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Oh that's perfect, I never thought of getting a two-sim phone.

Things I include are:

all payments are made through cozy.co, please arrange payments to be made on the first of each month.

Utilities: please call xxx for electricity, xxx for gas, xxx for internet, etc

Garbage days are x, recycling days are x, please use BLACK BAGS for garbage and CLEAR for recycling.

If you have BULK GARBAGE (tables, chairs, etc.) please contact xxx to schedule pickup.

BEST MEANS OF CONTACT xxx@GMAIL.COM (PREFERRED), or TEXT (xxx)xxx-xxxx

Mail & Packages – if mail for any past tenants come, please bundle them together and leave a note for the post-man that they have moved.

Renters insurance can be purchased via Cozy.Co or Lemonade.com (you should include a clause in your lease that they need to purchase it, it saves you a lot of money and headaches in the long term if something goes horribly wrong)


Tips for maintaining your unit:
Purchase some drain snakes from home depot (~$1 each, or https://www.amazon.com/Vastar-Drain-Snake-Remover-Cleaning/dp/B01DP87IF8/ref=sr_1_1?s=kitchen-bath&ie=UTF8&qid=1538690742&sr=1-1&keywords=sink+snake) and use them around the house every 3 months or when sinks begin to not drain properly.

DO NOT USE DRANO OR EQUIVALENT AS YOUR FIRST OPTION WHEN DRAINS DO NOT GO DOWN PROPERLY. This damages pipes over time and is only recommended as a last resort.

Sinks do not double as garbage disposal, please use a sink strainer and do not let any food go down the kitchen sink.

It is highly recommended that you purchase a roomba or equivalent, or hire a cleaning company every month or so.

In the winter, if the weather is incredibly cold out (less than 32 degrees F), please leave the kitchen sink dripping every so slightly (a drip per second), as this will prevent pipes from bursting.


Again, I hope you are happy with your new apartment, and if there is anything else I can do to make the move-in process easier please let me know.
All the best,
xxx

The Michigan state government publishes a PDF that goes over everything you need to know from both the tenant's and landlord's perspective: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/dleg/Tenants_and_Landlords_304581_7.pdf

It's fairly dry, but is a good resource. (I'm also a Michigan landlord.)

There's also a 400+ page book called Landlording (http://www.amazon.com/Landlording-Handymanual-Scrupulous-Landladies-Themselves/dp/0932956254) that's far and away the most recommended book about landlording. It discusses not just legal stuff, but advice, best practices, etc.

If you don't want to read the whole thing, my co-landlord Tim (/u/timfromcastle) took super detailed notes and made them publicly available in this Google doc: https://docs.google.com/a/entercastle.com/document/d/1ZXqREoNJYaN-pxXn-8hq90tvOA8PpFElezSeELiLmFw/edit#

Best of luck!

For the bathroom I like the water efficient toilet idea, but I probably wouldn't replace it just because, but ill keep this on my radar.

I already have a timer for the fan because my previous tenants were not the best about using it I think. But the motion sensor idea sounds interesting. What product do you use?

I believe the windows are coming up on 30 years old so new windows are probably a good idea. I hadn't heard of thermal curtains before-- is there anything to look out for there?

I just replaced the faucet and installed a dishwasher so we're on the same page there!

Feature wall sounds like a great idea too.

Thanks for all the suggestions!

I can't help you on what is legal in NM, hopefully someone else can chime in on that. Your landlord may let you break your lease early if you don't feel safe with him moving in early. Worst you could do is ask and she says no. The landlord may require you to get a restraining order before she will allow that. Alternatively your landlord may let you find someone to take over the lease if they qualify with the landlord.

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The rest of this is not really landlord advice but personal security advice.

You are ultimately responsible for your own safety and security, not your landlord or the police. If you don't feel safe you need to make it a priority to get out of the situation. Document everything that he does that is pushy or unwelcome, it may help you legally if there is an incident that you have a paper trail.

You need to up your situational awareness 10x and have a plan for how you will defend yourself if he gets aggressive with you. You cannot be on your phone while entering or exiting your house any longer. Always lock your doors on your house and car (You can check the vehicle manual to disable it auto unlocking if your vehicle does that inappropriately like my mazda did).

