We sent out letters to our tenants 2 months ago that rent would be going up $30 April 1, 2020. No complaints and we have already had some folks pay April rent early.
Should we postpone rent increase because of Covid-19 and what is going on in the world?
Or continue business as usual?
Thank you very much for you thoughts and wisdom!!
Business as usual. If the rent increase was justified 2 months ago nothing has changed today.
I did the same thing which also gave me pause. That said, rents are still below market so I plan on staying the course and working with any tenants on a case by case basis if need be. The stimulus $ will result in many being better off than they previously were, and ironically the latest holdup with the bill has come with the revelation that many people would be incentivized to get laid off and receive $600/wk for 4 months with no work ($15/hr).
That being said, I donât believe Greg lives on the same planet as many of us with the âbusiness as usualâ and ânothing has changed todayâ comments, probably resulting from the limited data set of 20 lots he operates.
Thank you mhp
business as usual was my wording and your right things are changing and we will need to take each situation case by case.
MPH your last paragraph was not really necessary on this blog site. Any time we think the government is out to make out lives betterâtry to remember all the funds doled out are from TAXPAYERS like you and me and they have never asked me if they could use my money to take care of illegals while many former vets are homeless with no voice or politicians taking up there issues. We have be in the park business for over 35 yearsâwe have seen our friends in 08-09 lose it allâhave compassion for every one even if you disagree!!
Intelligent business practices have nothing to do with scale of investment. Landlords expenses are not going to decrease this year due to the virus. Most landlords will lose income due to tenants not catching up on deferred rent payments and sky high evictions when this passes. Expenses go up, rents go up. Paying tenants carry those that do not pay especially during times like this. If landlords choose to change their planed practices based on compassionate grounds that is their business but I know when it is all said and done regardless of what we do we are going to end up looking like the bad guys. The majority of tenants resent landlords and rarely if ever appreciate landlords good deeds. They believe they are entitled to it.
I care about my tenants but prioritise my business. A healthy business does far more for tenants well being than misguided business decisions based on compassion.
No good deed ever goes unpunished. If landlords believe today is different then by all means operate your business with your heart. Obviously some tenants will be treated on a case by case bases as balance is required but the scale must tip in a landlords favour in the bigger picture.
I raised my rents in January and see no reason to change that now.
Under normal circumstances business is never personal. Today is not normal so by all means to each their own.
Business as usual. If you dont believe me look at the pork inserted in the Covid 19 bill, and the House hasnt got it yet. âNo good deed goes unpunishedâ is BS.
Seriously ? Itâs the mantra of this business.
Iâm usually mildly amused with your postings, but the things you are saying here can ruin peopleâs lives, and I am compelled to say otherwise so that other park owners can decide for themselves. I had a tenant lose her job due to the pandemic. In your park she and her young son will be on the streets next week homeless without any hope as thatâs âbusiness as usual.â I have chatted with her and her employer - and getting her on a plan to get current as soon as possible. Yes, I realize you think this is a ridiculous practice, but these are unprecedented times.
The government steps in to make sure landlords, en masse, do the right thing in times like this because otherwise the impact to the population would be severely worse (âbusiness as usual screws peopleâ). To all the other park owners reading this - please please do soul searching about what youâre trying to achieve in this business. If itâs only about the money, good luck and reach out to Greg for additional money-centric-only tidbits. For example - donât forget to require your tenants also put you as the sole beneficiary on their life insurance policies, in addition to the $1M liability policy. Okay he doesnât do that I donât think but you get the gist.
Empathy can backfire, sure, so donât bet the bank on it. But empathy also establishes some of the deepest trust-based relationships you can ever findâŠwhere do you want to be if you ever hit hard times?
@Greg I do certainly appreciate your expertise on some posts, but severely disagree with this one. The rib jabs are intended to be professional, and expect a commensurate response - as always.
jhutson - very well written, accurate and diplomatic post. Thanks.
