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Your concern is unwarranted, as I am not confused at all. You know what, it's ok for you to not give a crap about your tenants! I've watched with glee as owners who refused to be reasonable about their deposit/rent requirements had units sit open for months. Let's see. Drop the rent $100 a month, fill the unit, "lose" $1200 a year. Don't budge on the rent or move in requirements, let it sit open, lose $2000 a MONTH. Your choice. If your pride and superiority complex goeth before the fall, better wear some padding.
The business aspect goes both ways. If you choose to be a landlord, you damn well better be ready to perform the requirements of the job. Do not sell a product you refuse to maintain. Do not sell a product you cannot afford to back up. Do not sell a product made from cheap resources that will fall apart with light use.
If your concern is only that you get paid regardless of the product you offer, then it's time for you to GTF out of the business. I realize most owners will not agree with this, as they cannot see past the mortgage they chose to take on, but being a successful owner requires not only business acumen, but also a certain amount of humanity and aplomb that some people cannot achieve.
Sigh. It's truly disheartening to see such reprehensible comments like "Because I'm a responsible adult" bandied about like so much superiority. Not willing to take care of? If your crystal ball is available, I would love to borrow it.
I'm sorry, but most of us ARE responsible adults--not all, but many. Not having $6k liquid for a deposit does not make us less so. Affording the monthly rent is a far different animal than having a few grand at the ready for a move in, and you are only fooling yourself if you believe otherwise. If I HAD that kind of money available, you can bet your sweet arse I'd be buying a home and not placing myself under the whim of an owner who often forgets that s/he has engaged in the business of renting a home and all the obligations that follow. Upkeep. Maintenance. Truthful behavior. Responsibility to your tenants and the neighbors in the area to provide decent, safe and pest free housing. Many owners go into renting with the notion that it is a quick buck, forgetting that they have taken on a full-time job that begs for their attention---not a cash cow they can check on when they get around to it.
There are horrible tenants out there. I've rented to some of them, and yes, they have made my life hell. But the majority were good people, and even many of them who fell under difficult financial times didn't exactly do so by their own hand. I fail to understand how anyone can not be able to see the shambles this economy is in and realize that yeah, regardless of how educated, employed and responsible you may be, the "world" can be ready to yank that magic carpet out from under you in the blink of an eye. Any responsible adult with a savings account could deplete it in months if the situation requires it to live.
It's offensive to see such a cavalier attitude toward the people who fill your apartments. If you truly have no concern for the people from whom you collect a rent check monthly, perhaps it's time to find a new way to make a buck. Renters are not the scum of the earth any more than owners are.
We'll have to just disagree on this one then. You say that not having $6k lying around for a deposit doesn't make a person irresponsible. I say that renting something you can't afford to pay the deposit on is irresponsible. If you can't afford a $6k deposit, don't live somewhere that requires a $6k deposit. If you can only afford a $1000 deposit, then live somewhere that has a $1000 deposit or less.
I have been at many stages in my life, and at each of them, at the time, I thought I was being a responsible adult... looking back, I know that I wasn't. In high school, I thought I was a responsible adult because I was working a full time job and keeping up good grades, and I couldn't imagine anything in life being more difficult than that. In my college years, I worked about 4 months of the year and thought I was a "responsible adult" because I could afford to pay everything my scholarship didn't cover (books, room & board, supplies, gas, etc), so I thought I was self sufficient. But if I needed something out of the ordinary, like a car repair, or even a car, my parents helped me out. When I got married, my husband and I had a moderate amount of debt, but we made our payments every month, so we thought we were "responsible adults", but looking back, we were just getting by, didn't have renter's insurance, weren't saving for retirement, or even for an emergency, and the only reason we got into a house was because my parents are awesome and generous. Then, near the start of this recession, my husband lost his job and was unemployed for a year. We had just enough saved up, and just few enough expenses that we scraped by with my income and our savings. Now that we are in our 30s, we have paid off our debts, working on paying off the mortgage by age 40, are saving for retirement, have all the right insurances, and have almost a year's worth of expenses as an emergency fund, I see that now, at last, I am at least close to being a truly responsible adult. Getting a will set up is the only big step I'm still missing.
