Taking Over Property W/ Tenents
When taking over property w/ tenants, say a duplex, do you interview the tenants to see if they know of anything wrong w/ the building? Is this legal? For example, it would be very good info if one tenant told you that "just last week they came through and patched up the cracks that were growing across the ceiling" or "The heater stopped working last spring but the landlord hasn't been in to fix it yet"
YES!! You should absolutely ask! I usually phrase it as something along the lines of, "I'm probably going to be the new owner and am trying to put together a list of things I need to take care of. Do you know of anything that needs to be fixed so that I can get it taken care of as soon as the sale is complete?"
This way, you don't give the impression that you are looking for ammo against the current owner. Also, if they say nothing is wrong, you can follow up by saying, "oh really? so the current owner usually fixes things right away? I've never been to a house that didn't have ANYTHING wrong with it!" That'll give them the chance to tell you if the current owner usually blows off maintenance or not.
I agree - definitely talk to the current tenants that occupy the apartments... This will give you a true feeling about what kind of work needs to be done, at least in the tenants eyes...
Good Luck!
[addsig]
Yes...but be careful...don't trust everything they say. It also gives you a good idea of the quality of tenants you will inherit.