Home buying thread
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Guest, it's time once again for the massively important and exciting FoH Asshat Tournament!
Go here and give us your nominations!Who's been the biggest Asshat in the last year? Give us your worst ones!
GuardianX
Perpetually Pessimistic
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My parents rent their home in NorCal for not a small amount of money. The people renting it are a Russian couple and they easily make well over 200k a year.
Previous to that we had family (Blood Family) and then some randos. All of whom trashed a 2500+ rent home every time.
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The blood relative decided to get dogs on a whim who then proceeded to wreck the house. Cost my parents something like 1200-1500 to fix.
Next renter had cats, they let the cats basically do whatever wherever...they had to replace all the carpet and seal the concrete. Couple thousand at least.
Russians? They finished our garage, free of charge. Paid for 1/2 the cost of adding AC to the house. Shit these people are basically remodeling most of the house for cheap or free.
They have a vested interest in the area since she runs a day-care from the home but still, it's an amazing situation and hopefully they stay a while longer because they are amazing renters but I know they want to buy. They have asked a few times to buy the home but my family has made it VERY clear that it is a rental.
LachiusTZ
Rogue Deathwalker Box
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BrutulTM yeah that seems to be what the internet has to say about it as well, all input is helpful thanks.
Imo, pay someone to do it.
I can't recommend anyone in Houston for you. But it's lowered the stress dramatically and worth the 110/mo they charge me.
Khane
Got something right about marriage
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My previous tenant was there for 7 years. Over the course of that 7 years I stopped going down to check on the apartment periodically to make sure it was being kept up reasonably. Biggest mistake of my life. When he moved out the place was completely trashed. It was in a totally unrentable state so I decided to remodel it. Cost me $20k (didn't need to spend that much but decided to do everything, new floors, new kitchen, new wall ACs, new doors, etc) to get more money per month in rent in the future. 10 Months later it's still empty because I am being extremely picky about who I rent to now and even though I get a lot of viewings and a bunch of applications I've had to decline every single one. It's incredible how many people are financially wreckless and oblivious to their solvency.
Being a landlord is a pain in the ass.
Being a landlord is a pain in the ass.
Khane
Got something right about marriage
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Well the house is paid for and it will be income through retirement but it really is a lot to deal with depending on your tenants. I will probably buy more if the market starts drowning again but you have to have the personality and patience to put up with some serious bullshit potentially.
For instance, even just scheduling appointments to show the apartment. Sometimes people just don't show up even after verifying the appointment that morning. I had one couple keep trying to negotiate lease terms after a verbal agreement last week. Their credit scores were very poor and didn't have a lot in savings so I was going to decline them but they said they could come to the table with security + a full year's rent because of a settlement they had just received. This was a Monday and we scheduled the lease signing for Friday. A few days later it was "the settlement was due in 30 days and the check wasn't cut yet", and then Friday morning it was "can we just put 3 months and security down" and that entire week this was going on I was telling potential renters that I could show them the apartment but there was a lease signing pending, which of course nobody was interested in. So I had to eventually tell this couple to get lost while also having potentially lost other renters.
I am also very clear that there are no pets allowed and that I can't accept rental assistance programs and verify that before each appointment but people still show up and after the walkthrough say "So I know you said no pets but my dog is so well behaved" or "I know you said no rental assistance but we can cover the difference in price". It's frustrating and tiresome. And this is for a very large 1500 sq/ft first floor apartment on a private 1.7 acre lot with a ton of storage space and a big private deck in a decent area so it's not like I'm expecting to rent to affluent people in a garbage neighborhood with no amenities. But I get a lot of people hoping to punch up in life for an apartment they could never possibly afford.
