Pow-Wow Partner Lunch

On Wednesday, Marty Sunshine dragged me to meet with Mr. Partner.

To set the record straight, I like Mr. Partner. And, I am not, and never have been, afraid of Mr. Partner. Though he is a bit more explosive, my temper can be equal to his, though I have learned to be more diplomatic in my old age. A couple of years ago, I had it with him and told him so. Since then, he has calmed down and changed his communication with me and things are just ducky between us.

But that doesn't mean I am up for sitting with him (or anyone else for that matter), eating pizza and rehash the dramas of the past few months. My emotional state has recently leveled off at around 65 percent.

However, it probably was a good thing I went to lunch, because it gave me a chance to explain in person how he has the luxury of missing some of the day-to-day stuff he seems to overlook in his weekly updates. All-in-all, it was a productive lunch with a few things on the horizon to hopefully brighten our future outlook.

I also found it fascinating to see where our landlording styles are somewhat different. I came to the following conclusion: we would have more money in the bank if he completely ran the show. We would be more profitable if I completely ran the show. We seem to have a mix of both.

Mr. Partner believes in cutting corners where ever possible. Why hire a plumbers/electricians when someone's-brother-in-law-who-knows-how-fix-whatever-is-broken-and-will-work-for-cheap is available?

Why paint a home when there is someone out there willing to take a Barney-purple master bedroom? Just get the house rented and see what happens. There is no reason to wait for a "quality tenant." Because one can't predict the future, the outcome when his-tenant-versus-my-tenant moves out might be the same. (It also might not.) Overall, it boils down to the perceived long-term benefit versus short-term gain when the outcome is unknown.

I can see his point on many of these issues--and I (begrudgingly) concide, maybe we don't need to paint the Barney-purple interior. My feeling is, if I provide a quality product, I am more likely to get a quality tenant who is willing to stay a few years? On average, my tenants stay 3 years. Given the number of homes I have, I don't have that many tenant issues.

I also find, although I have a couple of trusted handymen, if the vendor of my choice is licensed (like a plumber), they are more accountable when it comes to making repairs. I hate hearing a repair has been made only to find out the fix was a band-aid and I have to pay again.

Mr. Partner doesn't want a property management company to handle the day-to-day stuff. I have decided we have a better opportunity to keep these properties rented and less hassle if have a third party handle them. We loose 10 percent of the rent. My gamble is we get better tenants and less excuses. We cash flow either way. With my way, we just don't cash flow as much.

I once heard that internal conflict stems from doing what is wrong when you know the right answer. Because Mr. Partner and I are starting at different points in the landlording management, I am conflicted trying to save his costs when my gut tells me the possibly more expensive option would be much more worth it.

One of the best things that came out of lunch was a commitment for success. Marty and I are committed. But it was nice to tell Mr. Partner that. And, it was nice to hear that from him too.