153
votes
Accepted
Why is rent going up in an apartment complex with multiple units sitting unrented?
They are likely approaching a known busy new-tenant season. It's not uncommon to see rent and housing prices increase as the summer approaches as there are many families who move during that time. ...
- 13.8k
113
votes
How much more than my mortgage should I charge for rent?
I am sorry to say, you are asking the wrong question. If I own a rental that I bought with cash, I have zero mortgage. The guy I sell it to uses a hard money lender (charging a high rate) and finances ...
102
votes
Why does it seem the best way to make a living is to invest in real estate?
I think this might be an instance of "survivor bias" in that you only tend to hear from the people who were successful at it and made a lot of money off of it. Conversely you don't hear as much from ...
- 2,582
91
votes
As a landlord, should I refuse a rental reference for a tenant who damaged the unit? (Fixing the damage was covered by the deposit.)
If the damage done is covered by the deposit, then I wouldn't give the tenant a bad reference, that's the point of the deposit. Even if it wasn't covered by the deposit, if they willingly covered the ...
- 69.1k
79
votes
Accepted
Unexpected large rent payments, by moneygram, for my apartment, not by me
I think your best course of action in this scenario is to act as though you don't have a credit on your account. Keep making your payments as you normally would. I would notify the management that you ...
- 47.2k
72
votes
Accepted
Why invest in becoming a landlord?
why does it make sense financially to buy property and become a landlord?
Because then your investment generates cash instead of just sitting idle.
All taxes, fees and repairs aside it would take ...
- 131k
71
votes
How much more than my mortgage should I charge for rent?
The rent will be determined by:
the rent being charged on similar houses near you.
Your costs have no bearing, at all, on the price you will get.
- 13.8k
65
votes
Accepted
Charging the company I work for to rent from myself
Your biggest problem is that this may be seen as a conflict of interest - in other words there is potential for you to make decisions about company money that benefit you, rather than the company. ...
- 33.1k
64
votes
Why does it seem the best way to make a living is to invest in real estate?
What is the truth about this?
Pretty much no truth.
At 48 years old, I received an offer for a job where I was paid far more than any other employment I had previously. I chose it over two other ...
- 76.1k
63
votes
Should tenants pay for repairs if it's their fault?
As a landlord, I would always prefer for you to call me whenever there is an issue. It is possible they might tell you to handle yourself, but they need to be in on the decision. Botched repairs can ...
- 53k
58
votes
Why does it seem the best way to make a living is to invest in real estate?
Several other good answers that get into the details, but I think there are a few obvious things that need to be said here:
Real estate isn't a risk-free golden ticket - investing in real estate ...
- 17k
53
votes
Accepted
Letting Agent proposes relative to rent my house
I agree with your instinct, and I think in your shoes I'd make it an "either / or". In other words, say to the letting agent "I am happy to rent the house to your family member, but on ...
- 23.3k
45
votes
Why does it seem the best way to make a living is to invest in real estate?
The sales pitch:
A few decades ago, I had a friend that was starting out in real estate investing. He explained his reasoning like this:
Buy a starter home. Get a decent house/condo with the best ...
- 32.7k
43
votes
When leasing/renting out an owned property, is there a standard ratio between monthly rent and the mortgage?
No.
The starting point is what other rentals are going for in the area. Supply and demand dictates a fair starting price. From there, you can adjust up/down for the fact that you know this person. (...
40
votes
My tenant wants to pay rent through their company: Should this raise a red flag?
I disagree with the other respondents.
If your tenant is an individual, renting in their individual capacity, there is no reason they need your SSN. They will not be sending a 1099 to you.
If your ...
- 166k
38
votes
Unexpected large rent payments, by moneygram, for my apartment, not by me
If this is a scam, here's what I'd expect to have happen:
Someone will contact you and say "Oh my goodness! I accidentally applied three months of rent to your apartment instead of mine by physical ...
- 1,481
36
votes
Accepted
Should I move out from my current apartment before the contract ends to save more money?
In the United States the security deposit is to cover damages you make to the apartment or common areas. It is not to allow you to skip out of the contract.
Frequently you are responsible for finding ...
- 136k
35
votes
How to best invest 90,000 EUR with zero knowledge in investing?
You stated several things in your question that you are afraid of - you are afraid of investing in something you can't "see", afraid that you're buying the rental too high, afraid that you'll be stuck ...
- 131k
35
votes
As a landlord, should I refuse a rental reference for a tenant who damaged the unit? (Fixing the damage was covered by the deposit.)
Generally when providing reference it would be best to refrain from matters of opinion. Did the tenant pay as agreed and on time and covered all the damage caused? That's all you can answer without ...
- 166k
34
votes
Should tenants pay for repairs if it's their fault?
This is typically spelled out in the lease. Our leases say that
tenant must call us (the landlords) if something needs to be repaired.
tenants are responsible for the costs associated with damage ...
- 511
33
votes
How much income am I getting by renting my house?
Does it make sense for me to keep the house
Are you willing to be a landlord for $91 a month? What happens if your house goes unrented for 3 months? 6 months? How will you pay its mortgage?
In my ...
- 131k
31
votes
Long Distance Landlording
The main work that a property management company does is finding you a tenant. After that, they may provide handyman services at a decent rate, but for the most part they'll just be making the same ...
- 69.1k
30
votes
Better to rent condo to daughter or put her on title?
Obviously you have done well financially in order to be able to purchase a condo for cash, presumably, without risk of your other obligations. To put things in perspective, we are probably talking ...
- 76.1k
29
votes
Accepted
Is it possible to sell a rental property WHILE tenants are living there?
Yes you can sell the property while it is being rented.
The new owner has to honor the current lease agreements. Expect to provide copies of the leases to the potential buyer so they can review the ...
- 136k
28
votes
Why are residential investment properties owned by non-professional investors and not large corporations?
Because the returns are not good.
One of the big drivers in Australia is "negative gearing": if your investment loses money you can offset losses against your tax on other income. Institutional ...
- 3,190
27
votes
Should I sell a 2nd home, or rent it out?
So here are some of the risks of renting a property:
The renters damage the home or leave it in disrepair
You can't find a good renter and the house goes unrented for several months
The housing ...
- 131k
27
votes
Why is rent going up in an apartment complex with multiple units sitting unrented?
Charles Marohn of Strong Towns, a licensed urban planner, said this when describing the obvious solution to high vacancies:
With a sound grasp of free market economics, the developer understands that ...
- 379
27
votes
Accepted
What can be done to mitigate rental income tax liability once depreciation is fully exhausted?
Several comments first:
If rent is $X/month and all in mortgage is also $X/month, it would suck to need to pay income tax on $X x 12 for the year, when it all went towards paying the mortgage
This ...
- 166k
26
votes
Why invest in becoming a landlord?
The value of getting into the landlord business -- or any other business -- depends on circumstances at the time. How much will it cost you to buy the property? How much can you reasonably expect to ...
- 22k
26
votes
How to negotiate rent renewal when house prices are decreasing?
House prices and rents aren't always highly correlated - if rental demand is high then rents and home prices can actually go in opposite directions (but may eventually reach an equilibrium).
So what ...
- 131k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible