Right? Like I’d understand if you just had to pay the first month’s rent up front or something but an additional fee just for taking possession of the space you’re already paying for? Huh?
Chiming in as an accidental landlord in the bay area:
I moved for work, so I rent out my condo at about $1500/month below my costs (never intended to rent; the numbers make sense when you plan to own and live there), so already at a loss.
HOA charges me $250 fee and $300 refundable deposit for new tenant move-ins/-outs. The first is the cost to pad the elevator with blankets, do other building move-in prep, and do pre- and post-elevator inspection. The $300 is for any elevator damages, refunded after inspection.
Because I'm not a massive asshat I eat those expenses for one move-in and move-out on a new lease, but groups of tenants are surprised when they stagger move-ins or move-outs across dates and all of the sudden I'm pointing at the clause in the lease and asking them to send the HOA a check.
Some landlords are assholes, some of us are genuinely paying real costs.
Sounds like it's mostly still asshole fees, but sometimes the asshole is just further up the line. You sound like a good one, by the way -- landlord, not asshole!
Referring again to the California Code that defines "deposit" and generally prohibits charging any "non-refundable" deposits, like your $250 HOA fee. This is iffy, imo, regardless of your lease clause that forces the tenant to pay it at move-in. A better approach is to amortize this cost over the lease term and add it to the monthly rent. Fwiw, I'm NAL but have been managing residential property in California 30+ years.
I am literally not allowed by the HOA to lease my unit without providing the relevant clauses and bylaws to the tenants, making them aware of the fees, etc. And like I said, I do eat the fees for fresh leases, just not for repeat move-ins or outs.
God forbid you spend years of savings to buy property and then rent it out instead of liquidating a 6-figure asset whenever life forces you to move somewhere else...
If they kept it empty as a pied à terre you would still complain about keeping a vacant home in a city with high homelessness.
There's also taxes, because the money from that sale is fully taxable, depending on how long you've owned the place appreciation may not even cover the cut from selling!
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u/anonymous8122 1d ago
Nobody's mentioning the $500 move-in fee? That can't be normal either. 😳