Cold weather and your rentals

 The extreme cold weather has now passed through Eugene and Medford and we are starting to thaw out a bit. We would like to take this opportunity to pass on what we have learned over the past week.

1. Western Oregon is not prepared and not built for -8F weather!! No matter what you do to prepare, issues are going to come up. From frozen pipes, to travel issues, to loss of heat.

2. That being said, prep as much as you can!! Unhooking hoses and covering pipes can save you time and money in the long run. It won't stop all issues but it's a simple and inexpensive way to keep you long term cost down.

3. Have a good relationship with your plumber and electrician!! On multiple occasions we were able to call after hours and get someone out to properties late at night to prevent any further damage, and keep our tenants with running water and heat. This makes for happy people all around.

  In short, we live in a fairly mild climate and are not used to these type of weather conditions.  This tends to lead to complacency when it comes to preparing for the worst. After this last week I'm sure there are people all over Eugene, Medford and Western Oregon wishing they had spent a little more time on prepping for this winter. 

College rental bubble:

    Renting College properties in the Willamette Valley used to be like shooting fish in a barrel. The need for housing well exceeded the supply and that was great for landlords. Fast forward a couple years and we find a different story. Fueled by out of state companies and mom and pop builders, the University has never seen such a building boom. Anywhere there was an open piece of land a new lavish apartment building went up. This brought jobs to the area and has been a great boost to the local economy....Until school started.

The new buildings with all their amenities and hefty price tags were ready and waiting for the rush of students to come snatch them up....waiting.....waiting.....Unfortunately someone didn't do the simple math. With an estimated 9000 new beds. (2000 new units with an average of 3 bedrooms) and lackluster growth in enrollment at the University, builders have created a glut of properties that has driven prices down nearly 50%. Properties that 3 years ago rented in minutes at $2800+ now sit vacant with a $1595 offering.

  What do we do now? The short answer seems to be lower the prices and wait. If you have the capital jump on an opportunity to buy some great properties on the cheap as people flee the market. The housing will eventually even itself out with growth from the college and with prices dropping local families are moving back into the university area. That being said this will take some time as there are close to 1000 NEW units already approved for the next 12 months.

How to get your deposit back as a tenant.

All land lords have heard this line, " Its cleaner and in better shape than when we moved in". While this may be true from time to time, from experience this almost always means that in fact we as Property Managers will have some work to do.

So the question is, "How do I get as much of my deposit back as possible?"

Let’s go through a few things that will help.

1. Don't move into a house with obvious cleaning and maintenance needs. If the house is not ready it’s not ready. Moving in to somewhere before its ready leaves questions at the end as to what was actually done at the time of move in.

2. Take dated pictures when you take possession BEFORE you move your belongings in. A video is even better. Keep this safe until move out and turn it in with your keys.

3. Most Property Managers/Land lords will ask you to fill out a property condition report. DO IT!! And turn in a copy. Again keep a copy for yourself.

4. Know your lease!! So many times issues come up with tenants that could have been solved if they had just read their lease. This should tell you expectations that you will be held to pertaining to your deposit.

5. Pay someone to clean. Often tenants will budget a set amount of time to move and a set amount of time for cleaning. What happens is moving always takes longer than expected and that cuts into cleaning time. Also you are tired after moving and after a couple hours of cleaning it "looks better than when we moved in".


In general be realistic. Most move-outs require a little work and a few charges to the security deposit. Keep good records and give yourself plenty of time to take care of issues and you should get most if not all of your deposit back.

Understanding the Maintenance needs of your rental,

 When figuring the cost of owning a rental property it is important to include upkeep of the property as well as the obvious cost like mortgage and insurance etc. Just like your car needs an oil change every 3000 mile and needs new brakes now and then, your rental property will need some items as well. Time and time again property owners forget to include this cost when considering becoming landlords.


  The national average for maintenance varies but you should expect to pay 10-15% of the rental income out in upkeep cost. This number could vary greatly depending on the current condition of the home, age of the home and many other factors.

Here are some items that come up most often in the Northwest and an idea of what the cost would be:

Yearly Gutter cleaning- $70-$130
Yearly Servicing of heating and AC- $120
Moss control on roofs- $50+
Maintenance to appliances- $70+ per service call


These are just examples of cost you should EXPECT as a rental owner. Also figure in long term expenses like painting, flooring, roofing etc. No matter how good your tenants are these items will eventually need replaced.

If money is tight and you’re having a hard time coming up with the funds for items like this, try setting a few dollars aside each month to help offset the cost.

If you have any further questions please visit www.northwoodspm.com