You can visit /r/homedefense to learn about how to prep your home, they often have good tips even for those who rent and may not be allowed to make changes to the door/window frames. These kind of tips will help you keep him out of your home if he does try to enter.

If he does get in though which is always a possibility no matter how well you prepare you need to be able to physically defend yourself. I recommend you have 1-2 canisters of oc spray with you at all times and pursue ccw if you don't already in NM (from what I understand the process is pretty bad in NM so this may take 6+ months). Firearms are the great equalizer as even smaller women are able to defend themselves against large aggressive men with them. I do not recommend knives, batons, or stun guns as they are less effective than oc spray and firearms at the victim surviving an attack.

Stay safe, and if you get a bad vibe about how he is acting or posturing immediately remove yourself from the situation. Don't gamble with your life if you think this guy is going to get aggressive with you.

Agreed, it's your business. She can hire her own inspection done if she wants.

That being said, maybe not a terrible idea to purchase a lead detection kit to make sure there's no lead - for your own peace of mind if nothing else. Lead chips taste sweet so young children really will eat them.

It's also not unusual especially for first time moms to overworry about their kids. If you think she's a good tenant and want to keep her I'm sure there are some basic reassurances you can provide. If not, I agree with u/NetWareHead that you maybe just don't renew the lease.

Good luck!

A good book to read is [McNamara's Folly] (https://www.amazon.com/McNamaras-Folly-Low-IQ-Troops-Vietnam-ebook/dp/B0108H60MG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1551118791&sr=8-1&keywords=mcnamara%27s+folly+the+use+of+low-iq+troops+in+the+vietnam+war). If you've never really dealt with the mentally disabled it's helpful to think of them in terms of physical capabilities. Asking a mentally disabled person to live independently in a house and take care of it is about like giving a 5'0", 100 pound college girl a job with a jackhammer on a demo crew. If you can't do the job no amount of motivation or punishment will make you able to do the job.

Another analogy is like ordering your dog to do your taxes. Whose fault is it when your taxes don't get done right and on time?

The republican party likes to hold up the image of the welfare queen who could work but she's milking the system out of laziness. Hope that you get someone like this. Most of them aren't. Most of them can't work because there is literally nothing they are capable of doing that holds any value to an employer.

I've been a landlord for a few years, and a few months ago a friend suggested the bigger pocket's book on renting, and I found it to be a great primer on what to do: many of them are things I had already figured out by trial and error, but others that were new to me but great ideas.


If you do get it, I'd recommend a hard copy, not a kindle version, since there are sample forms and things that are useful to have in a physical, printed format.

I am only going by the legal advice I was given by our lawyer (that the hot water going out for a short time doesn't make it inhabitable).
The way it was explained to me is that you can still take cold water and heat it on the stove if you need hot water, for example. Not being able to take a hot shower sucks but it's not render the place unlivable.
11 days seems like a long time when it's happening but, by your account, they seemed to be making an honest attempt to fix it.
I would advise in the future to fight this when it was happening, and not months after the fact. You might be able to come up with a compromise like buying something like this (just an example).

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>In MA, you would need the sherif to personally serve the tenant with the eviction notice.

I first had to purchase the Summons and Complaint form from the district court, fill it out (including a very precise and critical series of dates) and yes, hire a sheriff to serve it. You can't have it served until the tenancy has been properly terminated. That can happen via any of the various Notice-To-Quits, or as in my case, the tenancy automatically terminated because it was a fixed-term lease with a specified end date.

Once the form is served, I collect a copy from the sheriff and bring it back to the court with the Notice-To-Quit (or lease) and pay the fees to enter it into record. The tenant then has a period during which they can file an Answer, request discovery, request a delay or change the venue. After that we go to court.

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> It sucks, but you can’t cash those checks either.

Are you aware of a law or statute that makes that clear? Do you mean ever? The wording in the Reservation of Rights letter (which comes from Landlord's Legal Guide in Massachusetts) certainly makes it seem like recovering that money is not out of the question, as long as it is done correctly.

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Thank you

Nothing but Spam.

Who would've guessed low energy lightbulbs save money.

Nevermind, the article is literally just a paragraph about a single brand of lightbulbs OP is trying to get you to buy.

