Can I kick out a tenant on a month to month lease in 10 days? (buy, contractor)

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by XRiteMA98

Looking for solutions to my problems I read many horror stories. Some of you told me such stories. What I learned is that landlords have to run background and criminal checks. Also to check ids. I read somewhere that a couple of serial renters intentionally misspelled their names by switching two letters so that the background check revealed nothing. So it's important to check their ids - which I didn't.

Are you saying it turns out they didn't have good credit after all? A misspelling of a name would likely result in zero credit.

Originally Posted by XRiteMA98

AT some point when I asked them to pay or be evicted he called me idiot.

Point is there are people who can't simply be polite or respectful when they are at fault. I should have realized right then and there and simply evict them for non payment rather than working with them to get back on track. SO see, I was too nice to them and a landlord who wants to protect his business shouldn't be.

So this is why I say I am not fit for this...

You've come to the right conclusion. You don't have the personality for it. You're too passive and sensitive to be a landlord. That's not an insult.

[SuburbanPioneer]

Just look on the bright side. You have them out of the house, this was a big question only a month ago. Now that they are gone, you can concentrate on fixing the house. And, if at the end you will have some extra cash left, you can use it to enjoy making their life as miserable as possible. Just think of it as a leisure activity and not as a definitive way of recouping your financial losses.

[XRiteMA98]

Hopes they did have good credit. I'm just saying what I read on-line. Yes, I know I am too passive and too sensitive for this. I'm a Pisces

Oh and another lesson very important for future landlords - I could put this in bold: check periodically on your property. Let tenants know you are coming and look around. If they have 5 pets they can;t hide them all. You will see signs of them. Talk to neighbors. They see everything. Something I didn;t do and paid dearly. These people didn;t want me in. Now I realize.

I have a remodeling question (especially for Hopes but addressed to all of you): my contractor suggested that I (well, he) completely takes the bathtub out and do a shower with tiles from top to bottom and glass door. Everything in neutral colors, beige tones. He even wants to do like a sitting area in there, covered with tiles. That's nice but... since my house is rather small for American standards my target buyer will be a young couple that might have or might want kids in the future... if I take the the bathtub out and put it a modern shower will young or prospective parents will be out? Does this mean I will have less prospective buyers? What do you think?
As for the vinyl it's going to be ripped off and put ceramic tiles instead. Kitchen will get granite top, new sink and I'm going to replace the cabinets' doors with ones with glass. I'll get new stainless steel appliances.
Until I decide abt the bathroom the contractor will take all the carpets out tomorrow so that I can see if the hardwood floor underneath can be sanded.
The bathroom is my dilemma.
I sort of prefer this Small Space Bathroom - contemporary - bathroom - toronto - by Toronto Interior Design Group | Yanic Simard
vs what he suggests as more appealing is this
Colorado Mountain Modern Style House - contemporary - bathroom - denver - by Kate Khrestsov with Urban West Construction
I think first one is family oriented second one is more for childless families. What do you think?

(PS. These are way too fancy. if I'm gonna go first one it's gonna be a regular bathtub and no fancy things in the middle of the wall. I mean he can do pretty much everything. He;s very skilled)

[BarqCider]

Originally Posted by XRiteMA98

Hopes they did have good credit. I'm just saying what I read on-line. Yes, I know I am too passive and too sensitive for this. I'm a Pisces

Oh and another lesson very important for future landlords - I could put this in bold: check periodically on your property. Let tenants know you are coming and look around. If they have 5 pets they can;t hide them all. You will see signs of them. Talk to neighbors. They see everything. Something I didn;t do and paid dearly. These people didn;t want me in. Now I realize.

I have a remodeling question (especially for Hopes but addressed to all of you): my contractor suggested that I (well, he) completely takes the bathtub out and do a shower with tiles from top to bottom and glass door. Everything in neutral colors, beige tones. He even wants to do like a sitting area in there, covered with tiles. That's nice but... since my house is rather small for American standards my target buyer will be a young couple that might have or might want kids in the future... if I take the the bathtub out and put it a modern shower will young or prospective parents will be out? Does this mean I will have less prospective buyers? What do you think?
As for the vinyl it's going to be ripped off and put ceramic tiles instead. Kitchen will get granite top, new sink and I'm going to replace the cabinets' doors with ones with glass. I'll get new stainless steel appliances.
Until I decide abt the bathroom the contractor will take all the carpets out tomorrow so that I can see if the hardwood floor underneath can be sanded.
The bathroom is my dilemma.
I sort of prefer this Small Space Bathroom - contemporary - bathroom - toronto - by Toronto Interior Design Group | Yanic Simard
vs what he suggests as more appealing is this
Colorado Mountain Modern Style House - contemporary - bathroom - denver - by Kate Khrestsov with Urban West Construction
I think first one is family oriented second one is more for childless families. What do you think?

