Samiam Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 Our lease will expire on April 6th. DH and I have been discussing whether we will move or stay. We'd like to move (locally) and get cheaper rent...but unless it's MUCH cheaper, the move won't save money in the long run because of deposits, moving costs, etc (We are only planning on renting one more year...by this time next year we hope to buy). The Property Manager called me this week and said she hadn't heard from us about the lease...that we had to give 30 days notice, and that means we should have told her by March 6th if we were moving. I said that we weren't sure yet, and it will depend on if the owner raises rent, but we'd be sure to give 30 days notice if we decided...and had not expected to move out on April 6th anyway...would have been April 1 notice, and 30 days later for move out at the earliest. We didn't feel a rush in this, as the past three years, when it was lease renewal...she'd call us or we'd call her, in April-Mayish and get a new lease sent out. So her "rush" this time, to call me in March...just struck me as odd. I mentioned that perhaps we'd like to go month-to-month in the event that we end up buying sooner than expected. She was pretty adamant that she does not offer month-to-month and if it is ever done, she charges a "premium" for that, ie higher rent. She will get in touch with the landlord and discuss lease terms (ie raise rent? We'd move. We also asked for him to put in a fence..hey, doesn't hurt to ask, right?) So today she calls me back with the terms: 1. He agrees to go month-to-month, with NO RAISE in rent. 2. He declines the fence request. 3. He is having an appraiser come out as he wants to refinance. I specifically asked if he's refinancing or looking to sell...PM said "he told me refinance". This strikes me as odd. I smell a "wants to sell". When we moved in here three years ago, the PM called me the first month to see if we wanted to buy the house. We didn't. Now I am thinking he's agreed to month to month because that lets him only give 30 days notice, if he sells it, or even wants us out to make it easier to sell. I don't see any other advantage for HIM to agree to month-to-month . (We've lived here for three years, pay rent on time, and rarely call for anything, and have not damaged the house.). I didn't specifically ASK for month-to-month...I just casually mentioned it in discussing our goal to purchase. DH says I'm being dramatic. He says the landlord has an advantage to keep us, because we are good tenants, and went along with the month to month request because I asked for it. (DH wasnt there for the phone conversation). That makes no sense to me. I don't see going month-to-month being a positive for a owner since you could lose your paying tenants at any given month..there's no "for sure thing". I am telling DH that we need to have our funds to move, ready and waiting as we could get the notice any given month and we don't want to be caught unprepared (we have the funds now, if needed...but would need to be sure to put said funds AWAY and not use for anything else). DH says I'm panicking for no reason. We've never met the landlord, he lives out of state. We get the vibe that he rents this out not so much as a "business" but probably his own personal house that didn't sell when he had to move. We know he routinely pays his HOA fees late every year (the letters come here, we often can't get in the community pool the first few weeks until he gets his account up to date, etc). So I don't think this is a money making thing for him...I feel like this is a "pay the mortgage until I move back or sell it" situation for him. So what's the advantage for him to go month to month, that I am missing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
North Coast School Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 Having been a landlord twice, i would honestly say that if the owner is willing to go month-to-month he is most likely getting ready to sell or make changes of some kind. Just my 2 cents. But if you wanted month-to-month, that would be in your best interest anyway, right? I wouldn't bother getting another rental if you are planning to buy in the next year or sooner. It will take your landlord a long time to sell a house that is occupied with tenants. You will have plenty of advance notice...unless he sells it to another investor, then you might have changes in management and/or rent but you would still be "safe." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freckles Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 I'm a landlord in a house that can't sell. For me, a month to month is still better than no rent at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 We are landlords and we go month to month with our tenants after a year. We don't want them to feel like they can't move after having stayed for a year. You said, " I don't see any other advantage for HIM to agree to month-to-month," but the advantage for him is that you stay. You've been good tenants and maybe he's thankful for that, and realizes you may not want to be tied into a year long lease. A disadvantage for him is that you can up and leave with 30 days notice (just like it's a disadvantage for you, should he decide to sell). I don't smell any zee fish myself. Not solely based on what you've written. I agree with your husband. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staceyobu Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 Having decent renters that pay their rent and don't trash the place can be really, really hard to find. He may have been afraid that you would have moved instead of signing another year long lease. We were month to month for over a year when we rented last because the owner never got around to signing another lease. As long as you are paying, he isn't losing anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samiam Posted March 21, 2014 Author Share Posted March 21, 2014 Yes, I guess you all have good points. I guess just the fact that he didn't raise the rent (he's only raised it once in the three years we've been here), since the PM was pretty specific about a "premium for going month to month", and I'd assume she would have advised him of that option, and the appraisal/refinance thing all added up to a panic mode for me, lol. And I agree, I do think it will take him a while to sell the house, especially with tenants. We have a handful of houses in our subdivision that have been sitting for a few months, and I know some of them are even empty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idnib Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 I think you're over-worrying. Good tenants can be hard to find. The landlord will also have costs associated with marketing/spiffing up/etc and may rather keep you at current rent than spend money to replace you at a higher rent if it's a wash anyway. Unless he sells it in a completely quiet transaction sight unseen to the buyer, you'll know. Also even if someone buys it they may keep you there. Our tenants were in the building when we bought it and we just kept renting to them. Also I don't know about other states but in CA if you've lived there for as long as you have you're entitled to 60 days, even if the lease says 30. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alte Veste Academy Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 We are landlords and we go month to month with our tenants after a year. We don't want them to feel like they can't move after having stayed for a year. You said, " I don't see any other advantage for HIM to agree to month-to-month," but the advantage for him is that you stay. You've been good tenants and maybe he's thankful for that, and realizes you may not want to be tied into a year long lease. A disadvantage for him is that you can up and leave with 30 days notice (just like it's a disadvantage for you, should he decide to sell). I don't smell any zee fish myself. Not solely based on what you've written. I agree with your husband. ;) I agree with this. I will also say, as a landlord who is getting a fair price for our house and has great tenants occupying the place, I have ZERO interest in raising rent just to hurry up and take my chances with the next renters. And no, I do not want my house sitting empty while I try to sell it. I would want you to stay. Best case scenario for him, you stay in there being great tenants while he accrues a year's more equity, leaving him all the more at an advantage if he wants to sell when you leave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 You asked to go month to month. He probably agreed because he isn't in a position to go without renters. That makes even more sense if he is looking to refinance. He probably can't afford for the house to be empty. So, he agreed to your terms in order to keep you as long as possible. I am a believer in instinct/gut feelings/etc, but you weren't talking directly with him, so I am not sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueTaelon Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 Dont places automatically go month to month when the lease expires? I've never needed to resign a lease after it expires unless there was a change in rent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
courtney.byrum Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 When we rented the house we were in for over 3 years we only had a lease the first year and then it went month-to-month after that (for over 2 more years) so just because it's month to month doesn't mean it has to be short term. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milovany Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 Dont places automatically go month to month when the lease expires? I've never needed to resign a lease after it expires unless there was a change in rent. Yes, if a new lease is not signed, it will go month-to-month. But if the landlord wants a new one-year lease, they can ask for that and the tenant has to decide if they want to sign on for another year, or find somewhere else to live. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
torikei Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 A lot of places go month to month after a year. College towns or areas with seasonal renting are the exception. Many property managers will give you the worst case scenario just in case that's what the landlord wants. I would let you rent month to month after three years and our rentals are in a college town. I, also, try not to raise the rates on tenants while they're renting. Good rentors are worth a little flexibility. Even if they do sell, you should have lots of notice. Several months at least. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craftymama Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 I don't see anything really fishy in the month to month thing, but you really can't predict what others are thinking or will do. It's best to be prepared and focus on what you want. Working harder to be ready to buy seems like the best thing you could do for yourself and help you ease your mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alef Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 We used to own a rental home, we always went month to month with tenants after the first year. You want a year lease the first year because you would lose money getting the house ready for new tenants every few months, but renters like to have flexibility after that first year. I've been both landlord and renter and that arrangement seems entirely reasonable to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 If you're looking to buy now, and he's looking to sell now, are you interested in buying the house you're in? That would save you from moving... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vonfirmath Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 Dont places automatically go month to month when the lease expires? I've never needed to resign a lease after it expires unless there was a change in rent. No. Out of the three rentals we lived in in Austin, only one went to month to month. The others wanted an additional lease signed. We left the third place and purchased a year earlier than we might have otherwise because we didn't want to sign another year's lease. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 Dont places automatically go month to month when the lease expires? I've never needed to resign a lease after it expires unless there was a change in rent. This is how it's worked for us. We've been renting month-to-month for something like four years now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyingiguana Posted March 21, 2014 Share Posted March 21, 2014 We just bought a house with a renter in it. The landlord kept stalling on the closing until the renter was ready to move out. The year long lease had expired and had gone to a month to month lease, but we still had to wait until the renter closed on the house she was buying. As it turned out, they didn't really need to worry, as we were buying the place to rent out, and we'd have been happy to have a decent renter stay. I think most people in these situations are willing to work around other people's needs. It is possible that your landlord wants to sell and is just getting ready for when you leave. It is just possible that he might want to do it sooner rather than later if he wants it done this year -- because the housing market is just now heating up and will be kind of over by Oct or so. That might be an issue that could cause problems. I'd suggest telling the manager that direct contact with the landlord about these matters might be