I think that is a pretty normal story. I think most people think they are being responsible, even when they really aren't. I'm sure my 2 tenants who bounced checks to me this month and 2 other tenants we served eviction notices to this week for nonpayment all think they are responsible people. That isn't sarcasm. I think they truly believe they are responsible adults. I think most people can only see how irresponsible they were in retrospect (myself included).
So I have to disagree with your premise. You've stated that most people are responsible, and I have to disagree with that. Most people are financially normal, meaning they are all in the same boat, of just barely getting by, stuck in the same stage I was at for the first several years of my marriage, thinking that just paying the bills is enough, but that doesn't make them financially responsible. Responsible people are atypical in today's society, in my opinion.
Your concern is unwarranted, as I am not confused at all. You know what, it's ok for you to not give a crap about your tenants! I've watched with glee as owners who refused to be reasonable about their deposit/rent requirements had units sit open for months. Let's see. Drop the rent $100 a month, fill the unit, "lose" $1200 a year. Don't budge on the rent or move in requirements, let it sit open, lose $2000 a MONTH. Your choice. If your pride and superiority complex goeth before the fall, better wear some padding.
The business aspect goes both ways. If you choose to be a landlord, you damn well better be ready to perform the requirements of the job. Do not sell a product you refuse to maintain. Do not sell a product you cannot afford to back up. Do not sell a product made from cheap resources that will fall apart with light use.
If your concern is only that you get paid regardless of the product you offer, then it's time for you to GTF out of the business. I realize most owners will not agree with this, as they cannot see past the mortgage they chose to take on, but being a successful owner requires not only business acumen, but also a certain amount of humanity and aplomb that some people cannot achieve.
Just to clarify I am not a LL. I agree with you 100% that a LL should live up to their end of the agreement. And of course there are both bad landlords and bad tenants. Goes without saying.
Your concern is unwarranted, as I am not confused at all. You know what, it's ok for you to not give a crap about your tenants! I've watched with glee as owners who refused to be reasonable about their deposit/rent requirements had units sit open for months. Let's see. Drop the rent $100 a month, fill the unit, "lose" $1200 a year. Don't budge on the rent or move in requirements, let it sit open, lose $2000 a MONTH. Your choice. If your pride and superiority complex goeth before the fall, better wear some padding.
The business aspect goes both ways. If you choose to be a landlord, you damn well better be ready to perform the requirements of the job. Do not sell a product you refuse to maintain. Do not sell a product you cannot afford to back up. Do not sell a product made from cheap resources that will fall apart with light use.
If your concern is only that you get paid regardless of the product you offer, then it's time for you to GTF out of the business. I realize most owners will not agree with this, as they cannot see past the mortgage they chose to take on, but being a successful owner requires not only business acumen, but also a certain amount of humanity and aplomb that some people cannot achieve.
I wish it was that simple...
Every since rent control came into the picture... a landlord has to be very careful as to the starting rent charged because their hands are tied when it comes to making upward adjustments...
Also, it can be very time consuming and costly to evict... especially in areas with Just Cause Eviction ordinances.
I know many Landlords that are more cautious then ever because of this and if it means the unit is vacant for a couple of months... that is the new reality.
If it was easy... there would never be a rental property foreclosure...
For the life of me, can any of you go to Wal-mart and tell them you want to use their stuff for a month, but, oh yea, you will pay when you can? Heck no.
Rental property is a business, and sorry, I can't give housing away free. Pay up, or move on...and it's not that I don't care, cause I do. and it is about being RESPONSIBLE. Don't try to live in something you cant afford.
Sigh. It's truly disheartening to see such reprehensible comments like "Because I'm a responsible adult" bandied about like so much superiority. Not willing to take care of? If your crystal ball is available, I would love to borrow it.
