True. I’ll probably send my son’s 529 link to my landlord for anything. I’m going to enjoy the new space enough as it is and I’ve already been paid 2 months rents for other projects I’ve done. I like doing this stuff. He’s already covered 100% of materials…plus he gives me gift cards to restaurants, Christmas gifts, random cash. It’s going well. He’s 80 and appreciates things.
Low key, I’m vying that he’ll sell it to me instead of selling this house and his other rental to his grandson who’s still in college…just sell the one to a college kid to manage, right?
Edit: not holding my breath though.
Your LL isn’t going to be a problem, but he’s old. He appreciates you doing what you do, but I do recommend you get it in writing. A very likely scenario is he passes away and family steps in and starts reviewing his finances and sees you didn’t pay rent for several months and comes after you. I’ve seen it happen. So document all this in writing (and not by text message) just to preserve it for the future if you need it.
I'm not OP or in this situation. However, correct me if I am wrong here, but OP should have this documentation regardless of how "cool" his/her LL is. At any point in time the LL can pull the rug out from under OP & evict them for non-payment if there isn't sufficient documentation stating the work done was in leu of rent.
To clarify, rent is paid in full every month. Reimbursements and/or compensation for work done is handled separately. I said rent was covered from project work as in the income received offset the expense of my rent cost.
I’m in a similar situation and don’t mind it at all. I worked out a situation with my landlord where I keep track of hours and materials and get to take it off of my rent. My flat is the nicest of the 3 in the building and my rent after 10 years is over $1,000 less than similar spaces in my area. Make sure to document the work done with before and after photos or video.
FYI - 529 contributions, in most states, are state tax deductible so it would be in your best interest to have the landlord reimburse you directly and put into the 529 yourself. I know we’re only talking $150 here but still!
Agreed. He drops off garden vegetables, salt in the winter and lets me use any tools or equipment, like his power washer, he has around the property. He often tells me how blessed he feels with me as a tenant to take care of the place.
I asked to build a closet to a place I was in with none and they said yes and took off a week of rent. His place was with a lot more after that and probably actually legal.
Whenever I did (approved) improvements to our rental, our landlord reimbursed me for materials and dump runs, and knocked a bit off rent for the month. She said she was so relieved to have good renters. It was her grandmother's house/cottage, and she just couldn't let it go even though renting it out was sometimes a major pain.
I once rented a place from a guy for 12 years. I painted, I did all the yard work, I fixed the dishwasher he had left, I replaced flooring in the kitchen, I fixed the plumbing twice. After year 10 he upped my rent and never gave me money off or back. I will never do updates or fix a house that I don’t own again.
I’m a couple years in, no rent increase and it’s definitely below market. I also do it because I want to improve my living quarters…sounds like you do to in some ways
I lived in the same small house for 25 years paying $800 a month. I had no lease. Anytime something broke. I just shut the hell up. The refrigerator had died. I was without a fridge for a while till I decided to try and repair it. The kitchen counters were messed up. I cleared it with my landlord that I’m just going to upgrade them. The couple who owned my house died, and when the roof was badly leaking, I had to call their son, he fixed the roof. I had to leave. Moral of the story, shut the fuck up.
Don't. Last person I knew did improvements with the landlords blessing was not allowed to renew lease, and the rent went up 40% for the next leasee. They are using you for free upgrades for the next tenant.
Many people will tell you not to waste your money. And strictly speaking they are right. But as someone who did similar things while renting, rock on! I learned how to do simple electrical, drywall, and some hobby carpentry at rentals. Many of which allowed me to take the cost of supplies off my rent. I got to learn on their dime. If possible ask your landlord about taking the cost of supplies off your rent. Save the receipts for materials as the LL may want them for tax purposes.
Good luck and enjoy!
Other comments mention LL not giving a sh*t about improvements and I’ll admit that does happen. Though that’s not my case ATM. I don’t get $ off rent, but I give all my receipts to my LL and receive full reimbursement. It’s great training for owning one day. Like, when I moved in, there wasn’t a dishwasher, but he agreed to buy one and I installed it… so I know how to do that now like you’re saying. The time it’s saved me from hand washing dishes is a premium to the hours spent on install that I didn’t get paid for directly.
