I've been a landlord for over 40 years. In the last few years (California) I handed one rental to a property management company. Another I sold to my daughter. The last one I have held till the tenant dies or leaves...Then I'll hand it over to the property management company. In CA you have to be really careful not to discriminate in any way!! What I have done for people who generate their own income...I will ask for their last year's tax returns. If you say you do this, you would have filed a return...Yes?? Just like home loans want to see a history of work (to prove they are in the industry...Example plumbing), the same for renting. Working...W-2s...If you say you have the money...Paper statements. If I had a choice of two or three potential tenants...I would go beyond the background checks. If they are renting a house I will look and see how the outside is kept. I have rejected tenants because there was trash everywhere around the yard. Do you really think they will change for me?? I had one woman who said she was a beautician...That she makes $50-60,000. a years. She starts rattling off who she has done hair for. I say cool, can you bring in your last year's tax return?? Never heard from her again... Trust everybody...But cut the cards. PS Facebook does matter...If I see red flags on Facebook pages (within the last year say) I may reject you. An example...You say you are not a smoker, but I see a picture you posted last month with a cigarette in your mouth, I probably will reject you. Even if you have quit, there is a solid chance you could relapse...Just saying. If I could get into someones house for 2-3 seconds, I can tell you whether I want them as a tenant or not. The room usually does not lie...
%% OH\ok\ we were thinking of a much lower rent; I lived in a travel trailer while i built a home for 95% cash. No wonder some moved to low tax Singapore; or the 7+ states in USa with no state income tax.
Very reasonable and fair. Good tips for someone who's thinking of becoming a landlord. So, who has she done the hair for?
I heard Spain has really tight capital control laws that you can't move your money out of the country once it's in, is that true?
No one I knew...I think it was all under the table. Wanted to collect benefits, but worked on the side. I'll never know... PSS Never contract with someone who has nothing to lose...
I saw on Youtube the horrible squatters situation in California because in California, squatting is actually legal. Did you ever have a problem with squatters within your 40 years of being a landlord?
A little...But I do things differently now. Once (the minute, and I do mean minute) the tenant leaves, I will put in a house sitter. Either a young man or woman I trust...I'll pay them $40. a day. I'll try and turn the rental over quickly to a new tenant...As fast as I can. The rent means nothing...Protecting the unit (house) is everything!!
When we lived in the Bay Area, our house had an in-law that we Airbnb, starting around 2010 through until we sold in 2019. We had weekend renters and year long renters, probably over 150 renters in the time period. All except 1 or 2 were perfectly fine. The bad was a woman with 2 teens from Saudi Arabia who stayed 3-4 days and left a worse mess than all other renters combined (sunflower seed peels left everywhere, burned food in pans left in sink, fridge with liquids dripping).. Fkrs didn't care the slightest about anything. Sadly, the other was from Egypt, a lady who stayed a month and probably didn't have her marbles all there, moving from Airbnb to Airbnb with a full van of heavy luggage and artwork materials who couldn't manage anything without the kind assistance of strangers to help her move her nomadic possessions from house to car to house to car, in search for her harmony. I say "sadly" because our only 2 challenging tenants were from the Middle East and somehow confirmed the stereotype of not renting to people from the Middle East because they trash wherever they live.