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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
 
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If I were going to purchase a house in this city I'd definitely consider Greenville (by Princeton/Garfield or West Side/Sterling/Romar) and Lincoln Park or the Heights for the best bang for the buck...but as a renter I tend to pick and choose based on my needs in a rental. Paying a mortgage and actually owning the property would be a completely different story.
Posted on: 2013/2/15 0:05
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Just can't stay away
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i guess the sad thing is most people are alright with the status quo and won't touch greenville with a 20-foot pole while others will try to change it from within. my business partner and i are starting a free personal finance workshop soon for the area as well which should be fun/interesting. again, unless i'm imaginary i live here and spend very little on housing and like to spend my money on other things.
Posted on: 2013/2/14 23:37
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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in this world, especially when it relates to real estate, outside perception is EVERYTHING plus more. Also, I see many people making 6 figures and living in greenville. Why they don't bring up the income stats on sites is beyond me.Oh wait, I know where I see them - in your imagination....
Posted on: 2013/2/14 20:17
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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Quote:
+1 many other things, besides mortgage.
Posted on: 2013/2/14 18:17
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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1. if you have 4 people sharing, the income per person would be 15k to 18.75k ... consider that minimum wage is $7.25/hour ... 2. but, the joke is on the landlord ... can he expect someone making $60/75k move there? for that you can actually get a nice little place in da burbs ...
Posted on: 2013/2/14 17:44
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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I agree with you, Griffin, on your points about the neighborhood changing, perceptions, and who lives here. I make a lot more than 75K and live here because I want to spend my money on other things.
Posted on: 2013/2/14 17:17
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Just can't stay away
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Quote:
Fair point. I'm no expert in this landlording thing yet so I can't comment on that or requirements. I only have a few units under my belt. But to be fair, I live in this exact area/Greenville/Edge of Bayonne and I do make more than that for sure. As a girl, I do find it relatively nice, friendly and safe, and find it that the negative view is mostly coming from outside perception based on old experiences or stories. I do think, looking around everyday, that this particular area is going through a gentrification process for sure. I think it's people that want to take chances that will transform a neighborhood slowly but surely. Some people do decide to only spend 1/5 of the income on the rent, while others like when I lived in NYC - it was more of a 1/2.5.
Posted on: 2013/2/14 17:10
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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That is pre-crash talk. And also was used in desirable places in Manhattan and Brooklyn. That's not going to work in the fringe of the ghetto. In the NYC metro area, typically people spend 1/3 or more of their pre-tax income on rent. I think you must be joking to think someone earning $75k moves to Danforth.
Posted on: 2013/2/14 14:38
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Just can't stay away
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@o73o2,pacoYtaco,user1111 - Thanks so much for your help. I'll definitely rethink on this, and redo.
@o73o2 - In terms of the 40, 50x - do you mean before or after tax?
Posted on: 2013/2/14 13:45
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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1. You're overpricing the place a tad - my guess is $150/month or 10%.
2. It's not very attractive on the inside judging from the pictures, the house is located in a less than desirable area, and your ad doesn't show the outside of the house. All these speak against renting. 3. As far as the sec deposit goes - that's something you ought to keep as non-negotiable, unless the potential tenant would be willing to pay more in rent. 4. Typically, the minimum annual income should be 40 times monthly rent, hence you'd be renting to someone with $60k. But, since you'd be most likely renting to several people, I'd suggest that you raise the multiplier to 50 or $75k as minimum annual income. When we rent, m preference tends to be 50x. If they don't have it, well ... 5. You do lose some credibility with the reference to exchange place. It takes a while to figure out the approximate physical location of the property you offer to rent. And, since the premise of the transaction is the relatively easy and convenient access to Exchange place, and by extension to the City, you lose a bit of a credibility. I'd rephrase that part of the ad ... Who knows, it may actually benefit you.
Posted on: 2013/2/14 4:35
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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My credit is terrible but i can afford $1500 a month on my own. I paid a little more than 3/4 of that to live downtown and pay less than that in the heights. I also have washer, dryer, parking, dishwasher, storage, and yard with a great view of the NY skyline and buses at my doorstep, a half a block to the 9th street light rail.
Get pay stubs, past landlord recommendations (though maybe not current - that can cause problems) and be lenient on the security/credit history if it means getting a really good tenant who will respect your property and continue to live there. My biggest deal breaker when relocating is always laundry and a dishwasher. Parking depends on the location, but the laundry is an absolute must.
Posted on: 2013/2/14 0:05
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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lier wtf? did you mean liar?
Posted on: 2013/2/13 23:31
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Just can't stay away
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You are indeed a liar. The title of the apartment listing says that the apt is located in Exchange Place. I called you a liar for this reason. Liar!
