Landlording

When tenants hassle you about repairs

Dave Farquhar Landlording

I’ve talked before about high-maintenance tenants, but today I want to dive a bit deeper into when tenants hassle you about repairs, which is perhaps the second most frustrating thing about being a landlord. Here are some strategies that can help.

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Rental property: a good investment

Dave Farquhar Landlording , ,

Is rental property a good investment? It certainly is if you do it right.

Here’s what you need to know.

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Spray painting tips to paint like a pro

Dave Farquhar Landlording, Model Building, Toy trains , ,

I’ve gathered a lot of spray painting tips over the years but I’ve never seen more than 10 collected in one place. Spray paint is a tool, and using it is a skill you can learn. With a bit of practice, you can get enviable results and make the object you’re painting look better than new.

Whether you’re painting something for your house or for your hobby, here are more than 20 spray painting tips to help you paint with the best of them–in the order you’re likely to need to use them in your projects.

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Save money on appliances

Dave Farquhar Landlording, Saving money , , , , , , ,
Save money on appliances

If you want to know how to save money on appliances, I have some unconventional advice: Buy used. Yes, really. Here’s how to buy used (or refurbished) appliances and save big money without getting ripped off.

I’ve had a number of friends get hit recently with appliance breakdowns they couldn’t afford, and since I’m a landlord, I’ve probably bought a lifetime’s worth of appliances in the last seven years. A dead appliance doesn’t have to turn into a financial catastrophe.

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Dealing with long lists of complaints from tenants

Dave Farquhar Landlording

I talked last week about setting boundaries with tenants. Today I’ll talk about a different problem: long lists of complaints from tenants.

This problem certainly can get under your skin, but when you dig into the problem, the solution can be surprisingly simple.

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Setting boundaries with difficult tenants

Dave Farquhar Landlording ,

As a landlord, I’ve dealt with some difficult tenants, and I’ve noticed they all tend to use very similar tactics. Setting boundaries is a necessity to keep things under control, and in the end keep all of your tenants happy while keeping yourself sane.

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Fixing a light bulb stuck in a ceiling fan

Dave Farquhar Landlording

I was working in a vacant house the other day and noticed the previous tenants never changed light bulbs. When I went to change them myself, I saw why. Everywhere I saw a dead bulb, it was in a ceiling fan. Stuck hard.

Here’s the cause, and here’s how I fixed it.

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Hole in wall repair made easy

Dave Farquhar DIY, Landlording
Hole in wall repair made easy

When fixing up a house or changing things around, it’s inevitable that you’ll have to patch some holes in the wall. Small nail holes are easy to fill with a bit of spackle applied with your fingertip, but bigger holes can be tougher, unless you know a couple of tricks that make hole in wall repair easy.

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Repair a Weller soldering gun

Dave Farquhar Landlording, model railroading, Toy trains ,
Repair a Weller soldering gun

I scored a Weller 8200 soldering gun at an estate sale one street over from me for a few dollars. They didn’t know what they had. I got it home and it didn’t work–it wouldn’t heat up–so maybe they knew exactly what they had. Lucky for me, it’s easy to learn how to repair a Weller soldering gun yourself.

Make sure the tip isn’t broken, then loosen the two nuts that hold the tip to the gun, then tighten the two nuts back down tightly. This breaks away oxidation and provides a good mechanical and electrical connection required to conduct heat.

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I replaced an outlet with a GFCI and my light switch quit working

Dave Farquhar Landlording ,

I once had an electrical outlet with a light switch next to it, in a bathroom. When I replaced the outlet with a GFCI, the light switch quit working.

When you have a GFCI and a light switch is involved, you have to wire things a bit differently so it all works.

Here’s how I fixed it, using a length of wire (use black, or if you only have white wire, put some electrical tape on it) and a wire nut.

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