But, if you're interested, here's the Non-Referral link to the lightbulbs in question:

• https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01CAL1EMY/

Association Treasurer here, few years ago we installed these 1 for each half of a 12 unit building.
They work great and easy to reprogram. Has lasted over a year on a single battery.

Schlage FE575 CAM 619 ACC Camelot Keypad Entry with Auto-Lock and Accent Levers, Satin Nickel https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001RFDB6C/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_KktBxbR7R5TJW

you may want to start with one of these.....https://www.amazon.com/P3-P4400-Electricity-Usage-Monitor/dp/B00009MDBU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500470700&sr=8-1&keywords=wattage+meter....and see if they have the a/c running 24/7. If they do then shame on you. A properly sized unit should cool the unit to 70 degrees on the hottest day of any year. Same with heating. One way to properly size a furnace is to wait for the coldest day of the year (or close), read the gas meter and then read it again after 24 hours. If the unit stayed heated to the required standard, you can figure out what size of furnace you need. I went from a 450l btu boiler to a 300 by using this method and its been 4 years and it works great and way more efficient

It honestly depends where you live, such as a tenants union that you can research and pursue follow up. For example, this is Seattles: http://www.tenantsunion.org/en . I think it comes down to how much effort you want to deal with this. Do you have natural gas coming in to your place? If not it really may not be worth it. If you're very concerned, you need immediately remedy, and the landlord is dragging their feet, here's one from Amazon from $20 https://www.amazon.com/First-Alert-CO400-Battery-Monoxide/dp/B000N8OYXI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1475004662&sr=8-2&keywords=c02+detector

Well, if he's spraying them during the day that's likely not going to help much.

Get a bee suit

I used that one to nuke a bald hornet's nest.

Then get some foaming insect killer

I used that stuff.. worked well. I wouldn't use it in combination with any other non-foam spray as it might wash away the foam and the bees might be able to attack you for a few minutes.

The idea is to spray into the nest when they are all there. This way they can't get out... and you get them all.

Do it at night. I hit them at like 3 in the morning.. sprayed 2 cans (probably excessive) and had great success.

Certainly a PIA, but you can get it.

upvote for this comment! We just purchased a smart key lock set and will be installing these in our units moving forward. At $40-50 per lock set and having the ability to rekey them on the fly, without changing out any hardware, they're definitely worth it!

Honestly, I probably wouldn't rock the boat over something so nominal. Easiest way to clean a shower/grout? Buy some shower cleaner, a drill and this attachment: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MRLZ43B. Your shower will be sparkling in no time with minimal elbow grease.

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Before you start, take photos to document condition so it isn't an issue on move out.

You and your tenants will be happier with these. They’re easy to install. You’ll need to buy an “in baseboard” thermostat to go with it.

Cadet Manufacturing 05534 120-Volt White Baseboard Hardwire Electric Zone Heater, 1000-Watt, 8.33-Amp, 48-Inch, 1000 W https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000IG81OI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_EVrCCbXPXM6BJ

Leigh Robinson's "Landlording" remains the Bible, in my opinion! Best book and covers a little bit of everything, with lots of sample forms you can try / adopt.

Oh yeah! New handles! Who would have known a $2/door upgrade could make such a difference. I got some knobs similar to https://www.amazon.com/homdiy-Cabinet-Brushed-Nickel-Handles/dp/B073TWK9RC that went a long way to improving the kitchen.

https://www.amazon.com/Every-Landlords-Legal-Marcia-Stewart/dp/1413317146

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Buy this book and read it, it will give you the basic legal stuff and what you can and cannot do. Other than that its all about relationship building and cost effective ways to solve repair problems. Have a good eviction lawyer on hand for worst case scenarios and do tenant screening. Its not that hard but again its not that easy. You can try a property manager for a year to get it rolling and when you are comfortable enough, just take over.

http://www.amazon.com/Landlording-Handymanual-Scrupulous-Landladies-Themselves/dp/0932956254

$6 will get this book delivered to your door. And it has every single answer you seek.

Make sure you read up on your local laws (google your state + landlord tenant laws). Do NOT go into this business without being properly educated and prepared, that's a recipe for disaster.