it is a long message I don't bother translating though. 

If a bank won't give you a loan, owner finance may be your only option. HML for a house you will live in is a bad idea. Portfolio lenders might be an option but they generally have similar requirements as govt loans but they are an option to explore. Talk to local ones near where you want to buy and credit unions.

Another option is to talk with note buyers. If you can negotiate a deal with them, you can approach sellers asking for owner finance and offering your note buyer to them so they can quickly sell the note after the sale. You would probably have to overpay a bit either on interest rate or purchase price but if you really like the area and can afford the payment it may be an option.

You do not need the writ of possession anymore because you have possession of the unit. Have the vehicles towed. The way towing usually works (not sure about GA) is that the tow company takes the vehicles for no charge and keeps them in their lot. They get paid when the tenant comes to get them out. In my case, I have a contract with a tow company, they provide me with the sign I need to legally have displayed, and when I call them they come pick up the vehicle. If you don't have an agreement already in place they may charge you to get them removed.

I had an evicted tenant take the stove while I was there so I called the police. When they showed up they told me it was a civil matter because she said it was hers and I said it was mine. Even though I had all the closing paperwork where it said "all appliances convey with the property" I was pissed but there was nothing I could do. 

You will need to file a suit in small claims court for the judgement, cost of removing vehicles, clean-up of the unit, stolen stove, and any other damages to the unit. You also need to send her a certified letter with all the charges she owes you. If you dont have a forwarding address send it to the unit and any past addressed listed on the application or lease. Keep copies of everything. I hope you took pictures before you cleaned the unit up so you have some proof when you go to court. Most likely the tenant won't even show up and you will win by default but you will also never collect. Depending on your state laws there are different remedies for judgement so when it gets to that point you may need a lawyer to figure out how to get your money but everything up to that point you can handle yourself. 

Right now just focus on getting it fixed up and rented again with a good, quality, properly screened tenant. Prevention is the key to avoiding this situation. 

You really need to read the exact wording of the property code in CA. This all only matters if they take you to court over it anyway. Once it gets to the courts you are at the mercy of the judge. If the language of the law is clear and there is no getting around the 21 day rule then you are already boned so why stress out? Just make sure you don't get that far.

My advice would be to just get the sink repaired then send them a letter with the deductions for the sink/cabinet repair and moving their junk with a check for the remainder. Then hope they don't pitch a fit and try to take you to court. 

If you are really worried about them suing you for the whole deposit then just give it back to them and write off all the repairs as you would anyway. How much is your peace of mind worth? 

LLCs are about asset protection as everyone said. Insurance would usually cover most lawsuits and in that case do you really need the LLC? The only time the umbrella policy wouldn't cover you is a catastrophic accident that you are judged to be liable for such as driving drunk and killing a brain surgeon. But if a tenant slips and falls and hires some ambulance chaser lawyer, most likely they will just go after the insurance money. If the lawyer is super zealous and nothing is protected by LLCs, he may decide it is worth going after more. LLCs are just another form of insurance. You have to decide your risk tolerance if you even want the LLC and then how many assets to put in each.

You do what the court document says-file for writ of possession. You may have to pay another fee and in a few days (varies by state) the sheriff or constable will come and physically remove them. Hopefully for your sake she moves out by the end of the weekend before you can file the writ on Monday. She may know that fact and be giving herself an extra few days. It sucks but that how it works. You won't get that fee back unless you take her to small claims court but at that point you're better off just focusing on getting the unit ready. 

The problem with what you are asking is that there are a lot of assumptions you have to take into account when you do this. The best thing would be to make your own spreadsheet so you can manipulate the numbers the way you want. I put a snapshot of the long term buy and hold spreadsheet I stole off the internet and modified to suit my needs(I hope you can read it, it is kinda small). I tried to make the numbers as close to yours as I could but my spreadsheet uses percentages in some places that you noted dollar amounts. I also assumed 30 year mortgage and no repairs needed now. I think you are assuming a little high on the maintenance costs but it is better to be conservative so I kept it all as you posted. 

But this is assuming 2% increase in expenses and revenue each year. You may want to assume differently. Using your numbers you would have to put in a little bit of money the first year since you aren't getting the full rent for one of the units but after that it is positive. 

This says at the 5 year mark your NOI is 29354, expenses are 21474, debt service 21451 for a cash flow of 8490. ROI after 5 years is 36.2%

If you make your own you will learn the calculations better anyway. 

@Samantha Diego always have a lease for your own protection. It doesn't have to be super complicated but something in writing is always better a handshake agreement. 

Very thorough answer @Shamsud-Din J. I have a question to you about the removal of tenancy at will. Years back I had to evict a tenant after I bought a property and was never given a lease. The clerk denied my first application because she said I had to give 30 days notice since there was no lease agreement. I wasn't going to argue with her so I waited but I have read Texas property code and don't know why I had to wait 30 days. 

Lines of credit on your home or other rental property are another option not yet mentioned. You could also take loans from retirement accounts or life insurance policies. 

These are known as stuck off properties that did not sell at the tax sale on the courthouse steps. Usually just about anything with potential will be bought at the 1st sale.