All Forum Posts by: Susan Pompea

Your yard doesn't look bad and your lawn is relatively flat. If you aerate the soil so the water can soak in, it will come back.  In the summer,  I water in the evening to minimize evaporation.  In the areas that you want flowers, dig and mix leaves with the soil. It keeps the soil from compacting and will nourish it as it breaks down. Once your plants start growing, use mulch to  keep the moisture in and stop the weeds from growing. 

I live in Colorado Springs and have sandy soil, no sprinkler system and often water restrictions. I start almost all my plants from seed. Walk around your neighborhood and see what grows well. Almost everyone in your neighborhood has the same soil you do. I collect and save my seeds and use them the next year. Send me your address and I'll send you some flower seeds from plants that do well in this climate. 

If you do only one thing, aerate. Aerate your soil so the water can soak in and the grass will establish a healthy root system.

Hi Rick,

Could you post some photo's of the house? It's hard to answer your question without knowing more about the house, your budget for remodeling and what you want the finished product to be. How big is the house?  Why are you remodeling it? Is it in bad shape or out of date,or do you want to make it harder for renters to break things? Is it near a college, military base or a large employer (n other words, who do you think may rent the house?). What has been done to similar homes in the neighborhood? You want your home to fit in with the rest of the neighborhood so keep your remodeling near the same level as the rest of the neighborhood.  

Since this is your first house, you are going to make mistakes. Use those mistakes as learning experiences and try not to make the same mistake twice-- there are plenty new ones to learn from. 

There's an article on Angie's List that talks that about National Home Company pre-fab. homes. The article is called " Hoosier-made Prefab Homes Pose Unique Problems" written in 2014 by James Figy.  Are you aware that there may be asbestos siding. Make sure your home inspector is familiar with these homes. Good luck!

Thank you for all of the great ideas and suggestions. Uriel and Sue, I think you both are right about families staying longer. One renter left because she got engaged, current renter got job offer in another city out of the blue. If you have a family, you don't want the kids to go from school to school.

It's an older, quiet area. I lived there 16 years and most of my neighbors are still living there. It's within walking distance to good schools and parks. Most people want to move in on the 1st. If I wait until it's empty, it will sit empty for most of the month. I like the idea of advertising online, I'll have a bigger pool of renters to choose from. Sue Kelly, it is amazing how much information you can get from a phone call. 

My mother had the same renter in the same house for over 25 years!  I'm going to keep learning and plugging away and hopefully I can start having renters that stay longer than a year.  Bigger Pockets is great for all the amazing help that everyone is willing to share. 

I'm trying g to learn and fix the mistakes I've made in the past and need some advice.

1. How can I rent to someone who will stay more than one year? My rent is fair, the house is well kept up, it's in a nice neighborhood.  Each renter leaves for different reasons.  How do I choose one that will stay for a while?

2. I want to move new renters in as soon as possible after my current renters leave the end of May. How do I screen people before I show them the house? I don't want to disturbe the current tennents by  showing the house many times.  I also don't to show the house to people who are not qualified. 

3. The way I find renters is to put a "For Rent" sign in the yard and includes in a box with info. flyers.   I always get a good response. Is there a better way to get the type of renters that I want?

There is oil, cookies, almost anything can be made with the different forms of pot ( remember the stories of people who made brownies with pot ?). There are also many different types of pot. A number of families are bringing their child to Colorado because there is one strain of pot the reduces seizures in the kids when regular medicatations has failed.  Also, that strain is very low in THC (the stuff that may cause  europhic feeling). 

   Your tennant can use use his medical Merry Jane without smoking. Most of the places that sell pot, have a whole store with different types of pot as well as different ways to use it.

I really like the idea of splitting the rent into two payments to match their payday  (maybe a day after they get paid).  In addition to that, I'd give a discount if they pay on time.  I think a lot of renters plan to pay their rent with the money they have left after they pay their other bills. This idea puts the rent before the other bills--we all like to feel like we are getting a good deal or discount or reward.  When their lease is up, just renew for 6 months and see how splitting the payment as well as giving them a discount works.

I'd call the police and file a complant. What she did was illegal. What if your husband had a gun and thought someone was breaking in?  Also, you can contact consumer protection office. I got this informatation from a NC tennant/ landloard handbook.

1. NC Attorney General’s Office – Consumer Protection

   1-919-716-6000; 1-877-5-NO-SCAM (toll free 

Toilets have lids for a reason. Anyone who has small children and pets will keep the lid closed/ down. Most women keep the lid closed. Things fall into toilets.  With the lid closed, it looks cleaner, sanitary,  and protects the plumbing--why would a person not close the lid?  The toilet should be clean every time you show the house--if it's not, then what does that say about the rest of the house? 

Your renter did not have a working refrigerator for well over a week. The original one wasn't  working so you bought a used one on Monday. Then that one wasn't working so you bought a new one. Do the right thing and give your renter $50 for food. 

There have been times in my life that I've needed help and I've tried to pay it forward whenever I can.  Gail, would you be making your comments about people on Section 8 having steak and lobster in their freezer if it happened to be a disabled war veteran? How about an elderly widow raising her grandchildren.  Life often throws us surprises but it's not how often we are knocked down, but how often we stand up after we've been knocked down. 

Hi Joe,

I found my rental forms through the public library database subscriptions. I looked up the library in your area  (Helen Kate Furness Free Library)  and clicked on " Online Databases" on the left side of the home page.  It will take you to the Delaware County Library page -- look for legal forms-- check it out. When I was getting ready to rent out my house,  I looked at as many forms as I could get my hands on. I looked for forms that said what I wanted them to say and were state applicable. It turned out that my local public library pays for access to various databases and they are available for FREE to anyone who has a library card (your taxes are paying for the library, might as well use it).  Personally, I like forms that are written in plain English, say what I want them to say, I want them to make sense and don't have silly provisions like putting in all new light bulbs when they move. I want forms that I can understand but more important, forms that the renters can understand.  After we go over the forms, I want the renters to be clear on their responsibilities are as well as  mine. Good luck. Let us know where you found the forms that you decide to use.