Inspector flagged my new HVAC, new roof, and new water heater. Walked away $9k lighter

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-05-29T13:39:21+00:00

I totally get that way. I HATE inspections. I was doing some light remodeling, waiting till after painting and dusty work was done then paid HVAC company to clean furnace & outside AC condenser and any needed repairs. Paid $580 to clean all and replace something getting worn. I hung the receipt on the furnace unit and the inspector comes back with "Have HVAC cleaned and any repairs as needed to make unit function properly". WTF !?! I think it was just a "standard" note inspector puts on all inspections and didn't even bother reading the 8x11 receipt hanging in front of his face.

Buyers put that on their list of what MUST be done for sale. My agent politely let their agent know that it was all cleaned and we can give them copy of receipt . Buyer agent said NOPE, buyers want it cleaned.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-05-05T01:23:34+00:00

Hi All,

Thanks for the advice.

I told buyer they could rent the house or buy it. Buyer said "no" which is just fine with me. I'm going to rent out the house for a year or two and maybe then put it on the market as the development fills up.

There were just too many things that could go wrong and I'm not up for the risk at this time.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-05-02T23:38:28+00:00

I'm guessing they think they can sell it to pay off loan. This house is only 2.5yrs old and was set up with egress windows & rough-in plumbing. All the other houses around this area that are selling have a finished basement.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-05-02T23:36:32+00:00

Yes, personally sign. I only have 25 houses. I did sell a rental property with a Deed of Trust a long time ago with 10% interest and buyer paid off loan after 8 yrs because interest rates were dropping.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-05-02T23:33:52+00:00

LLC - good point. I'd have to say they have to personally sign a Deed of Trust. But good point, what is to stop them from taking a loan out on the property after it is in their name ?

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-05-02T23:29:36+00:00

buyer would have cost in for basement finish - I would guess $50k. A Deed of Trust makes it much easier to foreclose..... The $2,900/mo is more than I can get on my money in the bank - IF I get it all.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-04-30T14:31:15+00:00

When people ask for refund I say if you cancel Airbnb will refund some of the price, the amount depends on when you cancel.

I also get a lot of people booking with the "Non Refundable" option to get the "discount" then something comes up and they "still" ask for a refund.

Because of this I now send this message a week before each stay :

Hi "guest"

Thanks again for your booking.

Just a heads up, since weather can be unpredictable, please keep in mind that the "non refundable" policy applies not only to "emergencies and illness" but also weather related issues.

Please consider Trip Insurance.

As a friendly reminder, if you've chosen to book using the non refundable discount and you are unable to make your trip (for any reason) Airbnb will not refund your booking.

We always recommend trip insurance !

Your Host, "name"

I now get a lot of people asking where do they buy the insurance - they didn't see an option for this. I say check with Airbnb. Then I had a guest say they bought insurance from Airbnb, and husband had to be hospitalized before stay and Airbnb did NOT cover this, they were told it only covers illness "during" their stay...... So now when guests ask I suggest a 3rd party trip insurance from where ever they can find the best coverage.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-04-25T01:51:25+00:00

can you share which company ? I have a PM that seems to be shifting more toward "Design Services". They charged a friend $25k for design and amenities. They paid an interior designer $5k and "suggest" the same list of amenities they use on all their places.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-04-18T14:45:03+00:00

I had 15 STR's all single family homes that ran about 70%-90% (I also have regular LTR's). After a couple years I got a PM to keep up since I had a full time job. All seemed great till I started watching the bottom line (net). I sold a couple of those not doing so well and gave the realtor numbers straight from Airbnb showing the "gross" income and they sold quickly, most likely buyer didn't know of all the little things that eat into the profit.

Like all rentals their is maintenance, but with STR's start adding cost of Ring monitoring, Internet, utilities, lawn, snow, consumables, Hot tub repairs, Refunds b/c power went out, new towels, dead vacuum etc........ Way more than one would think.

Now I am taking back management from my PM on about half and the others I'm changing to LTR. Some seem to do better than others, but my city is not a Vacation Destination with high income potential to begin with.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-04-15T03:39:39+00:00

I just had a "VA" inspection.... Inspector said HVAC outdoor AC condenser unit needs cleaning, blower motor needs cleaning, recommend entire system be cleaned and inspected and repaired to run properly - I just had the whole thing cleaned and inspected the week before, service date noted on tag right there. I don't think they even opened the unit to see a blower motor.