Posted on: 2013/2/13 23:27
Edited by MonmouthMan on 2013/2/13 23:56:12
Reason: Misspelled word Edited by MonmouthMan on 2013/2/13 23:56:44 |
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Just can't stay away
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You are indeed a lier. The title of the apartment listing says that the apt is located in Exchange Place. I called you a lier for this reason. Lier!
Posted on: 2013/2/13 23:26
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Just can't stay away
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@MonmouthMan - I am not a liar and I hate the fact that you would even say that. I timed the 13minutes myself from the house to Exchange Place. Plus I work at Wall Street and it takes me 30minutes to get to work - it's fantastic. So please with the judgements and assumptions. And my god with the hostility.
I will be painting the whole place if tenant requires before they move in. As the paint job upstairs (despite the color) is nice and some viewers (with girls or boys) liked it, I decided to keep it for a bit. When I show, I tell them that it's going to be painted to white if required (or off white), easy fix. @Everyone else - Thank you so much for your helpful comments. At this time, I'm a bit reluctant to put anymore money into the house. Already with the new paint downstairs, new appliances. The ceiling fans came with the house (I wouldn't spend money buying that, of course). I agree that 1 bathroom is a problem, but the main issue isn't attracting interest or applicants - which I have had a lot of. It's that the applicants seem really bad. (So I'm a little reluctant to put more money and buy a W/D when interest level doesn't seem to be the issue? But I can be convinced) One was making 1800 and trying to rent a house for 1500. One with 550 credit score. One with a lot of evictions. Another from as one renter asked is: I do think 1.5month vs 1month security matter. I've had several situations where tenant thinks it's okay not to pay the last months rent if the security & leave the place trashed. so 1.5 month security I think really to motivate the renter a bit more to keep his act together and a lot of house repairs and damage easily cost more than 1.5x to fix. I promoted the private entrance because it seems like a lot of families with teenagers like to have a little independence (like the family that lived here before). Maybe I should take that out? Many Thanks again.Quote:
Posted on: 2013/2/13 15:39
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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Quote:
Great idea! The last place I rented had a washer and dryer and it made such a huge difference how I spent my weekends. GV lacks lots of things, but fortunately this part of GV has one of the best door to door service laundromat (Time to wash) I have ever seen in all of JC. Door to door service. Pick up, wash, fold and drop back off within 24 hours. The prices also reflects the demographics of the neighborhood, so its a win, win.
Posted on: 2013/2/9 14:24
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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Think about installing a washer and dryer. In my experience they are the most appreciated amenity a landlord can offer.
Posted on: 2013/2/9 14:11
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Just can't stay away
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And if the tiles in fact are new, you should give them a good cleaning and take a better picture as the people you would like to attract are probably mistaking the grout for dirt.
Posted on: 2013/2/9 2:23
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Just can't stay away
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Assuming that the ad mentioned by others is yours I can give you the following renter's advice: if adding a bathroom is not feasible, do something about the bedroom (and kitchen) floors! The paint I could see beyond and it's a quick fix even for me as a renter if I have the landlord's blessing but old carpeting is a deal breaker. I bet updating the kitchen tiles would completely alter the ambiance too, those have been there for a while, not so?
Posted on: 2013/2/9 2:16
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Just can't stay away
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Griffin: 1st, Your add on here and on CL is untruthful and misleading. This is your title, "$1500 / 4br - 1800ft? - Sunny 4 Bed/1 Bath House w/ Yard - Wall Street Commuters! (Exchange Place , Jersey City)" The house is located no where near Exchange Place...it's not until you get to the bottom of the add in tiny writing that one realizes the apartment is located on Princeton Ave at Pearsall Ave. Exchange Place is a beautiful area close to NYC, and your house is in the hood.
According to google maps, the house is 18 minutes from Exchange Place not the 13 minutes you claim. I hate lairs like you. Where I first moved to JC from out Arizona, I checked out adds on Craigslist and wasted my time looking at apartments who were untruthful about their location. 2nd, like what others have already pointed out, paint the walls white...all of them The pink room is godawful. You are required by law fyi to paint he walls before a new person moves in. I hope someone isn't stupid enough to move in with the walls like they are when you are required to paint them...
Posted on: 2013/2/9 0:10
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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You need to paint the interior rooms white, the pink room is the most unappetizing. If you decide to market the house for roomates is there enough room to park 4 cars? The investment you should have made was to put in another bathroom.