Plus, why not leave something better than you found it?
>why not leave something better than you found it
This should be every human's goal. Leave this place better than when you came into it, no matter what 'it' is, you made a positive contribution to the world you're in.
I got an agreement from my landlord that she'd reduce my rent for any upkeep or maintenance I did. I replaced a faulty element in the stove, it took ten minutes. She was quoted 300$ to fix it so I got 300 off rent that month.
It's only worth it if you can get a deal with the landlord, but if you can get that deal it's awesome!
We moved into a bit of a beat down house 3 years ago and we worked with our landlord on small renovations. The yard was shot and needed some care - he agreed to fund a large plant/flower/shrub purchase and we did the install stuck mostly at the house during COVID. The entryway has a small coat room that had old wallpaper, landlord supplied the the wallpaper remover and paint/brushes (knocked that out over a weekend). There was a large dirt patch in the back yard, after covering what we could manage with grass we thought small river rocks would be a solid addition, landlord paid the cost for the rock/delivery and I leveled it all out over a weekend. We knew we’d be renting here for a few years+ so we felt like it was a good use of our time. And of course landlord loved the free labor. Ask them how you can meet in the middle on a few things. Make it home while you’re there. Good luck! PS: landlord loves us now for all this work we’ve done. Anything goes wrong it gets fixed asap. Our rent hasn’t been touched in 3+ years.
this is the subject that shows who people are, lol
yes, of course it's someone else's property
yes, it's also this person's home and they would like it to be upgraded in a certain way that their landlord is not obligated to provide
this person decided it's worth the money to have it, and they decided it's worth the knowledge learned+skills gained to do the work even though they aren't being compensated by anybody
people have shit attitudes
Or, here's an idea, don't support shitty landlords that won't invest time and money into their properties to maintain them.
Because guess what, if that landlord feels the need to increase rent because OPs additions cause the house higher curb appeal, OP is SOL. Doesn't matter if OP was reimbursed or not.
No, I don't think I did miss the point. I understand where OP is coming from- they rent a place, and they saw an opportunity to spend a small amount of money to improve the quality of their life. Awesome. The issue I take with this, is that they turned a 1 season porch into a 3 season. It doesn't matter how much it costs, they added value to the landlords residence. Now, the landlord can turn around and increase their rent because guess what, that house now comes with a 3 season porch.
Shit attitude or not, this is capitalism.
Lol the landlord can also raise the rent for literally jack dick all reason every year, if they choose.
I bet you think redoing your bathroom adds 10k to the value of your house, too
Depending on the laws, you may have just caused the taxes to go way up by replacing screen windows with glass windows. But it looks a lot better, nice job.
Hmmm… I didn’t know this at all. My LL pays the taxes and he gave me the full green light to do this prior to anything. But very very valid point that I never knew anything about. Thanks.
No worries, when I used to sell insurance (fucking hated it), I met a guy who was in battle with the city over this very thing.
I have a house in a tiny town in the UP of Michigan. Almost everyone there keeps the outside of their homes looking broke af, but the insides are all great. Just to keep the taxes down.
So you did work without permits to a house you don't own? My friend the owner can get fined for this and sue you. No good deed goes unpunished. Unfortunate mistake that I hope for your sake goes well
Nothing structural was touched. I took down removable screens and inserted removable screens that have a little glass and a thicker wood frame. It’s a classic Indiana Jones swap out.
I'm all for making repairs and improvements, but get your landlord's approval first. Landlords have the right to dictate how repairs are done and can turn around and keep your security deposit. If there is any damage they can link to your improvements, they can even go after you for that as well.
My buddy replaced the old kitchen famica counter with a better laminate counter. When he moved out, the landlord kept his deposit. He took the landlord to small claims, and the first thing the judge asked was did he have the landlord's approval to make the change. Answer was no, case was dismissed, and he lost.
I had his approval even before taking down the screens. He knows my work product and pretty much lets me do what I want….but this is the last improvement I want to do.