Iâll give you an example of the kind of person Greg is. My name is Mick, a person once referred to me on this message board as âMickeyâ. I responded to the content of his post, and at the end stated that only my late mother referred to me as âMickeyâ with a wink. Greg got annoyed with me on a subsequent post critical of his commentary, from that point forward he would go out of his way to refer to me as Mickey. All you need to know about the guy.
jhutson
Two points you missed in my post are that my comment regarding âbusiness as usualâ was in regards to a rent increase. That was the question on this post. Annual rent increases are standard, if your tenant has a job and pays rent, then it is business as usual. If a tenant loses their job and does not pay rent they are unaffected by a rent increase until they go back to work. I see no relationship between a annual increase and the virus.
The second point you missed is that I clearly stated tenants are to be treated on a case by case bases, and today is not normal therefor each landlord makes their own decisions. I have never said otherwise. Not my problem if other landlords can not manage that decision on their own.
You are right the government steps in to protect tenants, unfortunately they care nothing for landlords. We must protect ourselves keeping in mind for many small landlords their rent collections is the only money putting food on the table. I will admit I have little compassion however I believe the government will protect the tenants and I will be left alone to protect myself. So far I have heard not word one in regards to helping landlords. Correct me if I am wrong on that point.
Personally I will not be adversely effected but many landlords will and I trust that not heeding the warning that no good deed goes unpunished will be ultimately very painful financially. When a tenant can not pay that is not a favour from the landlord it is forced by the tenant. Normally that would result a eviction notice. In todays environment the eviction notice will come later when they refuse to catch up. No tenant in my park will lose their home due to this situation. If I did have a tenant that could not pay I can guarantee they would catch up later. If others can say the same then no problem but if not compassion comes at a high price. Be very carful which tenants you extend compassion to many (some) may not be deserving.
I may come across as a cold hearted p*ick but that is only because as a realist I donât waste energy sugar coating my warnings. I also do not rely on religious beliefs to structure my business practices which I am certain many will find fault with. (I just threw that in to stir the pot)
It might be your âmantra of the businessâ but not the rest of the industry. I might give residents the benefit of the doubt sometimes. If theyâre not educated enough to use it for good its on them.
I am more than happy to accept it solely as my own mantra. I would get it trade marked but sadly it is very widely used in our industry.
Here is another oneâŠWhen in doubtâŠDonât
Remember of all those suffering through this situation the only ones that will ultimately receive zero compassion will be landlords.
We are also asking tenants to pay rent as normal. As others mentioned above, our rents are already below market value and we are expecting almost all tenants to be eligible for funds from the upcoming stimulus package. Many are already on social security, section 8, etc.
Today we will be distributing a sheet that describes local services tenants can access for food, medicine, and transportation. The more they access the services, the more of their money is left over to pay rent. In addition, this shows some level of concern and action from the landlord without decreasing rent or having to consider tenants on a case-by-case basis (which in my mind would be very time-intensive and lead to a lot of âsob storiesâ difficult for emotional landlords to handle).
Unbelievable Greg, you are indeed the poster child for Dunning Kruger.
@Greg - since 20 lots is unlikely a significant source of income, would be very curious to hear a little bit about your background, career/job experience, age (guessing between 12-15yo), etc.
Will help frame and paint a picture of why you spend so much of your time antagonizing people on a message board devoted to something that barely brings you any income.
What else keeps you occupied on a daily basis?
Here is my Dunning - Kruger inflated self assessment of the situation going forward. Feel free to criticize, ignore or simply dismiss as fear mongering.
The U.S. is on path to being the hardest economically hit country in the world. To suggest things will get worse is a laughable understatement. It is going to be far longer than anyone wishes to admit. Small landlords will be very hard hit with governments suggesting to tenants that they do not need to pay rent. Landlords will have no recourse.
I would wish everyone the best of luck but if you are depending on luck or divine intervention your chances may be very slim.
Compassion has a short life span for those desiring to survive the coming disaster.
Neither those that agree or disagree need to hear any more from me. I may post again when the economic recovery begins in the distant future, I may not.
Good bye
I commend you on offering this information to your tenants!
Iâve learned the hard way The (no good deed) a very well known and good district attorney told me this years ago when I started this business. Sad as it is you get tenants that use this virus with out being affected. Perfect Example- tenant receives a check 3rd of every month but didnât pay in full because of the virus ! Really!
I think it would be a poor business decision to raise rents right now. The news would eat that upâŠ