Nothing hurts a landlord’s pocketbook or pride like being the victim of theft or vandalism. Prior to PEX plumbing the main security issue facing landlords and homeowners in St. Louis and around the country is copper theft, but there are many other temping targets at any property. One particularly expensive and “easy to steal” component are AC condensers. Read more

Whether you are talking about your own home or a rental property, nothing is quite so fun as replacing light bulbs. No matter how quickly and easily the change can be done, it’s amazing how long we all tend to put off such menial tasks. One of the best ways to cut down on this hassle is by using compact fluorescent (CFL) light bulbs instead of the traditional incandescent. Read more

One of the biggest maintenance issues landlords and homeowners face at their properties is with their heating and cooling systems. With the extreme heat of St. Louis summers and extreme cold of St. Louis winters, our environment can certainly put a strain on these systems. Annual maintenance by your HVAC technician is always a good idea, but there is one simple thing you can, and should, be doing ever month: cleaning the filter in your furnace. Read more

One of the most awkward situations a landlord can face is informing a tenant that they will not be renewing their lease. Whether the tenant has been in the apartment for one year or ten, it can be a delicate matter. Proper management of the situation will help to avoid lack of final rental payment and property damage. Following these tips will help to make the situation easier:

• Send the tenant a letter explaining that their lease expires soon. Sending out such a letter 45 to 60 days prior to lease expiration and following up with a phone call will generally lead to the most satisfying results. Remember that most leases specifically require notice at least 30 days prior to the next rental due date. Read more

One of the most important things every investor needs to do before purchasing a property is a profitability analysis. At first glance, many deals seem great, but upon further review turn out to be less than ideal. You just can’t tell for sure until you do the numbers. That’s where this spreadsheet might come in handy.

If you have Microsoft Excel (or OpenOffice), this financial spreadsheet will do the analysis for you.  I find particularly useful when scrutinizing deals as you can quickly determine if a property is worth further research by simply plugging in a  few numbers. Simply enter the rents, expenses and financing and it figures out how profitable the investment will be. Of course, this is a very simplified spreadsheet. It does not account for major repairs, appreciation or tax benefits. However, it should give you a realistic snapshot of an investments potential.

I like to pay particular attention to both cash-on-cash return, which consider real-world financing scenarios, and the always popular cap rate.  The percentage cash-on-cash return tells you how much money you will get back in a given year for the money you put it, while the cap rate is the yearly return assuming the property was purchased with cash.

You can download this spreadsheet for yourself by clicking on this link: Rental Property Analysis. Hope it comes in handy.  If you have any questions or comments of the spreadsheet, please contact me.

I’m always astounded at how many investors don’t keep detailed records on their properties. Especially since most of this data is submitted to the IRS at tax time. For some reason or another, after the data has served it’s initial us, the information often gets tossed aside. If your records look like this picture or if they end up in the trash can, I encourage you to think twice about what you do. You are losing out on valuable information, which is crucial to any landlord’s business. Read more

According to forecasts.org, as of today, the rate of inflation in the United States is 4.12%. That’s really high! Whether you live in St. Louis, the East Coast or Juneau Alaska this affects everything from the cost of a gallon of gas to your taxes. Money is worth less so it takes more of it to buy any product. Read more

Keeping your tenants and properties secure is an important part of running a successful investment. If your tenants feel unsafe, they will be less likely to remain at the property after their initial lease. If your property isn’t secured, you just might find your copper plumbing or AC condenser miss one day. Its a major concern.

Security systems are often used as a method to address this problem, but there is a more affordable, and in some ways more affective method: motion-sensor security lights. With a few strategically placed lights, you can really improve the security of your properties.

Your tenants will be happy because the building will be well lit when they enter and exit their unit. The property, as well as the tenants will be more secure because the motion sensors will activate when somebody enters the premises. A potnential burglar or robber is going to think twice before camping out behind a property that is well lit.

The next time you have a warm weekend free and are looking for something to do, head down to your local hardware store and pick a few of these up. They are well worth the investment.

Trash is never-relenting enemy in urban areas. Your tenants can be the cleanest on the block, yet trash will find a way into your yard. Those “free” newspapers that seem to appear out of nowhere on your front porch are a particular pet peeve of mine. Regardless of where it comes from, it needs to be taken care of. You’d think people would realize that by now, but I find myself constantly astounded at how many rental property yards are just covered with junk. I don’t know if its dirty tenants or lazy landlords that are to blame, but its a problem that can be found throughout the St. Louis area.

Trash in the yard of your properties or in the basements or on the porch is unsightly and draws household pests. When prospective tenants take a look at your vacancy and see trash all over the place, you’ve just made a bad impression. The same goes for prospective buyers if the property is for sale. Its also bad for tenant retention and tends to get you on the City’s bad side.

This is a never-ending battle, fighting the pileup of this trash, and you need to keep on top of it. When you visit your property to collect rent or fix a sink, you need to pick up the trash. When you cut the lawn, you need to pick up the trash. Even if you have to make a special visit to do it every couple weeks you need to pick up the trash.

Landlords who have their properties professionally managed seem to have the biggest problem with this. For some reason, it seems like all the property managers in town seem to think that keeping their clients properties clean isn’t their responsibility. If you have a manager in place, check up on how they are doing with this issue. If you stop by and the place is filthy, call them out on it. You’re paying for their service, and if they can’t provide something as basic as picking up the trash, you might want to look elsewhere.

Whether you’re doing it yourself or have someone else do it for you, picking up regularly around your properties should be of major importance to you in maximizing th profitability of your investments. Dirty buildings draw bad tenants and we all know how that can turn out.

Seeing as it has been sleeting and snowing all day, I figured I’d make mention of the issue of icy sidewalks. Spreading ice melt prior to a storm or getting quickly around to shoveling snow at your properties is not always a realistic option. It’s usually a gray area on who’s responsibility such work is as well.

One way to appease your tenants in this situation is to have some salt or ice melt and a snow shovel on site. This might not be an option for all properties, but if you have caring, attentive tenants, supplying these items will often allow the situation to take care of itself. If you have salt in the basement that the tenants are aware of, they will generally sprinkle it on the sidewalks for their own sake. If you have a cheap snow shovel in the basement someone will often take up the mantle as well. Its a cheap way to help yourself and satisfy your tenants.

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