All Forum Posts by: Rob B.

Hi Albert, welcome to BP and this is a great question. Comes down to really knowing the area well. As John mentioned above, there are a lot of sub markets here -- are you looking for multi-unit properties? Single-family homes? For example, there are some great real estate investment opportunities near surrounding college campuses like UIC or even U of C (though it can be super-pricey in Hyde Park), but that may not be the right path for everyone. It all comes down to what you aim to accomplish. It could be worth looking into house-hacking that first year.

Hi Kara, there are definitely a lot of helpful tools out there; ***a lot of people use Zelle or Venmo, and that's fine. Some would suggest TenantCloud, Tellius or other apps which allow you to process rent collection; but, there is an option out there which allows you to collect rent much quicker than those others but still provides other rental management tools you might find valuable (again, not to knock Cozy or these other tools like Zillow rental manager), but you can easily go with an option that will help you keep track of who paid what and on which date with a tool that is reliable and fast. It definitely can help to make the process as painless as possible and more efficient for both parties (landlord + tenant), and also offers digital leases. Again, you may run into transfer limits with some of those other apps which aren't necessarily designed for the purpose of rent collection but the right landlord software can make this seamless for you. I would love to learn about any additional needs; definitely helps to keep landlord solution providers on their toes!

I think there are definitely a few options here, Marysue. You can 1) raise the normal rent price at time of renewal/addendum; this is definitely recommended now that you are adding a tenant to the home and a dog, plus the property is already below market value (could be worth checking out services like Rentometer or Rent Range to get a precise idea as for where your unit pricing ought to stand). 2) Add on that pet deposit along with a monthly pet fee (so long as this isn't an ESA or service animal, and as long as your state doesn't dictate a different process for this). Even the most docile dogs can cause damage to the unit. There's also something to be said for the dog breed and what your insurance company might require/insurance limitations for certain breed types. 3) I'd still screen the new tenant; any time a person plans to reside on the property and they're going to be over the age of 18 it is advised that you screen them and make sure they're on the lease.  I don't think your idea to increase pricing for the new tenant and her dog is a bad idea; just make sure it takes into account that it is currently underpriced and that potential unforeseen damages can occur with pets.

As others have noted, this sounds like an extreme; and while I'm sure there are a million and one horror stories folks might be able to share, that all goes to say these complicated situations can arise and you have to be prepared for the worst. Still, set the tone with your tenants early on from day one. Communicate often and the ideal tenant will reciprocate. In this instance though, I'd still recommend court as an act of recourse. You can mitigate the risks of something like this happening through effective screening processes. Make sure your lease is ironclad and in an instance like this  because this is direct damage done with malicious intent, I'd still pursue legal action. 

It is definitely a good idea to post to the Facebook Marketplace at this point; I noted in a different post that I have several family members who actually found their most recent rentals via the FB marketplace. Having said that, there are still some great options out there that may be able to help you cast a super-wide net. As Patricia nted above, it is about selling a lifestyle; not merely "showing an apartment" -- make sure that you have your pre-screening questions in place as it'll make a big difference in being able to identify who is actually serious about renting. Sounds like you're already doing showings but definitely consider an open house for your rental because this gives you an advantage as far as people seeing others considering the space. As Steven noted, this can drive competition. There are still some other options out there though which may help (ie. get a new listing for the property up and posted to 10+ major rental listing sites, managing listing responses + scheduling viewing times, tenant screening w/ a fully comprehensive application, digital lease creation, online rent collection, and maintenance request tracking in one spot). I hope this helps!

I'm inclined to agree with Tim on this. There are a lot of tools/resources out there which can help with tenant screening and the new laws can make some of it confusing (admittedly I'm not based in NY nor am I a lawyer who is well-versed in some of these new NY laws). It sounds like the current law allows a landlord to request from the potential tenant a copy of their reports, but I'm also not a lawyer so hard for me to include my input on this matter. But I believe Tim to be correct -- since you (the landlord) aren't directly charging an application fee, it should be ok because they are purchasing their own reports and sharing the results of those reports with you. 

Hi William! Welcome to BiggerPockets. There are a lot of tools out there and as you've probably seen already, you have quite the community to lean on. If you need any recommendations, please feel free to reach out. Again, welcome to the BP community! Best, Robert B.

Hi Charlie, great question. It is always a good idea to cast a wide net so this way you can get a variety of candidate applicants. Having said that, once a person has completed their application -- it is good to move fast, but always keep your objective in the forefront of your mind. You want a tenant who isn't as likely to turn over, will be able to honor the lease terms and pay rent on time; someone who is also going to make sure to leave the property in a decent condition as well. Try to be as efficient as possible during your screening process -- this may mean that you need to include certain questions to gauge whether or not an applicant raises any red flags for you. All things considered, you do want to move fast but not if your screening process isn't thorough. Again, not just about rushing to get any tenant in the unit; it is about finding the right one because the wrong one can cause a lot of headaches and will possibly cost you in the long run. 

Hi Jeremy, for complete transparency I happen to work for one (Avail). Again, a lot of great players within this space, especially for smaller landlords. Even the platforms that are for landlords with a larger portfolio are great, but if you only have a few units -- from a pricing standpoint -- it may not make a whole lot of sense to go that route. 

Probably in the best interest of your business to hard-pass on this. This tenant has an active warrant for their arrest and signing a lease with them now almost guarantees a super quick turnover (and potential damage incurred to the property if they need to kick the door down).