Author Topic: Bought a house hack...now what?  (Read 2499 times)

thorbjorn88

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Bought a house hack...now what?
« on: July 05, 2017, 11:55:08 AM »
My wife and I just signed a contract to buy a house with a rent able guest house (which we'll live in for the first few years and rent out the main house) less than a mile from where I work in a community where almost everyone owns their houses and we're very excited.

What are your biggest tips for first time landlords, especially in a house hack?

What do you recommend we read/study about land lording?

Do you use an online service for rent collection?

Do you have tips for selecting tenants?

Cwadda

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Re: Bought a house hack...now what?
« Reply #1 on: July 05, 2017, 12:42:29 PM »
Woah woah, that's a lot of information. I'd recommend checking Biggerpockets.com, listening to their podcasts, etc.

srad

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Re: Bought a house hack...now what?
« Reply #2 on: July 05, 2017, 03:56:53 PM »
Congrats on your first purchase.  A home with a guest house is an excellent way to get started in the rental world.   I've been a LL for 12 years and self manage all my doors.  Here are a few of my "tips" but remember, there is so much more than what is below...

Education - You can never get enough of it.  You are now legally responsible for someone now.  And if you screw it up you can be fined thousands of dollars.  Here are some good sites to use
Biggerpockets.com - it is an amazing site, get immersed in it.  This is where i go if i have specific questions. I just posted one today and it was answered in less than 20 minutes.
Rentprep.com - a new site i've found, no fluff, gets right to the point.
Jasonhartman.com  - he's a turnkey provider, but his podcasts have a lot of excellent information.  I skip a lot of his intro's now and just dive into the content.


Rent Collection - The way i collect the rent is I have them deposit it into a bank account i set up.  I usually choose the closest bank to the property.  But if you are literally living next door, just have them drop the check off at your place.  I have considered doing an online collection service.  Cozy.com has a pretty good setup for this, but they hold onto your money for longer than i want to wait.  If i get a few more units, i may look into something like this.  You can pay them a nominal amount to get the money released earlier. 

Screening - this is the most important thing you can do here.  Go to Biggerpockets.com, download one of their free Applications.  I already had a lease so i didn't look at theirs but i'm sure they have some good ones in there.  I meet with every potential tenant, you can learn a lot by just talking to them.  I also always check out the interior of their car.  If its a mess, chances are they will keep their home just as messy.  One thing I used to do was sign the contracts at their homes.  I haven't done that for years though...   Obviously, you can't discriminate, so if you are rejecting an applicant you need to have a valid reason why.   I write that reason down on the application and keep it for years in my reject folder.   I also say no pets and no smoking.  But there is a market for pets, I'm amazed at how many calls i get saying will i accept a pet. I've been burned before so i'm not ready to change my stance yet.

What i require is a completed application, let them provide me their credit report from freecreditreport.com, and a copy of their latest pay stubs.  Then check their references.  Cozy also has applications and background reporting which the tenant pays for.  Again its pretty slick, but my system has worked for me for over a decade.

As stated before, there's a lot more to it than this, good luck. 




lifeofourown

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Re: Bought a house hack...now what?
« Reply #3 on: July 09, 2017, 01:20:01 PM »
Biggerpockets, Biggerpockets, Biggerpockets!! Couldn't recommend that site more.

Congrats on your house hack!

My husband and I just moved out of our house hack and we are so glad we started with house hacking. Here are some of the resources that helped us:

erentpayment.com - this site automatically withdraws money from your tenants bank acct and deposits it in yours! It costs $3 a month, but is well worth the fee.

cozy.com - This site will allow you to create a listing for your rental unit, collect rental applications, and it will screen applicants (credit and background check that tenants pay for). It's all free for the landlord.

zillow.com - Zillow, Hotpads, and Trulia are all owned by the same company, so if you list your rental on Zillow, it will automatically transfer over to the other 2 sites.

Also, reach out to your local apartment association or google a landlord/tenant lawyer for a lease. Make sure you understand everything that is in your lease and that it is compliant with your local laws.


 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!