The Successful Landlord Blog

So one of the rentals has been vacant for two months now as mentioned in this post. The main reason for the delay has been a shower stall repair that was just going awry. I almost had it completed myself but then I stopped and called in a professional for the following reasons:

• The repair looked like complete crap (for lack of a better term)
• It would have to be repaired again in a couple years
• Apparently the construction of the shower stall was unusual (according to my tile guy)
• The third remaining wall will need to be repaired sooner than a couple years time

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Recently I went to the IZEAFest blogger conference which was held in downtown Orlando. I probably shouldn’t have been, but was surprised at the number of “Space Available” signs on what seemed like ALL the high-rise office buildings in the downtown area. I mean, I know times are tough but you would think that the tenants looking to rent in these building would be a little more averse to the recent ups-and-downs in the economy.

Also interesting is the occupancy of the large national banks in these buildings. My hotel room faced a building having at least 40 floors with the name Wachovia emblazoned across the top. If banks are failing left and right, how can they afford to occupy enough of a 40-story building to have their name on it?

I know that Orlando is a major city in Florida and the big banks feel the need to have a presence and all major city centers but business is business. According to the Orlando Business Journal , “Wachovia posts $8.9 billion loss, will cut 10,7500 jobs.” I guess it’s better for the company’s bottom-line to cut jobs than relinquish real estate in a major city center.

The reference to  the Love & Rockets song in the title not withstanding, recently I wrote about how two of my tenants left 1 month after renewing their lease and basically left the place in disrepair.

Well, it’s been a little under 2 months since they left but it feels like F-O-R-E-V-E-R and I just can’t get the place ready to show. It feels like there are just a million little things that need to be done. Here’s a partial list of what I can think of off the top of my head:

• Hang 2 sets of window blinds which they destroyed
• Remove their cheesy drapes from the patio windows
• Remove various stickers and decals they stuck to doors and walls
• Replace all the bi-fold door floor brackets (don’t ask)
• Clean the bi-fold doors (louvers)
• Repair shower stall tile in the master bath
• Repair a leaky A/C drain line
• Repair a bathroom towel rail
• Replace most of the light-bulbs
• Remove the cheap-a** ceiling fans they installed
• Repair most of the bug screens
• Clean out the rain gutters
• Cut the grass
• Trim the massive oak tree in the backyard

There are a number of reasons for the delay including: General procrastination, 90°F weather, various tropical cyclones, Work needed on other properties, the city turning off the water, etc.

I’m happy to say that most of the above items are done but in my opinion, I don’t think that the place (any place) should be shown to potential tenants until it’s good and ready. So, for now it’s a game of inches. I just wish it would go faster sometimes.

So recently, a light bulb went on in my head while talking with a tenant on the phone. Now I know that some of the more experienced property managers ( Jessica ) will say, “Well, duh!” but humor me for a second.

Here’s the background: Basically, the tenant called me to tell me that because of a recent tropical storm that affected our area, both she and her husband lost two days of work. As a result, they would not able to pay the rent on time.

I should mention that once before she called freaking out because her rent payment was due and she thought that it would be late. She wanted to “come by” to drop it off.

As an aside, under no circumstances am I allowing tenants to come to my home (where my office is) to drop anything off. I reiterated the payment terms including late fees and then … let her off the hook. THAT ONE TIME ONLY.

This time, she asked me to let her know what the late fees would be, even though it’s plainly stated in the lease….and that was it.

Then she mentioned how the neighbors were very happy with them because they were cutting the grass regularly and were nice people, etc, etc. My thought is that she was trying to get me to cut her another break on the late fees.

From now on, there’s a new policy in my properties: EVERYONE PAYS LATE FEES.

Sooner or later, these people will learn to keep some cash in reserve for a rainy day, no pun intended. And they will also figure out that I can’t go to the bank when my mortgage is due and say, “Well they’re really nice people….so I cut them a break….can you cut me a break?” Duh!