All Forum Posts by: Elizabeth S.

It might be course for eviction based on your lease but if it isn't clearly than the other option is that you let them damage the door, you pay someone to fix it and you send them a letter outlining the cost and give them 2 days to pay it. Let them know that rent will be considered late until the bill is paid in full (hopefully you have a work clause in your lease so you can add extra expense for your time too) and then once they are in violation of the lease with "outstanding rent" you can take them to court for that.

Re-read your lease and follow it to the T. Sometimes we let things slip because people are good people but when they aren't that is what the lease is for.

Originally posted by John Andruszka:

You can use this site to check public court records in AZ: http://apps.supremecourt.az.gov/publicaccess/

Thanks!!

I'm not sure it would hurt. I have my license and although I don't want to do anything with it right now I have it and it will be there when I do. I guess the plus side is that you have more options for people who might want to go the traditional route plus you have access to the MLS. The downside are the fees and the other broker rules. It's worth looking into though for sure!

If you're asking will someone make you do it, no. Your insurance company may have requirements on what they want done on the exterior (don't offer to let them see the inside) but other than that it is up to you to determine your risk level and what you think is best.

Wow, that does sound complicated. I'm sure you have already though through all of this but I'll think through it with you and maybe something will trigger a new though for you!

• Do you have anyone else you can borrow money from in exchange for an interest in the property?
• Do you know any contractor type people who would want a cut of the business in exchange for upfront labor/materials?
• Can you put the materials on a credit card and then get someone (as mentioned in my previous bullet point) to front you their labor costs or give you 60 day terms?
• Do you have enough cash flow coming off of the property to make up any of this money in 20 days when people pay rent again?
• Are there less expensive options you can take that wont cost $200,000?

I hope this helps. Good luck!

Welcome to the group! It sounds like you're starting off with some great help already so BP will be a good extra resource to have available. There is a lot to learn but the best thing to do is just to jump in there (with the guidance of your mentor) and get started. Good luck!

I agree with Kyle after seeing your responses. It sounds like your family is feeling the pressure of being under water on your house and trying to come up with a solution and using it as a rental was one of your options. If that is the case I would stay were you are (especially because of schools) and get a second job (maybe close to real estate so you can learn) so you can pay down your mortgage or have extra cash for updates. When finances are tight, that is not the time to think of becoming a landlord. There is a chance it will solve your problem but there is a chance that it will make it worse.

Move the properties to an LLC is a good idea. It is a simple as finding a business attorney and having them set it up for you. Maybe in your state you can even do it yourself, I don't know. As someone else mentioned, the loans will still be in your name but now you will have the option to get loans from the commercial end.

I started out only buying with personal loans. In the process I built a relationship with my banker so that when I was ready to move to the commercial end he could vouch for me to the commercial end of his bank. They hold the loans in house so they would probably be for shorter than 30 years. I did one of mine for 5-10 years, I don't remember. Mine are only $20,000 though so it's not as big of a loan.

So the moral of the story, if you already have a relationship built with your banker...go to that bank for a commercial loan and talk to them. Its not difficult as long as your debt to income ratio is okay, you have been at your job for more than a few months and they like you..

It would really depend on your end goal and what you're willing to do in order to reach it. I see in your profile that you aren't sure about goals yet. Sometimes its just a mater of jumping out there and trying something that isn't too costly and then learning from that.

So a few questions to consider:

1. Do you mind renting, or you do you want to be settled. If you don't mind renting what is your time frame in life that you want to be settled?

2. What if you sold your current house and bought a duplex or other multifamily and then rented part of that? It could be both profitable as well as benefit from your homestead exception.

3. What major repairs are coming up in the next 2-3 years on your current residence? Think major expenses. If you have a lot that will be rolling around this house may bring in $500 profit a month initially and then eat it all up on regular repairs.

I hope that helps a little. I guess the other thing is to really consider those "less desirable" neighborhoods. I'm not saying war zones though. What is going to be the difference between you enjoying rentals is your profit and level of hassle. Good luck!

I have a potential tenant who is originally from Phoenix, AZ. In Indiana we have a free site to check people out on (doxpop.com) which brings up all of their interactions with the court system.

She has a history, but she's been up front about it. One of my requirements is telling the truth, and she has so far as far as I can tell.

Let me know if there is anything like this out there for Arizona. I would feel better knowing more than just the last 7 years of her life.