I expect my tenants will want to stay after their lease expires in June. Never having renewed a lease, given tenants` deposit interest, or raised the rent, I have a ton of questions. Thanks in advance for your help, it`s really appreciated. (This is Ontario, BTW.)
Re: Increasing the rent...
- I`m happy with these tenants. What else I should be considering when deciding whether to raise the rent? Anticipation of rising mortgage rates? (At the current rent, assuming other expenses stay the same, my variable rate mortgage could go up by 5% or so before the property stopped cashflowing. I can lock in at any time.)
- How do you give notice of a rent increase? The RTA says to give "90 days written notice [...] in a form approved by the Board." -- Will a letter or email suffice, or is there a form to use? Do you get your tenants to sign something confirming that they received the notice?
- Say instead of getting a new deposit each time you raise the rent, you hold onto their original deposit (say, $1000). Do you ask them to top up the deposit cheque so it comes to the new rent amount -- asking them for $10 or whatever? Or, if they don`t keep topping it up with each increase, and by the time they give notice the rent has climbed to $1060, do you then ask for $60 toward last month`s rent? Or do you just forgive and forget the difference between the original $1000 and the new rent amount?
Re: Signing a new lease vs going month-to-month
- I understand that tenants aren`t obligated to sign a new lease, and if they don`t sign one, that they`ll go month to month. In another thread, invst4profit said "In Ontario it is customary to go month to month at the end of a lease" which makes me wonder if I should even bother suggesting a new lease. As a landlord, is it preferable to have a new lease or does it make no difference?
Re: Annual interest on tenant`s last-month`s-rent deposit
- How do you handle this -- write your tenants a cheque each year?
Trying to get a handle on it all...
- I often wish I had a mentor because I learn a lot by seeing people in action. This forum is a great help, since reading about your methods is next best to seeing them. Wish I could see you in communication action. I`m thinking, send an email (more than 90 days before lease end) saying I`d be happy to have them stay on after the lease ends, and ask if they want to stay and sign a new lease at the new rent amount. (Or do I not bother suggesting another lease??) Then I tell them I`ll send them a letter stating the new rent amount -- and ask them to email a confirmation of receipt? Then I guess when the lease is ending, whether or not we sign another, I give them their deposit interest, and whatever makes sense in terms of increasing or not increasing the current deposit. Aside from my many questions, does that sound right?
Thanks... This is very long...
Re: Increasing the rent...
- I`m happy with these tenants. What else I should be considering when deciding whether to raise the rent? Anticipation of rising mortgage rates? (At the current rent, assuming other expenses stay the same, my variable rate mortgage could go up by 5% or so before the property stopped cashflowing. I can lock in at any time.)
- How do you give notice of a rent increase? The RTA says to give "90 days written notice [...] in a form approved by the Board." -- Will a letter or email suffice, or is there a form to use? Do you get your tenants to sign something confirming that they received the notice?
- Say instead of getting a new deposit each time you raise the rent, you hold onto their original deposit (say, $1000). Do you ask them to top up the deposit cheque so it comes to the new rent amount -- asking them for $10 or whatever? Or, if they don`t keep topping it up with each increase, and by the time they give notice the rent has climbed to $1060, do you then ask for $60 toward last month`s rent? Or do you just forgive and forget the difference between the original $1000 and the new rent amount?
Re: Signing a new lease vs going month-to-month
- I understand that tenants aren`t obligated to sign a new lease, and if they don`t sign one, that they`ll go month to month. In another thread, invst4profit said "In Ontario it is customary to go month to month at the end of a lease" which makes me wonder if I should even bother suggesting a new lease. As a landlord, is it preferable to have a new lease or does it make no difference?
Re: Annual interest on tenant`s last-month`s-rent deposit
- How do you handle this -- write your tenants a cheque each year?
Trying to get a handle on it all...
- I often wish I had a mentor because I learn a lot by seeing people in action. This forum is a great help, since reading about your methods is next best to seeing them. Wish I could see you in communication action. I`m thinking, send an email (more than 90 days before lease end) saying I`d be happy to have them stay on after the lease ends, and ask if they want to stay and sign a new lease at the new rent amount. (Or do I not bother suggesting another lease??) Then I tell them I`ll send them a letter stating the new rent amount -- and ask them to email a confirmation of receipt? Then I guess when the lease is ending, whether or not we sign another, I give them their deposit interest, and whatever makes sense in terms of increasing or not increasing the current deposit. Aside from my many questions, does that sound right?
Thanks... This is very long...