All Forum Posts by: Teresa F.

Perhaps it is because I am a buy and hold investor that I think credit is so critical.  I've never used hard money because I am one of those crazy people who has bought property using credit cards ( zero interest for 16 months) and paid it off.  My good credit has allowed my business to get bank loans to buy additional properties and, when needed, to pay off those credit cards.  

While the need for good credit may depend on the type of investing you do, it has certainly served me well and has provided me with added credibility when dealing with money folks of all sorts.  

Teresa

p.s.  It also helped my company buy my new car.  ; )  

Easier to "expand or limit" through the court what would be covered then expand the law in the legislature.  

Hi Cameron,  I am a lawyer and spent many years as a class action civil rights attorney.  I could spend a long time about how you could arrive at limited English proficiency as a Federally protected class under National Origin but suffice to say, if qualified, this couple would become my tenants.  More important is as landlords we need to have knowledge not only of the Federal classes but the state and local protected classes.  I believe DC now has 16 protected classes.  

Best, Teresa

I get an application.  Employment looks great!  YAY.  So I start checking court records and prior landlords.  Eviction.  Eviction.  Eviction.  Most recent landlord faxes back that applicant lived there three months before skipping and was late twice.  

So I call applicant and say . . . . 

I need a landlord reference where you have lived for over a year and have paid on time, every time during that year.  Do you have one?  

Applicant is silent for a moment then says . . . I was on time with my former landlord but he can't give a reference because he is now in the witness protection program.  

Hi Tanisha, Initially, I used a handyman I found in Craig's list and paid him $15.00 per hour. Angie's list and, as Gerald suggested, your local REIA may be helpful in finding someone too.

My needs have grown so I worked out a deal with a general contracting company that typically works with non-investors.  I am teaching the owner how to turnover units and, if appropriate, pass rental related inspections, so that he can carve out an investor side to his business.  In turn, my tenants have priority and price is flexible.  

Hope that helps.  Good luck.  Teresa

Hi Jeremy,  I'm a Broker and I can understand (and appreciate) you not wanting to run to your Realtor with every deal but I'm sure he would be more than willing to sit down with you and explain how he looks at comps and give you some ideas on how to evaluate and compare particular properties.   Spending an hour or two with a client to get a better understanding of their needs and helping them help themselves is going to serve the Realtor in the long run.  For those that you think you want to make an offer on, use your Realtor has a double check and always have him run comps.  

Good luck and happy hunting.  Teresa

Thank you.  A four plex in Alabama and two condos in New Jersey.  9 local units -- DC and Maryland.  

Hi Brett,  I could go on for days about this topic but I'll try to keep it brief.  I use property managers for my out of state properties.  One is great and helped me recover from a terrible property manager, the other out of state manager is okay.  With both, I instruct them about with what I want including a template of paint, carpet, tile, etc for turnovers and I negotiated every line of the contract.  The "okay" manager didn't want to raise rent because my really good tenants may move elsewhere.  (We discussed, raised rent, tenant stayed.)  The great property manager gets me above market rents.  

Because of ownership structure, I also have a property manager for one of my local properties.  When I have a chance I will find another management company as the company has not served me well.  

My other local properties are self managed.   I work well with my tenants and have dependable people to handle maintenance issues.  As a result, I have successfully managed my properties without it becoming too much of a drain on my time. Frankly, I have little tenant turnover because I spend a lot of time initially "training my tenants."  

So -- use property managers if you must (distance) or if you don't have time to train your tenants.  Even if you are very busy, make time to review and question your property managers and review their statements.  Finally, visit your properties and talk with your tenants -- after all, it is a business expense.  

Teresa

Hi Chris, The correct answer depends on jurisdiction. You may want to talk with an eviction attorney who handles evictions in the county where the property is located or at the very least talk with a property manager or local REIA member. In some jurisdictions you will need a full eviction before you can get your property. Others you may just need something indicating the property has been abandoned.

By the way, before running to sue them for breaking the lease, know that it may be more trouble than it is worth. Generally, you can only recover (assuming you can recover) what you lost and hopefully, you will rent the property to new tenants soon.

Teresa

I was very skeptical as I receive and promptly toss "yellow letters" I receive from other investors. However, I am NOT a motivated seller. I have become a believer in the power of direct mail. My most recent mailing was very targeted and although I sent less than 50 letters, I had a 10% response rate. I am amazed.