Do You Do a Final Walk-Through With Tenants
This topic has been a thorn in my side for many years, but I suppose there are two sides to this coin. If you walk through the unit with tenants before they move in and as they are moving out, a written record of each walk-through could be [...]
Will the Property Cash Flow?
So what does cash flow mean?
a. Mortgage payments minus rents equal cash flow (MP – R = CF).
b. PITI (principle, interest, taxes, insurance) minus rents equal cash flow (PITI – R = CF).
c. PITI minus 25% vacancy allowance minus rents equal cash flow (PITI – V – R = CF).
d. Click [...]
Do Your Tenants Have A Plunger?
For the longest time it did not occur to me that my tenants did not move in with plungers… why would they? Unless you have taken on the responsibility for making sure a toilet or sink drain is flowing well, you probably do not own a plunger.
It has become evident [...]
Easy “Greening” Steps for Rental Property
Getting green doesn’t have to cost a lot or take a great deal of time. It does take a commitment and thought process that focuses on thinking about the environment. I have a young friend who calls me “an old hippie” and thinks that’s why I recycle everything imaginable. In [...]
Why Insulate… Rebates, Tax Credits, Reduced Energy Bills!
The list of why you should be insulating and doing other energy efficiency projects is probably longer, but…
· Rebates for products and rebates from utility companies,
· Tax credits from the federal, some state and local government
· And, of course, reduced year-round energy bills
… should be ample incentives… especially [...]
Appliance Warranties & Appliance Maintenance… What’s It Worth?
Appliance warranties are a mixed bag of tricks. New furnace, air conditioning units, swamp coolers, boilers and hot water heaters come with a manufacturer’s warranty and the installer should warranty their labor for at least one year. Make sure you get this in writing.
When it comes to [...]
Are Your Tenants Celebrating the 4th Of July With Illegal Fireworks?
One of my first jobs was selling fireworks. My Uncle Billy had a corner grocery store and every year he bought cases of fireworks. At that time almost everything was legal in Missouri. I was 12 or 13 and my sister, Donna, two years younger, [...]
Are Tenants Calling at 2:00 a.m.?
Perhaps a dozen or so years as a landlord has toughened my hide, but calls in the middle of the night still send my heart racing. It took me a few years to come up with a workable solution to tell tenants what they could and could not call me [...]
More Water Bill Issues… OR… ”How the landlord paid to fill the swimming pool”
We have had a lot of positive feedback on our blog “Who Pays the Water Bill”, so water bill issues must be a hot topic. Here is another one that will help you realize that no matter how long you own rental [...]
“I swear that paint chip looked like a light gray in the store…” my cool bachelor tenant is explaining to me as I stare in disbelief at the bedroom I agreed he could paint in his apartment….it is mauve!
Once again, dear blog friends, I am sharing with you my years of landlord experience, so that [...]