All Forum Posts by: Eric C.

Trying to work directly with the listing agent will generally help your chances of getting the property.  Listing agents love dual agency since they get to collect double commission.  Most will shave a percent off when representing both buyer and seller though.  Since seller pays both, they might net more by going with a buyer that is represented by the listing agent.  

My rentals generally rent closer to $2000 and I had one that was $3000 so the numbers promote the exact situation I'm worried about.   It's more than just getting a lower quality tenant.  It's giving every potential tenant the exact same treatment.  If someone calls and wants a showing at 6PM (rush hour for the PM), I really wonder if the PM will make the same effort to make sure he is able to do the showing if it's an agent represented renter or one who found the listing on a 3rd party site.  

I've leased my own properties myself and noticed that time is of the essence in these situations.  If I'm unable to make their preferred time and try to re-schedule, it doesn't always work out and sometimes the showing never happens.  Maybe I lost a good tenant?

Everyone needs to prioritize their time so that why this question came up.  

Like most things in the real estate industry, the "norm" for fees/commissions definitely favors the agents/professions involved in the transaction. 

 Just wondering if others have come up with more creative compensation structures that make it more fair for both the professional and owner.

The problem I am pointing out is that the cost to the PM company is not the same.  What I have seen is a leasing fee of 80-100% of 1st months rent and then renter agent gets 2.5% of full year lease value.  Say property is $1000, landlord pays $800-$1000 for tenant placement and renter agent gets $300 and PM company nets $500-$700.

However, if tenant comes in from say zillow or trulia, PM gets full amount of $800-$1000 -> a difference of 60%.  

PM company generally pays a fixed subscription fee to post on rental websites so cost isn't a factor and it's paid regardless.

If there are multiple applicants from MLS and 3rd party sites, it's hard for me to believe that a PM company can be unbiased during the showing/screening process when their net profit heavily depends on which tenant is ultimately selected.

Standard structure is a % of 1st months rent for a PM to place a new tenant.  Included in this fee would be any agent commission if the tenant was represented by an agent.  If tenant finds property through many of the online websites, no commission is paid and PM company keeps full amount (ie. double-dipping).  Since the agent commission is a high percentage of this amount, how can a landlord ensure that the PM company is unbiased during the tenant search phase. 

Are any PM companies using a more "fair" compensation structure that would prevent bias during the tenant search phase?  The only structure I can think of is instead of using a fixed % of 1st months rent, use a fixed fee + agent commission (if applicable) structure.  Any thoughts?

What do you guys think about Forsyth county?  

My insurance agent told me the rebuild costs are computer generated based on the input parameters including sq ft, building materials, and age.  There is no negotiation on dwelling coverage amount.  I really don't understand why I can't just pay for a certain value and if it's over, I'll cover the rest.  Home owners insurance just doesn't work like that...

@Abdul Azeez Thanks for starting this thread.  These are the true "real world" experiences I love reading about.  I always find it interesting that certain people/companies are highly praised on forums, but when I use them, they never seem to be the perfect person/company that all other posters tout them to be.  It seems you experienced this first hand with your initial PM company.  

My belief in reading through the thread was that price was always the issue.  It's hard for me to wrap my head around it, but renters are generally VERY price sensitive.  I had a $2800 rental that sat for a few weeks and then I dropped it $50 since it was coming close to the first of the month.  Someone who saw the property at $2800 got the alert for the $50 drop and came by with his agent the same day to sign the lease.   Crazy right?

Anyway, glad to hear you got the place rented and good luck in the future.

Let's say I sell an investment property for $600k (net of commissions and misc fees) and purchase 2 replacement properties for a total of $570k.  This leaves me with a boot of $30k. My passive carry over loss for the $600k property is $30k.  Does this basically zero out my tax liability for the boot?      

Tenants lease expires end of Feb and I posted on Zillow just to gauge market interest (make me move).  I've been getting a handful of responses to show the property, but I'm wondering if I should show it in the current condition.  The property needs new carpet and new paint, but otherwise, is in excellent condition (property was built in mid 2000s).  Current tenants have 2 dogs (medium size, hypo-allergenic, poodles) which need to be brought outside during the showings (bit of a hassle for the tenants, but they are fine with letting me show the property).  

Once the tenants move out, I plan on replacing the carpet and repainting the inside (color scheme will change to the more current trend of grey).  I'm also planning on using a listing agent to get full exposure.  

Is it even worth showing now? I'm just surprised how much interest I'm getting by only posting on Zillow with a make me move price. The price is probably +/- 2% of FMV. I'm just worried that some potential buyers will be turned off by the worn carpet/outdated paint, presence of dogs, and the fact that it was a rental for a few years.

Listing agent suggests to wait until the property vacant and cleaned up before listing on MLS. Problem of course is the holding costs of going this route.

I'm just wondering if it's worth showing at this point or should I just tell potential buyers to wait until the beginning of March to see the property.

@Curtis H. Use the zillow mortgage search engine.  The online lenders on there are usually pretty competitive and it will get you a good reference point on the current rates/fees.  Also, the search engine allows you to tweak the parameters to see how it affects the rate/fees.