Dealing with destructive tenants, maintenance upkeep, yearly taxes, and difficult situations are just some of the reasons why landlords can become tired of their rental properties.
The cost of property taxes can increase yearly depending on the county or state you live in. These taxes usually increase with population growth to help with new schools and area projects. Property taxes can add up on a landlord that has multiple properties.
Tenants who do not keep up the property, cause constant issues, do not pay on time, and neglect the general cleanliness of the property can be stressful. Irresponsible tenants who do not live up to the obligation of their lease can be time-consuming.
Yearly upkeep and general maintenance can also add up over the years, especially if you own multiple properties or an older home. Replacing bigger items like air conditioners, heating units, and electrical issues can take a bite out of any rental income.
Being a landlord is not easy and while it can be rewarding at times, it can also be a lot of work with little to show for it. This is what happened with Amelia.
Amelia’s Story
Amelia is a 60-year-old retiree In Greenbelt, MD. Her mother passed away about 10 years ago and left her house to Amelia. Amelia didn’t want to get rid of the house so she decided to make it into a rental. She spent money on separating the house into a duplex and got it ready to rent.
For the most part, all of her tenants were kind and responsible. But there were a few that were troublesome. One tenant, while moving out left a box in front of the electric heater. The heater turned itself on and a small fire accident occurred. Another tenant destroyed the carpet in the apartment with cigarette holes. Some tenants left huge messes in one of the apartments when they left and another tenant kicked in a door. Amelia even had to evict two tenants at great expense to herself because of all the damages they had caused.
Recently the foundation was starting a shift in such a manner that a few of the floors were starting to buckle, the bathroom floor needed replacing and the windows were needing to be fixed.
Amelia started researching contractors to get a bid on repairs so she could contact her homeowners insurance.
Inspection
Amelia had a contractor come out and inspect the foundation and flooring in the house. The house had experienced some minor flooding over the years. Water running under the house with no real outlet had caused the foundation to crack. The shifting of the foundation is causing the flooring to buckle and several of the joists to rot.
The contractor informed Amelia of the needed repairs. The foundation would need to be repaired and ventilation added. The joist under the house would need to be replaced and so would the flooring. Amelia contacted her homeowner’s insurance.
Due to not having flood insurance on her policy, Amelia would have to pay out of pocket for a lot of the repairs. She started researching the repairs online to get an idea of what it would cost.
The average cost to replace a floor joist and jack is around $20,000. The average cost of flooring for the rooms Amelia would have to replace was around $12,000. Finally, the average foundation repair and ventilation repair can cost anywhere from $5,000-$21,000.
Amelia would also be without rental income during the repairs and it could take a month or more to complete because of supply issues.
Amelia’s Solution
Amelia was starting to feel very stressed out with owning a rental. The cost of yearly maintenance was starting to outweigh any profit she was receiving from the rental. That compounded with increased insurance fees due to bad renters and property taxes going up added up to her barely being able to keep up.
As much as Amelia wanted to keep the rental house her mother left her for extra income, it was becoming extremely expensive with all the repairs that needed to be made and she realized that she really was tired of being a landlord.
Amelia decided to do more research online to see what solutions she could find that might help with her situation. While she was researching, Amelia came across Akin Developers. She saw that Akin offers a no-cost, no-obligation offer for homes in almost any condition. Amelia decided to reach out to us and see if Akin could help her. After her initial phone conversation, we set up a meeting to take a look at her home. We met with Amelia and after inspecting her home, we offered a fair price for the home in its current condition, which Amelia accepted. Amelia’s house closed in about 10 days. She was able to save the money from the sale of the house to fully enjoy her retirement.
Conclusion
There are many reasons landlords can become tired of their rental properties. Sudden, catastrophic repairs, rising costs, and just the time-consuming upkeep of the property can take a toll on your well-being.
Should you find yourself in Amelia’s situation and need to sell your home quickly for cash-whether with structural damage, electrical issues, distress, or in perfect condition-contact us here at Akin Developers and see what we can do for you too.
