Question About My Contract On Lease Option
I pretty much have my contract done. But there was nothing put in it about late payments. What is the normal grace period and is there a standard for late fees? Are they daily until they pay or what not? What do you all have in your contracts.
I agree with the 1st responder here. You need to see what your state allows with regards to late payments. If you violate the law, you could lose your ability to charge anything during the lease period.
Consider going to your local bookstore/library and getting "Every Landlords Legal Guide" by Nolo press. www.nolo.com They have a section n there about this and I belleve they also include the statute on it.
Be careful with this. They might just want that lease to prove that they live in a certain school district that they want their kid in. They get the kid in the school they want and then make up some excuse why they cannot move in. They are counting on that you will not expose their plot to the school after they bail on the lease.
I could be completely wrong, but I have had people ask to pay for a unit they do not live in just to have their kid in the right zip code.[ Edited by d_random on Date 08/21/2007 ]
I think you took the best course of action, tell them to do it. Like you said these are common problems in any house. I think if you repeat this same answer like a broken record, that they will finally get the message that you are not going to fix these very minor problems for them.
I too have new tenants who have made several minor complaints they wanted me to deal with. My solution is to deal with the complaints. I figure they are seeing if I am a caring, responsive landlord. Nothing for the last couple weeks so hopefully they are satisfied- there is really nothing at all wrong with the house, I just totally rehabbed it.
Some tenants want to know you are there if they need you; some tenants hope they never have to see you. Just personality differences, I guess...
Chris
Hi,
I feel like I must have missed something in the story here, but why do you feel that this tenant is a "complainer"?
She has/had two legitimate issue with her house.
I am not sure where she is from, but there are many areas of the US and the world, where ants in a house is an uncommon event. For you to presume that she knows how to handle it is silly. In fact, your answer to her concerning spraying Raid was wrong, as you had to spray the perimeter of the house.
I have owned rental properties for over 12 years and have NEVER had any rodents in my houses nor in my personal house. So, again, I do not think it is unreasonable for a tenant to contact you if there is a mouse in the house. I think your answer to her to go buy some traps and somehow bait them, shows a complete lack of concern on your part.
Her question concerning the history of infestation might want you to rethink your answers to her. That is NOT a complainer, that is her second guessing her decision to rent your house.
Bruce
What we do is have them set up times with professional services to do the extermination.
It could be that she is trying to sue you and get you to NOT fix the problem. We have had that in the past. And if this is the case, politely inform her that she needs to leave. Give her 30 days notice.
[ Edited by joel on Date 08/23/2007 ]
Pesky ants. I had ants in a unit and just couldn’t get rid of them. So I used the home remedy method. Mix boric acid with sugar. I thought I would keep more from coming in so I sprinkled some of the mixture around outside the unit along the foundation and the next day we couldn’t find a single ant inside the house. One word of caution. The mixture terminated the flowers when too much was put on the flowers. Not sure if it was the boric acid or the sugar. I think boric acid is the white stuff in the cans of roach power.
Boric acid works well for camel crickets (aka cave crickets) too. [ Edited by d_random on Date 08/24/2007 ]
i think it is GREAT choice. i bought my first multifamily 9 months ago and its been pleasent. yes u do have to deal with the tenants, but i ve only had one complaint over 9 months!!! thats how i started up my propery management company. Its work, but its worht it. dont takes other people opions on ur life decsions
I say pass on the offer until you feel more confortable with real estate. Not for the reasons your father stated but just until you know more. The market is constantly dropping in most places. Use the next few months to read and research a lot. Go hang out at the local builders store and make some contacts with contractors and handymen and such.
When you know more and are confortable, then you buy.
As to a building a month, that is a fast way to stress yourself and your pocketbook. You do not need to go by that guys schedule - set your own.
I would think it through carefully. I bought 4 multi family properties within the course of several months - it was a mistake for me. Prior to this I had only dealt with SFR. When you manage multi family properties you are dealing with a different kind of tenant and its alot of work. Especially, S8 tenants because HUD has alot of guidelines/requirements in addition to the normal tenant laws you have to abide by. I have a full time job and a family and at times it is overwhelming. Anyhow, it can be very lucrative, but my advice is to buy one property and hold on to that for at least a year before you buy anything else. See if you like it and how it goes. You can always get more later. The financing is not an issue if you have good credit. You can continue to get many mortgages ( i think up to 10 with a single lender)as long as you have active leases and can show that the rental income can cover the mortgage payments. Anyway, good luck to you.
In Missouri we have a consumer guide called Landlord-Tenant law in booklet form from our attorney general. In part it says 1) Landlords may only require up to two months’ rent as security deposit 2) landlord, within 30 days of termination of lease, to return full deposit or furnish tenant with itemized list of damages for which any portion of deposit is kept 3) Prior to expiration of the 30 day period, the landlord must notify the tenant of the time and date the landlord plans to inspect the dwelling to determine any damage 4) Landlord cannot prevent tenant from being present during inspection 5) Landlord may keep part of all of deposit to compensate for or repair actual damage done, not to include normal wear and tear 6) If landlord has wrongfully withheld a part or all of the deposit, the tenant may sue to recover up to twice the amount wrongfully withheld. Remember this is for MO but your state may have a similar booklet. If interested you may call our attorney general consumer protection office and request a copy. Phone 800 392 8222. I am not sure if they will mail them out of state or not. If they won’t ask if they are on line so you can read them.
bwb911-
Maybe he is confusing fair housing with eviction laws?
My leases specifically say that only the people named in the lease and the specific child or children (I name them) can live in the property without landlords permission. I also state that if they want another adult to move in that the person must be approved by the landlord and they will be screened and approved/not approved similar to every tenant. I also state rent can be increased at that point.
I am not sure what your concern is. I have had no pays in some very liberal areas and have not had difficulty getting them out--even with small children. Even had one mother with a handicap.
What I have found is that in liberal areas the judicial system stretches state statutes (i.e. allows 15 days to respond to an unlawful detainer if not served in person, etc.).
I believe that keeping extremely detailed payment records has helped in court. My records have the check #, the bank #, the date of the check, the date of the postmark and the arrival date.
Is it on your property or the public street? Will your deposit cover the rent?
Property is in the country and not on public rd.
Between deposit a car I can get close to even?
Donate it to the salvation army and get a tax write-off.
thanks for the info
Well, I just pulled out the lease and read through it, and it appears that I cannot evict for non-payment. What other recourse do I have against the housing authority?
time to have a chat with the housing authority... Maybe one of your legislators and shake the money tree.
You pursue or arbitrate w/ the authority.
This is one of the reasons that I am done with S8. I once had to wait 3 months for a check because they abated payment due to my failing the inspection, which coincidentally they fail me the first time every year so far. Anyhow, you will eventually get your money, but you just have to hound them. If this is Raleigh housing they are very unorganized. I noticed you are in NC.