helpful. If you all talk, it may sort itself out (although these managers have a habit of making things difficult). Offer your phone and email and tell the manager you're available for the landlord to contact you about your concerns. I'd also start looking at houses to buy. It's possible you'll want to move sooner than you think -- or decide that you don't want to buy after all, which will change your decisions regarding your current rental. FWIW -- we ALWAYS go with a month to month lease from the get go. I figure there's no point to a year lease, because if a tenant needed to get out of it, we'd just let them anyway. However, we have a pretty hot rental market, so we can get away with that. (And we're not renting to students who want to leave for the summer) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samiam Posted March 25, 2014 Author Share Posted March 25, 2014 So here's the latest update: Today the assessor came out to assess the house...supposedly for the owner to refinance as previously mentioned. I cleaned up....I thought he'd have to go room to room to measure, maybe take pictures (I half thought he may give feedback to the PM on the condition of the house, as the PM has not been to the house once since we lived here). I don't know that I've ever dealt with an assessor. I kinda expected him to be dressed casually, ie jeans, t-shirt...in case they have to get dirty on the job, or something. I dunno, check crawl spaces, basements etc (not that we have any of that at this house, in just in general). The guy came to the door, dressed pretty nicely. Brown dress slacks, and brown v-neck sweater. Pretty professional IMHO. He vaguelly looked familiar....something in my brain just clicked. He said he just needed to look around. He went upstairs, peeked in rooms, was up there for about a minute. He came downstairs, quickly looked around basically from the living room area (open floor plan so can see most of the downstairs from that vantage point). Said that was all he needed to do, thanks and goodbye. So he was here literally 3-4 minutes tops. About 10 minutes later, it dawned on me. I'm about 90% sure that he was our old neighbor (lived across the street, about 3 houses down, lived there for the first year we were here before they sold, we didn't interact much...basically waved as we crossed paths, and once in a general group of neighbors as we all sat outside for about an hour, in a attempt to have a "neighborhood potluck thing". They've been gone from the neighborhood for about 1 1/2 years now.). He is a real estate agent. Do real estate agents do the assessments? For re-financing purposes??? They don't take measurements or pictures or nothing? Or is my "he's getting ready to sell" vibe hitting closer to home? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 Maybe he's doing house appraisal as a side business. Our credit union has a list of six appraisers they use and a few are former real estate agents. Sure didn't take him long to do an appraisal, though. Kind of smells like your landlord is getting an agent in to see how much HE thinks the house will sell for. An appraisal, but not a formal one- just what the agent thinks they should put it on the market for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmandaVT Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 When we refinanced, the assessor was here for a few minutes - maybe 10 including outside time. I think he only took pictures of things that we had changed or upgraded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 I think you might be mixing up an appraiser with an inspector. We had our house appraised when selling it. He just measured outside, then took a look around inside. Having our house inspected when the sale was going through was different. That was when he looked under the crawlspace and in the attic and all of that, looking for problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThisIsTheDay Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 As a landlord, my thoughts: I might have an appraisal because I want to refinance to get cash out to buy another property, buy a new car, pay upcoming college costs, etc. I would consider month to month at the end of a lease. If I lose a renter, I'm almost guaranteed to lose a month's rent (not to mention the outrageous fees our PM charges to get new tenants). I would prefer to rent in the summer, starting the lease then. It's easier to get a lease and to attract families who may be more stable if they have kids in neighborhood schools. While I have a rental for income, we also rented out a house of ours that we could not sell when we moved. We rented it for three years. We didn't make money, but it did help pay down the mortgage, so we didn't have to close a sale and owe cash. My take on it. There are no guarantees. He has no guarantee you won't pack up next month. You have no guarantee he won't put the house up for sale. That's the nature of a landlord/tenant relationship--each party has chosen this arrangement for their own reasons, but each one also has to give up some of the control they would otherwise have if they were living in a home they owned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 Our lease expired last year and went month- to- month. We were gobsmacked when we got a notice they were going to sell and we had to go. We were allowed 2 1/2 months to get out. I asked for one more month for better rentals to come up but they said no. I asked how much they were listing in case we wanted to buy, but they said they didn't know. So now I think perhaps they will be transferring or selling to a family member. It all sucked. We moved this weekend into a place that gave us a 6 month lease then month-to-month. I had to ask for the shorter lease. But it had been empty awhile..... I see why you are wondering about selling. I would request something in writing that he's not listing it for sale and still get the month to month lease somehow. Most places go to month to month after a year..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted March 25, 2014 Share Posted March 25, 2014 I think you should listen to your husband on this one. I think you may be overreacting. He is probably willing to go month to month so you don't move next month. Unless you are in a hot market, I wouldn't worry about an occupied rental house selling so quickly you only got 30 days notice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeacefulChaos Posted March 26, 2014 Share Posted March 26, 2014 This is how it's worked for us. We've been renting month-to-month for something like four years now. Same here. Both this house and the first one we rented here. Actually, this house may have never had a lease. I honestly don't remember... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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