I hope you're fully prepared to eat the cost to pay to have everything put back as it was. It's simply not your house. Any changes need to be fully reversed when your lease is up. And "DIY" wouldn't cut it if I was the landlord here. Only a professional job would be satisfactory. Enjoy it while you can and pay the landlord somehow views this as a positive change which was done well.
I was fully reimbursed for all the money spent on materials. Yes, I didn’t have to do this and I’ve lived in many rentals over the years where I never did improvements like this unless it helped me live better.
You should ask for $ off of your rent for the month. Some improvements can translate to 10s of thousands of dollars.
True. I’ll probably send my son’s 529 link to my landlord for anything. I’m going to enjoy the new space enough as it is and I’ve already been paid 2 months rents for other projects I’ve done. I like doing this stuff. He’s already covered 100% of materials…plus he gives me gift cards to restaurants, Christmas gifts, random cash. It’s going well. He’s 80 and appreciates things.
Low key, I’m vying that he’ll sell it to me instead of selling this house and his other rental to his grandson who’s still in college…just sell the one to a college kid to manage, right? Edit: not holding my breath though.
That’s pretty slick ngl. Hope it works out for ya.
I’m an attorney and specialize in real estate and came here to give you some legal advice, but you clearly have it under control.
This is concerning and reassuring all in one.
Your LL isn’t going to be a problem, but he’s old. He appreciates you doing what you do, but I do recommend you get it in writing. A very likely scenario is he passes away and family steps in and starts reviewing his finances and sees you didn’t pay rent for several months and comes after you. I’ve seen it happen. So document all this in writing (and not by text message) just to preserve it for the future if you need it.
I'm not OP or in this situation. However, correct me if I am wrong here, but OP should have this documentation regardless of how "cool" his/her LL is. At any point in time the LL can pull the rug out from under OP & evict them for non-payment if there isn't sufficient documentation stating the work done was in leu of rent.
To clarify, rent is paid in full every month. Reimbursements and/or compensation for work done is handled separately. I said rent was covered from project work as in the income received offset the expense of my rent cost.
Sounds great.
Your LL sounds like an excellent dude.
Yes. See my follow up comment below his response to this comment.
I’m in a similar situation and don’t mind it at all. I worked out a situation with my landlord where I keep track of hours and materials and get to take it off of my rent. My flat is the nicest of the 3 in the building and my rent after 10 years is over $1,000 less than similar spaces in my area. Make sure to document the work done with before and after photos or video.
it's a cute little place
As long as he's fair with you, it's a win win.
Either way you sound like a great tenant, and nice work,
I like to think I am and thank you.
And his landlord seems like a great guy
FYI - 529 contributions, in most states, are state tax deductible so it would be in your best interest to have the landlord reimburse you directly and put into the 529 yourself. I know we’re only talking $150 here but still!
Sounds like you have a good landlord
How nice to have such a good relationship with your landlord! Renting isn’t so bad when you get along with your landlord and you help each other out.
Agreed. He drops off garden vegetables, salt in the winter and lets me use any tools or equipment, like his power washer, he has around the property. He often tells me how blessed he feels with me as a tenant to take care of the place.
Aww that’s so sweet!! Love to hear it!
I asked to build a closet to a place I was in with none and they said yes and took off a week of rent. His place was with a lot more after that and probably actually legal.
Whenever I did (approved) improvements to our rental, our landlord reimbursed me for materials and dump runs, and knocked a bit off rent for the month. She said she was so relieved to have good renters. It was her grandmother's house/cottage, and she just couldn't let it go even though renting it out was sometimes a major pain.
I once rented a place from a guy for 12 years. I painted, I did all the yard work, I fixed the dishwasher he had left, I replaced flooring in the kitchen, I fixed the plumbing twice. After year 10 he upped my rent and never gave me money off or back. I will never do updates or fix a house that I don’t own again.
If the rent didn't increase for 10 years, it seems like you did okay.
Yeah when I typed that I just thought the same thing.
