A Lancelord?
Today the home hunt continued … my father and I toured seven houses in Cincinnati, four of which were repeat visits that I wanted to show him and three of which were multi-family homes. Yep, that’s right … I’m considering living in one unit while managing the other units!
The first two multi-family homes we visited were junk … old homes in bad neighborhoods with sketchy situations. But the third was fantastic … a three-family place in the middle of Kenwood (a growing area) that had been meticulously redesigned and maintained. It’s a little beyond the price range I was considering, but it has two longtime renters whose monthly payments would go a long way towards eliminating that discrepancy. All in all, it’s the best option I’ve encountered yet!
So here’s the deal … I need to learn as much as I can as quickly as possible about being a landlord. Have you done it? Do you know someone who has? If so, what advice can you give me?
August 26th, 2007 at 8:17 am EST
That sounds really cool! I’ve known lots of guys that bought homes that were either duplexes or apartment buildings, and my brother-in-law is co-owner of a 400 unit complex here in Peoria… MOST of those turned out great.
Also, make sure the payments are not a problem without the rent coming in. I was working in finance and lending until this past spring, and we could only qualify someone for a loan by using a 70% occupancy rate, meaning we had to assume it would be empty 3 or 4 months out of the year.
I’d plan for even more empty months, but that’s because I’m an obsessive worrier… but it’s ALSO because you can expect to replace some toilets, refrigerators and/or furnaces at some point, in addition to maintenance. And if you include utilities in their rent, expect your minions to keep their place VERY toasty all winter.
Other than those cost issues, it sounds like a great idea! Just be prepared and be VERY discerning when accepting applications for someone to move in.
August 26th, 2007 at 8:44 am EST
Great advice, Isaac! The place has separated heat and electric, the water and trash pickup are the only things that the landlord pays. I’m pretty conservative too … and I would honestly probably consider a 0% occupancy rate, just to be extremely safe. That way any rent payed is a bonus. But the woman who rents one unit pays a month early and the man pays six months at a time … so it sounds like they’re good tenants!
Wow … 400 units? That makes something like this seem MUCH more manageable!
August 26th, 2007 at 12:42 pm EST
Mike and Amy Kanyid have been landlords for many years. Let me know if you need a contact # for them.
August 26th, 2007 at 4:31 pm EST
I’m a little late with this, but welcome back to Cincy Lance!!!
August 26th, 2007 at 9:46 pm EST
if you buy vending machines you might be able to sap a few more dollars off of them…maybe add an arcade, sell fresh produce from the garden…basic stuff.
August 26th, 2007 at 11:17 pm EST
Cool idea! James and I are talking about it too (in a few years, anyway), and my parents have been landlords for forever. It sounds like a good situation with longterm tenants, because in my experience with my family the tenants can be the best and worst part of the deal. I say go for it!
August 27th, 2007 at 9:12 pm EST
Just make sure you call your local zoning board and be absolutely certain that it’s legal to rent all 3 units. We ran into that problem with a house we nearly bought in Highland Sq…
August 27th, 2007 at 10:54 pm EST
Good idea, Sarah … it’s on the county auditor’s website as a 3-unit place, but it’s worth checking with those other guys too!
And David, you’re an absolute lunatic. I love it.
August 28th, 2007 at 11:46 am EST
anything worth doing is worth doing well…just saying…a little extra income