For instance, even just scheduling appointments to show the apartment. Sometimes people just don't show up even after verifying the appointment that morning. I had one couple keep trying to negotiate lease terms after a verbal agreement last week. Their credit scores were very poor and didn't have a lot in savings so I was going to decline them but they said they could come to the table with security + a full year's rent because of a settlement they had just received. This was a Monday and we scheduled the lease signing for Friday. A few days later it was "the settlement was due in 30 days and the check wasn't cut yet", and then Friday morning it was "can we just put 3 months and security down" and that entire week this was going on I was telling potential renters that I could show them the apartment but there was a lease signing pending, which of course nobody was interested in. So I had to eventually tell this couple to get lost while also having potentially lost other renters.
I am also very clear that there are no pets allowed and that I can't accept rental assistance programs and verify that before each appointment but people still show up and after the walkthrough say "So I know you said no pets but my dog is so well behaved" or "I know you said no rental assistance but we can cover the difference in price". It's frustrating and tiresome. And this is for a very large 1500 sq/ft first floor apartment on a private 1.7 acre lot with a ton of storage space and a big private deck in a decent area so it's not like I'm expecting to rent to affluent people in a garbage neighborhood with no amenities. But I get a lot of people hoping to punch up in life for an apartment they could never possibly afford.
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Siliconemelons
Naxxramas 1.0 Raider
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Sheesh I do not get renting terms now days, I barely had 1mo+Deposit when I finally closed the short sale.... 1 friggen year of rent? take that 10k+ and buy a damn house.
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I've acquired a few properties, too. I typically get them in good neighbourhoods when they go to sheriff's sale because they're so beat up. Because of the amount of time I have on my hands I can spent a full month in a place rehabing it. Typically in a short sale here you get an even further discount, sometimes as much as 25%, if you pay cash up front. I typically do that. The last place I got I managed to get for just over $60K, and I put another $30k into it, and its now valued at $185K (because of the neighbourhood), and I was able to find ideal renters (university prof here on a 3 year term with a small family). It's a four bedroom on a nice lot, and I can charge $1,300. I owe nothing on the house, so it's excellent.
Most of my properties are like this. I got plugged in with the university for adjuncts and visiting professors. They typically make good renters. They're absolutely freaking useless when it comes to doing repairs or changing things, so they don't try, and when something breaks, they always call. And I want that. It lets me get in and have a look about periodically. Though all my leases say I'm entitled to an inspection of the property every 3 months.
But Khane is absolutely right, you have to have the right personality to be landlord. It requires patience, lots of patience.
Most of my properties are like this. I got plugged in with the university for adjuncts and visiting professors. They typically make good renters. They're absolutely freaking useless when it comes to doing repairs or changing things, so they don't try, and when something breaks, they always call. And I want that. It lets me get in and have a look about periodically. Though all my leases say I'm entitled to an inspection of the property every 3 months.
But Khane is absolutely right, you have to have the right personality to be landlord. It requires patience, lots of patience.
Mizake
Trakanon Raider
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My main source of retirement is going to be real estate. I plan on owning 10+ homes outright by the time I retire (in 14 years), and rent each out for about $2-$3k so generating about $200k a year (real estate taxes being the major expense).
I agree with everything that has been said about pros/cons about renting homes, and you definitely need the right mindset/personality. Finding/keeping good renters is like finding/keeping good employees, you want to incentivize them. One of my first rental homes I've had for over 10 years, the current tenant has been in for the last 5. The going comp rate is $3500/month, but I only charge him $3200, because he always pays on time, he hasn't damaged my home, he doesn't nickpick about stuff for repairs, etc.....just a model tenant, so I give him a discount to incentivize him to stay. On the other end of the spectrum, in another home, I had a tenant that stayed for a single year, at the end there were numerous burns in the carpet and they had punched a hole in the bedroom wall - total repairs was more than the security deposit.
Personally I'm at the point where I use a management company, because I don't have the time or energy to be a landlord. Maybe when I retire, who knows. They take 7%. I think typically companies may charge you 8-10% but I am using them to manage multiple properties so they give me a bit of a discount. If you do plan on being your own landlord, you will need to know a lot of different people to help you, namely a handyman, painter, plumber, electrician, gardener, locksmith, etc. Having good help will save you money in the long run. This is yet another reason I use a management company because they take care of all that stuff for me.