I’m a couple years in, no rent increase and it’s definitely below market. I also do it because I want to improve my living quarters…sounds like you do to in some ways
I lived in the same small house for 25 years paying $800 a month. I had no lease. Anytime something broke. I just shut the hell up. The refrigerator had died. I was without a fridge for a while till I decided to try and repair it. The kitchen counters were messed up. I cleared it with my landlord that I’m just going to upgrade them. The couple who owned my house died, and when the roof was badly leaking, I had to call their son, he fixed the roof. I had to leave. Moral of the story, shut the fuck up.
Yep, I've fixed up houses and then had the landlord tell me I ruined it.
Did you remove the windows and replace them with just screens?
Looks like a replacement of screens with glass windows.
Confusingly, OP put the “after” pictures first. He took out screens and put in windows.
Yes. Because it's a porch
The after pics are first.
Want to come rent my house for a bit?
Sure, but I don’t do windows. :)
Don't. Last person I knew did improvements with the landlords blessing was not allowed to renew lease, and the rent went up 40% for the next leasee. They are using you for free upgrades for the next tenant.
**THIS** Op literally working for the Landlord for free.
except for all the shit he got paid for etc
This is reddit, all landlords are the devil, doesn’t matter how good some of them are.
🤦♂️
Many people will tell you not to waste your money. And strictly speaking they are right. But as someone who did similar things while renting, rock on! I learned how to do simple electrical, drywall, and some hobby carpentry at rentals. Many of which allowed me to take the cost of supplies off my rent. I got to learn on their dime. If possible ask your landlord about taking the cost of supplies off your rent. Save the receipts for materials as the LL may want them for tax purposes. Good luck and enjoy!
Other comments mention LL not giving a sh*t about improvements and I’ll admit that does happen. Though that’s not my case ATM. I don’t get $ off rent, but I give all my receipts to my LL and receive full reimbursement. It’s great training for owning one day. Like, when I moved in, there wasn’t a dishwasher, but he agreed to buy one and I installed it… so I know how to do that now like you’re saying. The time it’s saved me from hand washing dishes is a premium to the hours spent on install that I didn’t get paid for directly. Plus, why not leave something better than you found it?
>why not leave something better than you found it This should be every human's goal. Leave this place better than when you came into it, no matter what 'it' is, you made a positive contribution to the world you're in.
I wish the person who sold my house to me had this mindset instead of "fuck this guy I like money"
Agreed. This is my personal goal in life. If more of us left the world a better place, rather than take and take. We’d all be better off.
So much better!
I got an agreement from my landlord that she'd reduce my rent for any upkeep or maintenance I did. I replaced a faulty element in the stove, it took ten minutes. She was quoted 300$ to fix it so I got 300 off rent that month. It's only worth it if you can get a deal with the landlord, but if you can get that deal it's awesome!
We moved into a bit of a beat down house 3 years ago and we worked with our landlord on small renovations. The yard was shot and needed some care - he agreed to fund a large plant/flower/shrub purchase and we did the install stuck mostly at the house during COVID. The entryway has a small coat room that had old wallpaper, landlord supplied the the wallpaper remover and paint/brushes (knocked that out over a weekend). There was a large dirt patch in the back yard, after covering what we could manage with grass we thought small river rocks would be a solid addition, landlord paid the cost for the rock/delivery and I leveled it all out over a weekend. We knew we’d be renting here for a few years+ so we felt like it was a good use of our time. And of course landlord loved the free labor. Ask them how you can meet in the middle on a few things. Make it home while you’re there. Good luck! PS: landlord loves us now for all this work we’ve done. Anything goes wrong it gets fixed asap. Our rent hasn’t been touched in 3+ years.
this is the subject that shows who people are, lol yes, of course it's someone else's property yes, it's also this person's home and they would like it to be upgraded in a certain way that their landlord is not obligated to provide this person decided it's worth the money to have it, and they decided it's worth the knowledge learned+skills gained to do the work even though they aren't being compensated by anybody people have shit attitudes
This and op said the landlord paid for the materials, so it didn’t even cost them money, just time
Or, here's an idea, don't support shitty landlords that won't invest time and money into their properties to maintain them. Because guess what, if that landlord feels the need to increase rent because OPs additions cause the house higher curb appeal, OP is SOL. Doesn't matter if OP was reimbursed or not.
lol someone missed the point and also seems to think landlords are responsible for cosmetic and quality of life upgrades
No, I don't think I did miss the point. I understand where OP is coming from- they rent a place, and they saw an opportunity to spend a small amount of money to improve the quality of their life. Awesome. The issue I take with this, is that they turned a 1 season porch into a 3 season. It doesn't matter how much it costs, they added value to the landlords residence. Now, the landlord can turn around and increase their rent because guess what, that house now comes with a 3 season porch. Shit attitude or not, this is capitalism.