I'm sorry, but most of us ARE responsible adults--not all, but many. Not having $6k liquid for a deposit does not make us less so. Affording the monthly rent is a far different animal than having a few grand at the ready for a move in, and you are only fooling yourself if you believe otherwise. If I HAD that kind of money available, you can bet your sweet arse I'd be buying a home and not placing myself under the whim of an owner who often forgets that s/he has engaged in the business of renting a home and all the obligations that follow. Upkeep. Maintenance. Truthful behavior. Responsibility to your tenants and the neighbors in the area to provide decent, safe and pest free housing. Many owners go into renting with the notion that it is a quick buck, forgetting that they have taken on a full-time job that begs for their attention---not a cash cow they can check on when they get around to it.
There are horrible tenants out there. I've rented to some of them, and yes, they have made my life hell. But the majority were good people, and even many of them who fell under difficult financial times didn't exactly do so by their own hand. I fail to understand how anyone can not be able to see the shambles this economy is in and realize that yeah, regardless of how educated, employed and responsible you may be, the "world" can be ready to yank that magic carpet out from under you in the blink of an eye. Any responsible adult with a savings account could deplete it in months if the situation requires it to live.
It's offensive to see such a cavalier attitude toward the people who fill your apartments. If you truly have no concern for the people from whom you collect a rent check monthly, perhaps it's time to find a new way to make a buck. Renters are not the scum of the earth any more than owners are.
you say most people are responsible adults. that would be nice but sadly most people are not responsible adults most people live beyond their means and carry too much debt.
as you said deposits required are too high, like i said in my pervious post nad like someone said on the following page of this thread if you cant afford the 6k down required to rent a place maybe you should rent a place where rent is lower and the deposit is only 2k or 3k.
you also say if you have 6k you woudl be buying a house. if your standard of living requires you to stay in a place tht requires a 6k deposit i can guranteee you wont like the house your going to get haviong 6k to put down.
these boards are filled with stories of landlords who "took a chance" on someone and it doesn't always end up good.
All I would as any renter about this subject is, what solution do you offer landlords to protect us against tenants that don't pay last month and/or do damage beyond the collected amounts?
All I would as any renter about this subject is, what solution do you offer landlords to protect us against tenants that don't pay last month and/or do damage beyond the collected amounts?
I would say vet your tenants better. Raise your rent to attract more desirble tenants. Don't be a landlord if you can't handle the consequences. Know and learn your state's landlord/tenant laws. Know what your rights are thru the legal system and use them when have damage that's beyond those collect amounts.
As a tenant, I can understand how difficult it is for some people to raise enough money for the first month, last month, and security deposit. However, the landlord also deserves some assurance that you'll be a good tenant, and finances are one measure of that. They don't know you; how else are they supposed to tell?
Because tenants usually get locked into a one-year lease, it also helps if we do our due diligence. One red flag to me is if the apartment isn't spotless. Soap scum stains on the shower doors, stains on the "cleaned" carpet, dust on the window sills... Any of those will turn me off. I also look at how the building is kept up. Peeling paint? Gates that don't lock? A pool that is green? A broken awning out front? Deck furniture that's old and falling apart? Nope! All of these things say, "When you want timely maintenance, please go somewhere else." Maybe the landlord over-reached a few years ago, and doesn't have money for such things. That's not my problem, any more than it's the landlord's problem if I don't have enough for first, last, and security. We all have the right to conduct our own tests to see if that person or company is worth our business. It's nothing personal - in either direction.
I would say vet your tenants better. Raise your rent to attract more desirble tenants. Don't be a landlord if you can't handle the consequences. Know and learn your state's landlord/tenant laws. Know what your rights are thru the legal system and use them when have damage that's beyond those collect amounts.
Higher rent does not prevent ostensibly good tenants from becoming one that decides they need that last months rent to pay the deposit on a new apt.(for instance)
Higher rent does not insure lack of care for the premises(I could tell you stories about extremely respectable people who do not hold the same regard for others property as they would for their own)
Perhaps coincidently, but some of the dirtiest tenants I have had were RNs
The consequences? Of what?Bad tenants? Being able to handle it.Doesn't make it not happen.
Which laws will protect against it?
I didn't ask what to do about it after the fact. I asked what, other than getting it up front, would prevent it.
Same with your last statement.
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