Income loss and unexpected expenses can wreak havoc with your budget. The rental is doing a bit of that this month. We tapped into the emergency fund to balance the "books" so to speak. The cost to head up to the rental was 500 hundred dollars and the loss of rent for June. However, by doing the work ourselves, we significantly saved. I hate paying someone to do the cleaning when I know I am going to clean it again. It took us 14 hours to complete the work, I refuse to pay people off the street 25 dollars an hour for shoddy work. I learned that a long time ago in the area.
There are so many ways you can save money with a bit of effort. We all have things that we find important. A clean car has always been high on my list. I save 100 dollars every time I detail the car. We travel a lot and I appreciate a clean-smelling car.
Gardening and landscaping is an expensive service. A few hours a week trims the garden maintenance to nothing.
Saving 20 dollars a week can create an emergency fund. Add your tax return to your savings to bulk up savings. Too many people think in the moment and not ahead.
This morning, the news reported that household staples have risen 30%. So, it is time to concentrate on food waste. My husband and I have always agreed that whole foods are never a place to scrimp. I tend to make or buy multi-use products. My cleaning closet used to be full of different products.
Share services where it is allowed. I swap trash service with my neighbor for the internet. We produce very little trash so I put our trash in their dumpster and they use our internet.
Bartering can be a great way to add to your budget. Our son wanted a saxophone. We bartered with 3 gas-powered (don't ask) mowers and a sewing machine from the same estate sale clean out. I have a storage shed for items that we pick up from estate sale cleanouts.
Landlords should plan for items that tenants leave behind. A lawnsale takes very little time. We will be doing this when we go back up to the rental. The kids will keep the money from the sale. We usually make several hundred dollars doing this.
Another money-saving time is to take a locked space in your rental to store your tools, cleaning supplies, and other things you need to get ready for the tenant.
I record a walkthrough upon arrival at the property when a tenant leaves. It holds up well in court. It also provides a due cause for keeping a deposit. Our deposit now reflects the time it takes us to clean up. I write this into the lease. I have yet to return a deposit. Honestly, tenant damages always exceed this amount. We seldom get the keys back. I have a key fee now as well. I recovered 15 sets of keys. I passed 2 sets with the lease. We changed the locks using locks that I had from other properties. Replacing locksets adds up quickly. It may seem cold, but this is part of income. People do not respect your property. I was challenged before a judge twice about keeping deposits> both times, the tenant ended up owing and paying us more. The judge was shown the videos and the tenants had been present when we did the walkthrough recording.
If you want to save money and hassle as a tenant:
Keep your unit clean of trash and debris.
Notice the landlord of any problem with the unit.
Don't do major remodels without the written consent of the landlord.
Take photos of the unit when you rent.
Make written notes of damages in the unit and have the landlord sign and date.
Make sure the unit is SPOTLESS.
Don't take things that do not belong to you
Don't have pets or roommates without written permission.
In all the years, I have been in property manager, I have never had a tenant leave the property clean and empty.
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