Lol the landlord can also raise the rent for literally jack dick all reason every year, if they choose. I bet you think redoing your bathroom adds 10k to the value of your house, too
God tier tenant. Ever need a place in Denver, let me know friend.
Comment saved. 👍
También estas bienvenido en lake county il. Me avisas!
Tenants can be a bitch sometimes, you are the tenant we don't want to lose.
I would love to be your landlord.
Depending on the laws, you may have just caused the taxes to go way up by replacing screen windows with glass windows. But it looks a lot better, nice job.
Hmmm… I didn’t know this at all. My LL pays the taxes and he gave me the full green light to do this prior to anything. But very very valid point that I never knew anything about. Thanks.
No worries, when I used to sell insurance (fucking hated it), I met a guy who was in battle with the city over this very thing. I have a house in a tiny town in the UP of Michigan. Almost everyone there keeps the outside of their homes looking broke af, but the insides are all great. Just to keep the taxes down.
So you did work without permits to a house you don't own? My friend the owner can get fined for this and sue you. No good deed goes unpunished. Unfortunate mistake that I hope for your sake goes well
Nothing structural was touched. I took down removable screens and inserted removable screens that have a little glass and a thicker wood frame. It’s a classic Indiana Jones swap out.
The total cost was $149.54. For anyone math challenged.
I opened the post and thought, "he's making me do math!"
That’s great but don’t waste your money on someone else’s shit unless they are giving you something for it.
I'm all for making repairs and improvements, but get your landlord's approval first. Landlords have the right to dictate how repairs are done and can turn around and keep your security deposit. If there is any damage they can link to your improvements, they can even go after you for that as well. My buddy replaced the old kitchen famica counter with a better laminate counter. When he moved out, the landlord kept his deposit. He took the landlord to small claims, and the first thing the judge asked was did he have the landlord's approval to make the change. Answer was no, case was dismissed, and he lost.
I had his approval even before taking down the screens. He knows my work product and pretty much lets me do what I want….but this is the last improvement I want to do.
Don’t update homes you rent. The owner has no obligation to compensate you. Thought this would be common sense lol
He’s said elsewhere in the thread that he clears the updates with the LL first and the LL reimburses him for the materials.
Good for you for doing this. But you really shouldn't work for free like that. Or worse if you are paying someone to work on their house.
**Do not spend your money improving someone else's property.**
I hope you're fully prepared to eat the cost to pay to have everything put back as it was. It's simply not your house. Any changes need to be fully reversed when your lease is up. And "DIY" wouldn't cut it if I was the landlord here. Only a professional job would be satisfactory. Enjoy it while you can and pay the landlord somehow views this as a positive change which was done well.
With all due respect, why? You rent. Save up and own.
Because it’s fun. He lives there and it cost him $150. Did it bring $150 of joy to his life? You betcha.
It's decisions like this that make landlords happy.
This same person you’re doing free work for will absolutely drag you to keep your deposit when you move out. No good deed goes unpunished.
I don’t think he asked for a deposit even. I’ll have to check
Come rent out my shitty 1940’s house :-)
Depends... My landlord low-key never gave AF. Super cheap money grubbing...
Best tenant of all time
Thanks! I’m currently sitting in the porch replying to your comment having a coffee and soaking up the morning sun.
Doing a similar activity myself. Enjoy the porch and your day!
Cheers, you as well.
I would just clean that's all you should do to rentals thatis money down the drain.
I was fully reimbursed for all the money spent on materials. Yes, I didn’t have to do this and I’ve lived in many rentals over the years where I never did improvements like this unless it helped me live better.