Tree Ceremony and Rental Property Improvements
The Wedding Tree Ceremony We were married last month, and during the planning process our officiate suggested we make the ceremony longer – apparently I took my abhorrence for mushy wedding stuff a...
View ArticleReport: Effects of Trees on Rental Rates
Courtesy of Consumerist.com, I stumbled upon a 2010 report on the effects of trees on rental values. While there were other motivations for planting the tree from our wedding ceremony, I do plan to add...
View ArticleChoosing Landscaping for Rental Properties
This summer we experienced the very essence of sweat equity. Some of our shrubs were casualties of the 2011 drought, so we set out to replace them with something more attractive but durable. Similarly...
View ArticleRental Landscape Watering; Hiring the Tenants
Being in Central Texas, our summers are brutal on landscaping, and this year I have 4 young trees at 2 different properties to keep alive, including the tree we incorporated into our wedding. I’m...
View ArticleRental Property HOA Violations & Subjective Rules
Recently we had our first run in with a rental property’s homeowners association; it started with a couple warning letters letting us know that our duplex had a lawn care violation. I wasn’t too...
View ArticleSetting Expectations: Tenant Guidelines for HOA Success
Because HOA rules can be rather subjective, I recently met with an HOA manager to discuss lawn requirements for our rental property. It was a productive conversation, and I left with 5 key takeaways to...
View Article2015 Real Estate Resolutions
I hope everybody is having a wonderful holiday season. Santa was generous this year and left a Black & Decker Trimmer/Edger with Mower Deck under the tree – I’ll be sure to let you know how it...
View ArticleMake Ready Checklist with Auto-Populating Fields
There’s no way around it, make ready work is full of details to remember: Will the electricity automatically transfer? Is the trim painted the same color as the wall? Do any fence pickets need...
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