Author Topic: Landlording next door within sight?  (Read 947 times)

joenorm

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Landlording next door within sight?
« on: December 28, 2020, 07:23:41 AM »
Does anyone rent out houses that they can actually see from their primary residence?

I can see some benefits to this, like being able to monitor things to a degree and being close by for maintenance. But at the same time it does seem rather, shall I say, close to home.

I'm not sure i'd want to see what's going on hour to hour at my rental, and same would likely go for the tenant.

Anyone have experience with this?

former player

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Re: Landlording next door within sight?
« Reply #1 on: December 28, 2020, 07:48:10 AM »
Yes, although the renting is a byproduct of buying the house for other reasons.

You need to choose your tenants very carefully: they need to be people you want in your neighbourhood and can pass the time of day with in the driveway but at the same time you don't want to turn them into friends.  I can imagine things would get awkward if they started to go wrong and you needed to enforce lease provisions or start eviction - which just reinforces the need to choose the tenants with great care.

rothwem

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Re: Landlording next door within sight?
« Reply #2 on: December 28, 2020, 10:37:05 AM »
I rented out the next door unit of my duplex for several years. The success of it greatly depends on the tenants. We had three sets of tenants while we were there, the first couple was wonderful, and we actually spent a good amount of time with them around the fire pit drinking beers and grilling. When they left, they moved out of town, I think we’d still be hanging out if they were in the area.

The second set was a couple of undergrad douchbags, not sure what I was thinking renting to them. I knew it was going to be bad but for some reason the unit just wasn’t renting and I wanted to avoid a vacancy. It was miserable, loud music, smoking even though the lease said not to, parties at 3am on weeknights.  I was able to get them out without legal action but it was awful.

The last set was two grad school roommates, again, wonderful.

So yeah, basically, if your tenants are good, it works well to have them next door. If not, then you’ll have a bad time. I would mention that you do need to keep them a bit at arms length, the first set I worried that we got a tad too close and I would’ve been uncomfortable kicking them out. With that said, they never pushed the limit with me so I didn’t have to.

bacchi

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Re: Landlording next door within sight?
« Reply #3 on: December 28, 2020, 10:46:24 AM »
We rent out the front house and live in the ADU.

You're correct about the downfalls. Watching the tenant use up 5 years of the AC lifespan in one summer is frustrating. Same with piling up too much trash in the front, knowing full well that the garbage truck will only take 1/3 of it and the rest will sit out for a week.

The upside: Maintenance runs are a cinch and the tenants will never try to sneak in an extra person or a pet.

SndcxxJ

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Re: Landlording next door within sight?
« Reply #4 on: December 29, 2020, 08:45:05 PM »
I live amongst some of my rentals, adjacent on all sides.  I prefer this method.  I am very hands on, so showing vacancies, meeting contractors, and doing maintenance is simple.  My MO is to pick good tenants in the first place, so tenant selection doesn't vary from an adjacent home to another a few blocks away. 

ca-rn

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Re: Landlording next door within sight?
« Reply #5 on: January 03, 2021, 12:53:06 PM »
i live in my rental building and for the most part, its been trouble free and the location is ideal for my w2 job and personal interests.  i couldn't afford to buy a sfh in the same neighborhood with my income alone.  now i have a lot of equity and rental income that pays me to live in my home.

i tell prospective tenants that i live in the building and watch their reaction, it tends to weeds out alot of people who may plan to circumvent lease terms.

easy to respond/assess repairs or concerns/issues.  i think they appreciate that and feel if its good/safe (central working class neighborhood) enough for me then it may be as well for them. 

PGSD

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Re: Landlording next door within sight?
« Reply #6 on: January 04, 2021, 12:58:20 PM »
I live next door to my rental (both SFH). I love being able to choose my next door neighbor AND keep an eye on my investment. I always mention I live next door when interviewing potential tenants and I think that helps me avoid stuff like; sneaking in pets, smoking... I actually pitch it as an advantage as repairs are done quickly if they have any issues or need anything (I do most all repairs myself).

Repairs are easier as I can just go next door to my house for a tool I need/forgot. :)
   


 

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