I agree with everything that has been said about pros/cons about renting homes, and you definitely need the right mindset/personality. Finding/keeping good renters is like finding/keeping good employees, you want to incentivize them. One of my first rental homes I've had for over 10 years, the current tenant has been in for the last 5. The going comp rate is $3500/month, but I only charge him $3200, because he always pays on time, he hasn't damaged my home, he doesn't nickpick about stuff for repairs, etc.....just a model tenant, so I give him a discount to incentivize him to stay. On the other end of the spectrum, in another home, I had a tenant that stayed for a single year, at the end there were numerous burns in the carpet and they had punched a hole in the bedroom wall - total repairs was more than the security deposit.
Personally I'm at the point where I use a management company, because I don't have the time or energy to be a landlord. Maybe when I retire, who knows. They take 7%. I think typically companies may charge you 8-10% but I am using them to manage multiple properties so they give me a bit of a discount. If you do plan on being your own landlord, you will need to know a lot of different people to help you, namely a handyman, painter, plumber, electrician, gardener, locksmith, etc. Having good help will save you money in the long run. This is yet another reason I use a management company because they take care of all that stuff for me.
Yeah, Forney. Bought it 5 years ago. House was 20 years old when I bought it. Payed $140K. Worth $200k now thanks to the California mass exodus raising property values. I'm single with no kids, so it's only 1800 sq. ft.
Frenzied Wombat
Potato del Grande
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Holy fucking shit. So I bought a home back in mid 2017, new construction, in typical average Joe fashion via a real estate agent. It's a hybrid shipping container home-- basically a normal house built on top of two shipping containers. It obviously had a CO and all associated building permits closed and in order.
Well flash forward to today, two years later, and I get a ring at my door. It's Inspector Hernandez with Dallas building code enforcement, letting me know that the containers "attached" to my home are a code violation. So I tell him I bought the home with the containers, I didn't add them, and they are in fact part of the structural integrity of the home. He then goes on to say "well codes change" and though he doesn't think the city will make me "tear down" my home, they may force me to get a "variance" permit or a "special use" permit. I proceed to tell him that has to be BS, I went through all the standard channels as a consumer when buying this home, and if it has a CO, then it passed whatever requirements the city has. He then just reiterates that "code changes", he will check plans/permits when he gets back to the office, and that I should be on the lookout for a letter from the city. I ask him if I need to get a lawyer, and he just responds "not yet".
WTF??
Well flash forward to today, two years later, and I get a ring at my door. It's Inspector Hernandez with Dallas building code enforcement, letting me know that the containers "attached" to my home are a code violation. So I tell him I bought the home with the containers, I didn't add them, and they are in fact part of the structural integrity of the home. He then goes on to say "well codes change" and though he doesn't think the city will make me "tear down" my home, they may force me to get a "variance" permit or a "special use" permit. I proceed to tell him that has to be BS, I went through all the standard channels as a consumer when buying this home, and if it has a CO, then it passed whatever requirements the city has. He then just reiterates that "code changes", he will check plans/permits when he gets back to the office, and that I should be on the lookout for a letter from the city. I ask him if I need to get a lawyer, and he just responds "not yet".
WTF??
Cad
scientia potentia est
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Frenzied Wombat
Potato del Grande
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Yeah, I mean I have nothing to go on at this point except his business card and a verbal veiled threat. But considering this is the City of Dallas, I could get that letter next week, next year, or never. Meanwhile I have some potentially life altering event hanging out there.
No, I finally fixed that pos condo and was able to sell it just before buying this home. Thankfully, I have only had minor cosmetic issues with the place with the exception of a giant steel hangar door that wasn't insulated, and acted like a giant freezing radiator in the winter. Had to fight with the builder to get him to clad it in insulation and wood.
Lanx
<Prior Amod>
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