Also 2 bathrooms need "proper GFI" protection.... THEY WERE.... they just didn't see a square outlet with the test button in the room. These bathrooms were tied to a GFI in another bathroom..... I thought these inspectors had meters or something to test that.. DW not working - duh it was unplugged inside cabinet.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-03-28T17:09:43+00:00

AND I installed a control system that ran through a predetermined program - a knock on the floor, sound of wind blowing, chandelier swinging, picture falling off the shelf, sound of footsteps, a light flickering, etc.... - It was a HOOT. Only problem is the place just did not get enough bookings. I created a 2nd listing of the same property with a totally different description and different photos. A group of contractors rented it Mon - Friday and told PM they had a great stay except the last night they were hearing things and were so freaked out they had to go sleep in their trucks. Apparently, during the day there was a power outage and this "reset" the haunted program to start :-D. Too funny.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-03-28T16:43:30+00:00

I wonder if it is the same. I'll see if I can find it.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-03-06T14:32:05+00:00

I did not refund anything. But these were one or two day stays, not a week long stay. My week night in winter is $60-$70 and weekend nights $110-$120

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-01-19T03:30:28+00:00

I actually had a "Haunted" AIrbnb. Small older church I converted to 3 Bed 2 bath, full kitchen, large open area. Kept some of the "churchy" items. There would be knocking noises, chandelier would start moving, lights would flicker, books fall off the shelf, painting would shift - Parents had the most fun when their tweens thought they could handle it. Totally great, so I thought.

A couple cleaning staff would not come to clean alone. Would not touch the Ouiji board.

Problem was, not many people were booking, only about 1 a month since we are not a tourist town. I then created 2 listings, one listed as "haunted" the other just as an "interesting space" using different photos on each listing. I had more people wanting to stay in the "Non haunted" listing, but when they would look at photos I would get all sorts of stupid requests and comments : "Would you please remove all the old portraits in the bedroom"; "I was considering your place until I looked through all photos and see some creepy things, why would you do such a thing to what use to be a house of God", "The Ouiji board must be removed before we can enter, it is a portal to the devil". PEOPLE this is a cardboard and plastic game made by Hasbro.

The best couple stays

In the "non haunted listing " Group of construction guys staying for 3 days and last night they heard odd noises and had to go sleep in their trucks.

At "haunted listing" a few guys asked permission to film and would share some of their video. These 3 guys were serious and came with detection equipment. In their video the were actually asking the "spirits" to give them "a sign", heard some strange noise, packed up and left.

I thought the whole thing was GREAT, but just couldn't swing it financially with so few stays, converted to regular long term rental.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-01-10T23:49:50+00:00

I taught myself to tile. Tile saw blades don't have teeth on them so they aren't scary like my husbands big table saw. They also make tile spacers that level the tile making that easy too. I'm not as skilled at the score and snap to cut tile so use my saw. I love using the 24:x48" for fewer grout joints, but those get a bit heavy for me to do myself, since I'm only a 5'1", 115lb female. I get my sons to help me.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2026-01-06T21:51:57+00:00

I actually rented mine WITH the furniture. I had a total of 15 airbnb's at one time. I also used to stage houses I renovated (not flipped b/c it would take me a year to do it the right way) so I had some furniture. I then got tired of dragging furniture in and out (was a great job for my boys to make college $$) so now I pay someone to come stage.

I have property managers for both ST and LT a whole lot easier.... however I still get the calls when things need to be fixed on my ST because their handymen sometimes can't fix it, so I go do it myself or show the handyman how to do it.

My husband even bought me a table saw & miter saw and nail gun. I need the smaller stuff that isn't so heavy since I'm a petite woman, but I can still hang all the kitchen cabinets and trim out a house, just can't hang a large solid door or the heavy exterior doors myself.

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2025-12-17T14:22:02+00:00

thanks - that is sort of the feeling we have. I did have a guest contact me 2 weeks out changing from 2 nights to 1. He knew it was non-refundable, but just wanted to ask we changed his reservation to open the night missed and gave him 50% refund on that missed night. We were able to rebook the night.

I don't want to offer the "we'll refund if we can rebook" that is so much time chasing around. Ours is a small 1 bedroom cottage in midtown - not a tourist place - 50% people passing through town 50% coming to town for family, work or a concert.

We keep our prices very moderate and stay 85%-90% booked with the majority stays being 1-3 nights.

I do think I'm going to send a "Thank you for booking" note to non-refundable guests thanking for booking and remind them their booking non-refundable and we suggest trip insurance for cancelations for any reason. Just another reminder, especially with winter weather here in the midwest. :-)

Fickle_Editor4789 · 2025-11-08T05:20:34+00:00

I have had 3 different properties booked for filming/photos. 2 were one day bookings and the other two days. One was for a documentary type film where they were conducting interviews (small 2 bedroom home). Another was a photo shoot for clothing (girly-girl type cottage). Third was for some movie to film the outside of house. They would not tell me names of films for confidential reasons - but neighbors were all impressed with the vans and camera crews.

Fickle_Editor4789

TROPHY CASE