(PS. These are way too fancy. if I'm gonna go first one it's gonna be a regular bathtub and no fancy things in the middle of the wall. I mean he can do pretty much everything. He;s very skilled)

im sorry you had such crap renters. I always had a hard time to find a decent landlord even before
moving to PA.i wish I could find a nice landlord such as yourself when times to find a place for me and eventually my two labs who live in va. I take responsibility for them and never feel like the owner should fix their crap. im willing to admit one lab tends to bit the wall when hes starving, but he needs to be fed at 6am and 6pm or he goes like that. it takes responsible owners and im sure a lot of folks here are scared of renters esp with pets. it seems a lot of folks here don't value homes in Pittsburgh.

right now I rent an apt and my lease says nothing bout smoking after new management took over, but even then I open windows to air it out and febreeeze it. heck, I freeze myself so it doesn't smell.

[BarqCider]

heck, if ya paid me a small bit..id manage your place

id be all "pay or GTFO" most folks are scared of a big latino guy,so.. LOL and id do weekly visits!

heck, you don't need to sell it... id be willing to help ya out on this. id come talk to potential renters and put them in place

id be a very cheap management for ya and id keep ya up to date on it minus of course, maintenece

I say this as a son of a renter who dealt with similar down in VA.

ps: I have been good on enforcing payments in a...non violent way

[XRiteMA98]

BarqCider thanks for the offer but Mt. Lebo school taxes increased with $200 per month (aka $2400) per year. This house is becoming too expensive and at this point I just want less headache.

I think that landlords like most people complain about are people who buy a rental property that is in bad shape and rent it out to make money without making improvements or fixes. These cost money. In my case I rented out the house I lived in for 10 years, so it was in good shape and looking nice. Therefore I think I am going to make it look nice again and sell it, but thanks for the offer.

[Hopes]

Originally Posted by XRiteMA98

I have a remodeling question (especially for Hopes but addressed to all of you): my contractor suggested that I (well, he) completely takes the bathtub out and do a shower with tiles from top to bottom and glass door. Everything in neutral colors, beige tones. He even wants to do like a sitting area in there, covered with tiles. That's nice but... since my house is rather small for American standards my target buyer will be a young couple that might have or might want kids in the future... if I take the the bathtub out and put it a modern shower will young or prospective parents will be out? Does this mean I will have less prospective buyers? What do you think?

If it's a 1 bath or 1-1/2 bath home, you need a bathtub. Babies can only be bathed in a sink for a few months. Children need a bathtub for quite a few years. So, yeah, not having the bathtub would turn your target buyer off.

Originally Posted by XRiteMA98

The bathroom is my dilemma.
I sort of prefer this Small Space Bathroom - contemporary - bathroom - toronto - by Toronto Interior Design Group | Yanic Simard
vs what he suggests as more appealing is this
Colorado Mountain Modern Style House - contemporary - bathroom - denver - by Kate Khrestsov with Urban West Construction
I think first one is family oriented second one is more for childless families. What do you think?

I prefer the first one too, not just for the bathtub but for the colors too. Keep it light and airy.

I hope your hardwoods can be refinished!

[Copanut]

Originally Posted by XRiteMA98

BarqCider thanks for the offer but Mt. Lebo school taxes increased with $200 per month (aka $2400) per year. This house is becoming too expensive and at this point I just want less headache.

I think that landlords like most people complain about are people who buy a rental property that is in bad shape and rent it out to make money without making improvements or fixes. These cost money. In my case I rented out the house I lived in for 10 years, so it was in good shape and looking nice. Therefore I think I am going to make it look nice again and sell it, but thanks for the offer.

My guess is you have been under assessed for years.

[DaisyDaisy]

Originally Posted by XRiteMA98

Well, I want all this to be a lesson for those who might read this thread in the future, especially in PA (or Pittsburgh).

Looking for solutions to my problems I read many horror stories. Some of you told me such stories. What I learned is that landlords have to run background and criminal checks. Also to check ids.... They might say they are good renters just to be rid of them. Ultimately I read somewhere that it's always a good idea to check with the employer how long they have been there, something I didn't and I paid dearly.

Problem is that somebody who is less than a year in a job is much likely to lose that job than somebody who works for a company for sometime. That's debatable, I know, but this is what happened to me. My tenant was less than a year in a good job with a good company but he lost his job in Jan. Only now I found, among the trash he left behind, a paper from his employer saying that he was let go because of poor performance and misuse of internet at work.

So, if I were to do this again I'd know how to better chose candidates.

I respect you for taking some lessons from a tough situation and wanting to help others avoid similar issues.

I rented several times before buying a house and don't recall much more than a credit check. I think the credit application asked how long I was employed. I have some friends who have rented out their properties and, other than one that started a meth lab, not too many problems and never any horror stories like this!

It is probably a good idea to sell the place and I agree that you'll want a bathtub. If you are in Mt Lebo SD, potential buyers could want or already have kids.

Good luck!

[XRiteMA98]

Thank you for your input. Bathtub it is. I will meet tomorrow with a realtor who has 30 years of experience in Mt Lebanon and I'll ask her opinions. My contractor is tearing up the carpets as we speak, because I want to see what's underneath. If it's hardwood floors that can be sanded so much the better. Painting will start tomorrow.

When I bought the house the whole upstairs was carpeted. After 10 years I re-carpeted but I wasn't at home when they did the work so I had no idea what's underneath.

All paperwork, pics, estimates etc was submitted to the lawyer. The ball is in his court now. From now on I can mind my own business. I don;t expect 1 cent from these individuals. If the lawyer is able to do something so much the better.

Want to know the grand total? 14624.59. This is what I am suing them for.