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October 8, 2008
Turning Home to Room Rentals
Hi,
I'm interested in purchasing a minimum 4-bedroom one-family home and turning it into a "rooms for rent" only....I'm interested in hearing anything from anyone who either currently does this or knows someone that does this. Here's more info:
-ideal purchase price: no more than $500K
-will be in decent area of Bklyn
-I will not be living in home
-will furnish each room with a bed, armoire, ceiling fan and computer desk
Where can I research this more, what the pros? cons? etc...thanks!
Comments
Will you offer WiFi??
Posted by: daveinbedstuy at October 8, 2008 2:59 PM
I will offer cable and home will be internet ready.
Posted by: shamay at October 8, 2008 3:06 PM
What type of term would you be offering on the leases -- yearly or were you thinking daily, weekly, monthly or some such other short term ??
If it is short term you may have a zoning problem as it may be clasified as similar to a hotel and that use group is usually not allowed in most residential districts.
Posted by: SenatorStreet at October 8, 2008 3:15 PM
Sounds like you're trying to convert a single family home to a boarding house or SRO which would almost definitely require changing the certificate of occupancy. Hopefully someone more familiar with housing/fire code can weigh in.
If you do this illegally and your neighbors realize what you are doing, they will report you. A rooming house is generally not thought to be good for the neighborhood especially in a "decent area" as you call it. BTW, $500k for single-family, 4 bedroom house, in a decent area of Brooklyn? Seems unrealistic even given the downturn.
Lastly consider your plan in the event that your renters decide to squat, destroy your house, or stop paying rent. You will have a lot of fun trying to evict.
Posted by: setancre at October 8, 2008 3:33 PM
You are a fucking retard!
The What
Someday this stupidity is gonna end...
Posted by: what at October 8, 2008 3:42 PM
What...I'm glad someone actually came out and said it.
Posted by: daveinbedstuy at October 8, 2008 3:45 PM
There are so many places like this in Bushwick. The landlord rents them out by the room, usually two people share a room, and six or seven people share a bath and kitchen on each floor. They are legal two-families but all three floors are occupied. I figure each person is probably paying about $300 a month, for a total of $1800 to $2100 on the higher floors (vs. about $1600 at current rates for the whole floor). These are mostly for single people. The apartments that are rented out by the whole floor are rented to families, usually extended families (and perhaps sometimes friends) so three or more adults can make enough to pay the rent and also take care of the children. The situation is not much better over in the (supposedly so much more "gentrified") loft area, where recent college graduates pay about $800 for not much more than futon space in squalid rooms with three or four other people in former factories.
Posted by: mopar at October 8, 2008 5:05 PM
Some days I am glad "The What" is here.
Posted by: Bklyn Fire Alarm Guy at October 8, 2008 5:30 PM
Just buy an existing SRO--they're much cheaper than a single-family!
Posted by: brownstoner at October 8, 2008 8:05 PM
There are a lot of these type of situations all around brooklyn. If there is no kitchen, in is not an SRO. I know of two in Park Slope. Several in Greenwich Village. They are like B & B's but with no breakfast. Can be found through Google. Do not seem entirely legal, but they are booked year' round.
Posted by: pig three at October 8, 2008 8:39 PM
Oh, and Dave...I think the one on fourth street near fifth ave. has WiFi.
Posted by: pig three at October 8, 2008 8:42 PM
Dave, come to think of it, there is probably a couple in Stuy Heights as well. Ever notice the English tourists in the Bodegas on Stuyvesant Ave. buying their tea, milk and lemons?
Posted by: pig three at October 8, 2008 8:47 PM
Will these people be sharing common space (kitchen, bath)? What will you do when one resident (or his/her visitor) harms or steals from another? Way more liability than I'd want to take on.
Posted by: kingston at October 8, 2008 10:37 PM
Terrible idea, you'd have to have the certificate of occupancy changed, and the risks of your tenants destroying your property or pulling a Houdini with the rent are epic. Rooming houses are frowned upon because of the type of people whom frequent them and the typical, and often criminal, absenteeism of the landlords. The costs of properly maintaining such properties is usually higher than the revenue, given the damage done by tenants, so most SROs are always in a constant state of decline.
Unless you really want a legal battle royal, you'd have to be absolutely batshit crazy to try establishing a new SRO in any decent neighborhood.
Posted by: FenFen at October 9, 2008 12:17 PM
And last but not least, it's exploitive.
Posted by: mopar at October 9, 2008 1:03 PM
Why don't you investigate the possibility of a bed and breakfast. Hotel rates in NYC are astronomical so a B&B that targets foreign tourists should do well. The advantage of the B&B is that you collect the room rent in advance, and if the guests try anything funny, you can always call USCIS. A B&B is hard work but less risky than an SRO. SROs tend to attract the chemically addicted and chronically underemployed - bad prospects as tenants.
Posted by: bohuma at October 9, 2008 2:20 PM
I think that it was very common to have boarding houses in the early 1900's. Most were men who immigrated from other countries. From 1905 to the 1990's my home which is a one family was a boarding house for 5 men. Each sharing a kitchen and 2 bathrooms. I have to let you know that you will be faced with alot of problems with tenants of different personalities. You'll have to do this the legal way or you'll find yourself in court with your own tenants. Againist each other and againist you.
Posted by: Giovanna at October 10, 2008 11:11 AM
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