All Forum Posts by: Rob Dowsett

Hey BP,  I have been an investor for years, and have done some research, but have never really been confident that I am looking in the right places or at the right information.  My question for the BP members is this;  When you are doing your market research, what do you look for/at?  I guess I could extend the question.  If you could have all the market research given to you, what would you want to see in a research report?  

I am in Canada, and if you can tell me some of the places you would look to find good research, that would be appreciated.  Some of the places I already use;  CMHC website, local economic development website, and local city/municipality websites.  What other sites would be helpful?

Thanks in advance,

Rob

@Annabelle Lee, I would tend to agree with @Matt Geerts to some degree.  It can be a risk, and they can have cheques redirected.  That being said, I have 2 tenants on ODSP, and they have been with us for over 2 years.  We have never had any real issue with them.  They have some dogs that bark, and bother other tenants, but they always pay on time, and don't cause much other issue.  

I would suggest that the simple fact they are on ODSP will not make them a bad tenant.  I am sure there are some out there that want to work the system, but most are probably on the up and up.  If you are worried, do a little extra due diligence, and dig deep to see if you can come up with reasons, other than where their income comes from, that they would not be a suitable tenant.

Rob

@Quang Nguyen, that's kind of funny that I got this post. I do live in Ontario, but am also interested in the Orlando area. That being said, I don't think I can add any value for you. I have been in REI since 2009 (in London, ON), and have read a good deal of books, and been active on some websites. I have not heard of Mat Piche, and as a result, can say neither good nor bad about him. It does sound like he is active, and knowledgeable. I am not sure I am comfortable with his claim on Linked In..."Sick of working HARD for your money? Let me help you break free through real estate investing" I find it often is hard work; makes me think of the REI circuit people. He does state that he is a member of REIN, a Canadian network that seems to be a part of many of the successful Canadian RE authors' repertoire. I would suggest you should contact him and ask him for several references, maybe speak to him for a bit and ask some hard questions about what his program is and why it will benefit you specifically.

Regards,

Rob

@Dan Carlini, I have been incorporated since 2009.  What I can tell you, as a startup, with few properties, the tax return alone can eat up most of, or all and then some, of your profits.  We are paying $1800-2200/year to have statements prepared and taxes done.  I don't remember the transfer being too costly (we owned 1 personally and transferred it to the corporation), however, costly is a relative term.  On the taxes issue, I make the assumption that having your business as a sole proprietorship, or partnership would reduce the cost of doing tax returns.  

Hope that helps.

Rob

We have a tenant that we inherited when we bought a property in Hamilton, Ontario. The tenant has been in the unit for 5 years, and is currently month to month. The following issue has arisen with the tenant recently where he:

1. Has indicated he will no longer be taking out his garbage from bins at the side of the property to the nearby curb for municipal garbage collection. After five years of taking out the garbage himself, he now feels this is the landlord’s responsibility. He has now stockpiled garbage from the past month on the property, and has refused to dispose of it himself, despite written notice from us.

2. Makes baseless claims. Recent example: He claimed he has become sick due to poor air quality. However he has not produced a doctor’s report, or health inspector’s report or any other support to his claims. An examination of the house shows no indication of environmental issues.

3. Is very argumentative and uncooperative when it comes to:
• Discussing emergent issues and arranging for visiting the apartment for maintenance and picking up rent.
• Requests that landlord cleans the carpets that have been soiled as a result of spills from his children.
• Discussing tenant responsibilities (such as insisting the landlord clean mildew on shower).
• Demands that the landlord fixes blocked toilets caused by his children flushing toys down the drain.

After numerous attempts to discuss the issues and come to mutual agreement, he continues to refuse to mediate, only citing by email or text his (incorrect) interpretations of the Residential Tenancies Act as his response. Although he generally pays his rent on time and keeps most of the rented space clean, his current position on garbage removal, coupled with his refusal to discuss issues has created a toxic relationship.

As mentioned, the tenant is currently on a month-to-month lease. I was wondering if anyone can provide advice on whether or not we have the ability to terminate this lease under Section 43 of the Act if he does not take out his garbage. Advice from other landlords and paralegals is welcome, as well as any other ideas.

Thanks for your help!
Rob

@Annabelle Lee, I am using BDO in Kitchener/Waterloo.  I know that George Dube there is very RE oriented.  In fact, he has put together a RE Accounting kit called Accountant in a Box.  

Hi @Account Closed.  I am an investor in the London Ontario area.  I've only been on BP for a month or so, but I have come across many Canadians.  We are out there.  If you have questions specifically for your region, or Canada, be sure to post in the Real Estate in Canada forum.

@Monika Haebich; thanks for that info.  I have already checked it out by going to rented.com.  I like what I am seeing.  Do you know what the rental grader uses to come up with the numbers?  Also, something I thought about last night.  A good deal of people who will be booking for early 2017 likely haven't yet.  Do you have an idea of what the general lead time on bookings is?  How far in advance to people generally have a place chosen and booked?

@Monika Haebich; occupancy rates are my biggest concern.  I am looking in the Orlando/Kissimmee area, and any info that can be shared would always be appreciated.

@Monika Haebich; some great questions for a PM search.  A while back I saw a post that you made (I believe it was you) that stated you were working on compiling data for the area.  Did you complete that project?  I am sure people here would love to see the data if you did.  I know I am very nervous about occupancy, and would love to see averages so that when I run numbers, I can make a well educated guess.