Florida Legislature

[goldmom]

House and Senate has unanimously passed SB621.
The bill addressed eliminated the “rights” of squatters and simplifies the onerous and costly process for evicting persons who have no right to break into a residence and live there for free, trashing the place in the process.
A lady here in Jacksonville had over $45,000 worth of damage done to a house she owned that was undergoing some updates in between tenants when squatters moved in over a weekend and refused to leave. Between court costs, lost rental revenue and repairs to smashed in walls, theft of appliances and destroyed plumbing the woman’s finances took a serious hit. Her testimony to legislators, along with that of similar stories by others around the state pushed this through unopposed. Now the authorities can act quickly to return possession to the owners.
I’ve seen horror stories on Facebook from other states who had really cumbersome laws in place that protected the unauthorized occupants over the owners and I hope those states follow Florida’s example.

 

[F4Gary]

Good. I had to evict the tenants in my Austin rental after they quit paying rent. Derelict waiters that worked on 6th street.

 

[DFSNOLE]

Good.

 

[GeddyLee09]

Good news for sure. Luckily, I only have had one deadbeat tenant in my years of renting. It was a nightmare booting them after 3 months of not paying rent. Took another 3 months and endless trips to court before kicking them out. Never got the rent money from them even though they were ordered to pay. Cant get blood from a rock I guess.

 

[Ohio1nole]

Good news for sure. Luckily, I only have had one deadbeat tenant in my years of renting. It was a nightmare booting them after 3 months of not paying rent. Took another 3 months and endless trips to court before kicking them out. Never got the rent money from them even though they were ordered to pay. Cant get blood from a rock I guess.

My friend has a nice little portfolio of different properties he’s gotten over the years. I think they are all single family houses that he fixed up and rents out.

I always wondered if the juice is worth the squeeze. Because the houses that he’s getting are at the starter home level.. so I can’t see him charging too high of a monthly rent.

How has your experience been in this space? Do you feel like you’re getting your moneys worth here when it comes to the renting business?

 

[F4Gary]

I had one more tenant after the idiot renters and then I said that's it and sold the house.
The judge had ordered the evictees to pay me $2400 but I never saw it. I only had 2 rent houses and decided it just wasn't worth it.

 

[seminoleed]

I had one that fought and fought through the courts for 6 months; she finally gave up, moved (after trashing the place) but I still knew where she worked and had her bank account numbers. Since the court gave me a dollar judgment which she didn't pay, my attorney used that to garnish her wages AND her bank account. He scheduled it for the first business day of the following month, and I got her paycheck AND her SS check, all of which were deposited that day in her account. She called me and asked for the money back--I politely declined, and she changed bank accounts and employers quickly. Never was made whole, but took a great deal of satisfaction out of all that.

 

[GeddyLee09]

My friend has a nice little portfolio of different properties he’s gotten over the years. I think they are all single family houses that he fixed up and rents out.

I always wondered if the juice is worth the squeeze. Because the houses that he’s getting are at the starter home level.. so I can’t see him charging too high of a monthly rent.

How has your experience been in this space? Do you feel like you’re getting your moneys worth here when it comes to the renting business?

I rented my starter house for about 15 years before selling it and it was more of a tax break. I had two other rent houses as well and was able to make some money on it but it just wasn't worth the effort. Between all the maintenance and other issues that come with renters it becomes more of a pain than it's worth. I got rid of all of the rent houses last year and now just have a condo that I rent to vacationers plus my two places.

 

[Ohio1nole]

I rented my starter house for about 15 years before selling it and it was more of a tax break. I had two other rent houses as well and was able to make some money on it but it just wasn't worth the effort. Between all the maintenance and other issues that come with renters it becomes more of a pain than it's worth. I got rid of all of the rent houses last year and now just have a condo that I rent to vacationers plus my two places.

That’s what I’m wondering if my friend is experiencing the same headaches as well. With maintenance, upkeep, crappy renters, etc.

Social media makes it seem like owning and renting properties is hassle free and the easiest way for passive income

 

[GeddyLee09]

That’s what I’m wondering if my friend is experiencing the same headaches as well. With maintenance, upkeep, crappy renters, etc.

Social media makes it seem like owning and renting properties is hassle free and the easiest way for passive income

It's not hassle free. Things tend to break more often if you're not in the house to take care of them. For some reason renters seem to be able to break a steel ball with a rubber mallet too. I've had renters call me about blown out light bulbs, have had to snake septic's to clear diapers (and other things) it's a chore especially if you're not in the area to take care of it yourself. If you have good renters and a local person to fix things it can be a breeze but I just don't see it being worth it anymore.

I don't know anyone that rents houses that will tell you it's easy and hassle free.

 

[seminoleed]

As an absentee owner, I'm in the process of selling mine as soon as possible. Too old for all the BS from tenants. Even the best renters on paper can turn out to be problematic.

 

[goldmom]

We had several rental properties in Tally back in the day. We lived in Tally and then in Tampa so we could stay on top of things, but when we started moving around the country it became a hassle,
We had a decent property management company but it became a huge headache and the tax break wasn’t worth it anymore. If you’re local and you can manage your own stuff it’s still a reasonable option. In fact there’s a small apartment complex in short walking distance to Doak that I wish we still owned. I’d have one unit for football weekends and rent the rest.