Posted on: 2013/2/8 23:48
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Quite a regular
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I definitely agree that the 4 bedroom/1 bathroom situation is a huge problem. My husband & I live along & we can barely negotiate the 1 bathroom in our loft. That would be a tough sell if you're sharing the house with roommates, etc.
I would also agree that it might help if you painted the place, the current colors are a bit much. It's the first thing I notice when I walk into a place.
Posted on: 2013/2/8 16:14
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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I'm in a similar situation. 6 years, no hassles, I fix the small stuff, my rent is a super-bargain and my landlord and I are both very happy with the status-quo. (to address your other point: a lot of old houses have only one bathroom. I was raised with three teenage girls sharing one. we survived.)
Posted on: 2013/2/8 16:10
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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You may also consider going the roommates.com route, which means you will get four rental agreements and less money would be asked of each of the tenants to pay.
The neighborhood is attracting more and more 20 something roommate situations than couples or families. Its ideal, horrible schools and cheap rent. I have done this in the past and it works fine. +1 on the one bathroom comment.
Posted on: 2013/2/8 15:23
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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If it was me, I wouldn't have bought the most expensive ceiling fans (honestly, looking at the pictures, I wouldn't have guessed they were anything different than 'regular' ceiling fans), and I would have instead invested in painting in more neutral colors.
But, I think as another poster indicated, the big challenge (other than location) is the one bathroom. I'm also curious whether promoting the private entrance to the basement bedroom (is it a legal bedroom?) will result in someone trying to sublet the basement?
Posted on: 2013/2/8 14:47
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Just can't stay away
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how long has it been vacant?
lower the price..or loose tenant for March 1st. This is not brain surgery.
Posted on: 2013/2/8 3:59
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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Why is 1.5 months of security deposit (vs 1 month) a big deal? It's more money for sure, but for a landlord, what's the difference? If a potential tenant says he only wants to give 1 month, does it reflect badly on the potential tenant?
Posted on: 2013/2/8 3:15
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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I am going to make a HUGE assumption here: yours is the property listed in the classifieds section of this site, right? If so, I can tell you what could be a glaring issue with the house: 4 bedrooms, but ONE bathroom (!!) I have never understood that trend. I have seen many houses like that: plenty of small(isn) bedrooms, and a single bathroom. If 3 or 4 people were to share this place, can you envision the morning chaos? Assuming three people, none of which are romantically involved, sharing a single bathroom can be a HUGE pain in the mornings. Other than that, I can agree that the house is very nice looking and should generate interest. I have been to the area, and it is fairly quiet given the roads around it.
Good luck! PS Would you consider something like the other person posted: a LONG term contract for a reduced rate? Say, three years at $1350? Some people (like me) truly despise moving and once they find a place they like, they are willing to stay for a long time. I have never been a landlord, but I am pretty sure that, over the long run, a good tenant who stays around for a long period makes things easier, and more profitable. I am sure one of the JC Listers that's also a landlord can chime in with personal takes on that. My personal (biased) take: I have been in my place for 6.5 years. My landlord loves me: no headaches, no hassles, no miscellaneous expenses (I fix anything that breaks that doesn't require a "professional") and in exchange, they have never raised my rent. It's a WIN/WIN.
Posted on: 2013/2/8 2:36
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Home away from home
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Not sure what Realtor you are using, when I am searching for a tenant I use Zillow, Craigslist, and Walkscore which always brings me peeps from outside of JC so they don't have phobias about GV or BL.
I also think May is the best time for grabbing a tenant here in GV most people stay put until the school year lets out. Once May hits you will see Uhauls on every corner. My last two renters came from Walkscore, which is pretty good. Also for four bedrooms, I think you have priced it very well. :) Hang in there.
Posted on: 2013/2/7 14:17
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Re: Help! Landlord's advice needed! Having such a hard time Renting out a Single Family Home
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Hi!
Many Thanks for this. The house is a 4 bedroom with a private entrance for the bedroom in the basement. Stainless steel appliances, newly renovated, it's beautiful inside. Sunny yard, hardwood floors and like random $500 dollar ceiling fans in every room. It's nice and people do say it's a steal "good deal", so I'm not so much into lowering the price. It's just that the applicants have horrendous credit - so many applicants and interest level - zero approvals. Credit score of 500. When I call up the old landlord for reference, they say things like "this person have never paid a single bill on time". I'm conflicted because 1) If there is an interest to see, I feel like I have to show 2) If they say they want to apply, I send them an application only to be disappointed later I think the fact that the property is classified as "Greenville" may be hurting it? It's on the water edge so it's really nice and clean. I'm getting more of people from JC than NYC. I think the NYC folks seem to be a bit intimidated by the LightRail system?
Posted on: 2013/2/7 14:04
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