Most residential leases have a clause in them that say the tenant is responsible for all “Attorney Fees”. This was very common until the Minnesota Tenant’s Bill of Rights passed last year, in 2010. Continue reading “Attorneys Clause in Leases”
My Eighth Investment Property, my second 4-plex
My eighth investment property was a bit more creative. It was a 4-plex, built in 1984 (i.e. no lead paint issues). All four of the apartments were three bedrooms, 1 bath. As with most of my properties, it was a distressed sale. Continue reading “My Eighth Investment Property, my second 4-plex”
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Why Avoid Tenants with Credit Scores Below 600?
The fact is, about 85% of America has a credit score above 600. At 600, you start to get below a 50% default rate on mortgages, and an even higher default on rents. Remember, you are not looking for an average renter for your quality unit; you want a quality renter for your quality unit. Continue reading “Why Avoid Tenants with Credit Scores Below 600?”
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Evictions and Terminating Tenancies (in Minnesota)
If you have a tenant that you want to get rid of, there are many ways to go about it. In Minnesota, here are the main ways and reasons to evict. Minnesota is the host cost eviction in the Nation, so make sure you are prepared. In 2013 the costs were as follows: $320 court costs, $100 to serve the summons, $55 for the writ. $125 to serve the writ. Plus vacancy, repairs, lost rent, and aggravation. Continue reading “Evictions and Terminating Tenancies (in Minnesota)”
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A Day in the Life … Busy Weekend
The weekend started pretty well. I finished up a few things in the apartment that I was turning over. The tenants were scheduled to arrive at 12 noon, so I had some time to do a virtual tour and a final once over. Continue reading “A Day in the Life … Busy Weekend”
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My Rental Strategy And Property Management
I recently did a guest post for Kim at Eyes On The Dollar. Kim is a private practice Optometrist and a personal financial blogger. She has some great tips for financial independence and getting out of debt. She is not someone who just says “Spend less, pay bill”, she actually experienced the thrill of paying off over $30K worth of credit card debt!
Here is the link to the post regarding my Rental Strategy. I hope you like it.
There are many so called RE investors that pretend to cash flow, and they are not calculating any of the soft expenses. Management, Vacancy and Maintenance are the big three. Maintenance being a thing you can put off, and see profit, but it is in actuality deferred maintenance. I allocate 10% of rents towards maintenance in my budgets, 5% for vacancy, and 7% for management. And I expect ~15% ROI if I make the purchase.
All investors MUST have a rental strategy if they are going to be profitable. My net worth went up considerably after I started investing in rental property, and it continues to climb. My income, already decent, went up by over double.
Read More at: Rental Strategy And Property Management
Please let me know what you think of it.
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A Day in the Life … Apartment Turn
I have been working on an apartment turn over the past couple of weeks. The previous tenants moved out on 3/3, new tenants are moving in on 3/15. Only a twelve-day vacancy period. So, with 24 units I own, we are 100% full again. This is what a typical apartment turn might be like, for an average renter. Continue reading “A Day in the Life … Apartment Turn”
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Avoiding Lockouts and Keeping Track of Keys
One way to reduce tenant lockouts is to have a deadbolt with a key, not a locking door knob. Change the actual door knob to a hall /closet knob. One without a lock. The security is provided by the deadbolt, you do not need two key-able locks. That way, you can only get locked out if you had the keys when you left.
Continue reading “Avoiding Lockouts and Keeping Track of Keys”
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Finding the Right Price for your Rental?
When you look around on Craig’s or other places, you often see higher rents than what you are charging. Your temptation is to raise the rent on your existing good tenants. Or you want to advertise at a higher price. What is the right price for your Rental Continue reading “Finding the Right Price for your Rental?”
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How to Find Investment Property
The best investment property is one you can walk to. But if the deal is super-great, going across the country is OK, but it better be real super-great. If it’s that great, others across the country are also looking at the property. And local investors have already passed on it. You will pay more in expenses when a property is located more than a few minutes away from your main location. Wherever you are, you have to know how to find investment property.
Continue reading “How to Find Investment Property”
