Starting Off

I have just acquired a second home. How do I begin the process of renting it? Is it worth the head-ache? cool smile

Comments(5)

  • jonathanb15th September, 2003

    I'm taking out an equity loan to place a downpayment on a new home. I have lived in the home as my PR for two years but have not owned it. I do not want to pay Capitol Gains and I dont want to have to pay the morgage on the loan while I'm waiting two more years before I sell it.
    What if I can't sell it for enough to pay off the loan?

  • DaveT17th September, 2003

    Why do you want to be a landlord? What will you accomplish by converting your property to a rental?

  • jonathanb17th September, 2003

    I would like to cover the payments on the home equity loan and pay it off faster. I would like to hold on to the property and I thought that renting might not be a bad idea. As for being a landlord, I don't know enough about it. What does it entail? What are the legal implications? Is there a book or web-site that can assist me in getting started?

  • 64Ford17th September, 2003

    There are several great books on landlording. Check out your local library.
    One off the top of my head is "Mr. Landlord".
    You may want to search "articles" on this website for plenty of reading material.

    The most important part of landlording is SCREENING and putting the right person in there. If you put the time and effort into that, the rest of it seems fairly easy to me. If you get a loser in there you will have one headache after another.

  • GFous20th September, 2003

    "Is it worth renting"

    I assume this is a vacation home for you then?

    If you can only rent it seasonally, my general advice is not to rent it. Esp. if the appreciationin the area will take care of your "annual cash investment" (negative cash flow).

    You can then keep the home in the shape you want and not hassle the rent situation. You may find ( as many seasonal owners do here in South Florida), that when you are in your second home you will meet some fine people that will rent it from you - then you can tak the plunge with people you are acquainted with. You may also meet some neighbors that rent and have friends.

    I am a very active investor and landlord but I do not rent out my second home.
    [addsig]

Add Comment

Login To Comment