After Dad died we discussed what to do with the apartments. Of course there was the option of selling them but how long would that take in this market and what kind of price would we get in this economy? Another option was to keep them as the primary soure of income for mom. We calculated that even at half occupancy there would still be sufficient income for mom and still meet the expenses.
Now that we've been at this for a while we realize that isn't necessarily true. We've been hanging in at about 66-75% occupancy. Occupancy means nothing, however, if the tenants can't pay their rent. So many are living on the ragged edge that an illness, car trouble, or even Christmas throws their financial world into chaos and they can't pay all of their rent.
In the last several months our gross income should have been over $4,000 / month but collected rents were about $2,500. What do you do? If we evict them we are left with vacancies and all the same expenses. Is half rent better than no rent? Arrrrgggghhhh.
If you are thinking about becoming a landlord - think twice. Here's our experience managing rentals in northern Colorado.
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