Property manager vs. sole proprietor RE:electrical work

[infrared]

I find it hilarious that in my recent google search for "electrical work in rental home", this thread is the #9 result.

And this brings me to my latest inquiry:

How can I find an electrician who will do work in a home I don't own without getting permission from the owner?

 

[Dan Kone]

How can I find an electrician who will do work in a home I don't own without getting permission from the owner?

Cash should work just fine.

I've got a friend who's an electrician so I don't worry about it too much. But if you look on craigslist, I think you'll find there are several electricians with "215" or "hydro" randomly embedded in their ads. I think any one of them will probably do that as long as they get paid in cash.

 

[infrared]

Cash should work just fine.

I've got a friend who's an electrician so I don't worry about it too much. But if you look on craigslist, I think you'll find there are several electricians with "215" or "hydro" randomly embedded in their ads. I think any one of them will probably do that as long as they get paid in cash.

Excellent suggestion, thanks!

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to Dan Kone again.

 

[d.s.m.]

Cash should work just fine.

I've got a friend who's an electrician so I don't worry about it too much. But if you look on craigslist, I think you'll find there are several electricians with "215" or "hydro" randomly embedded in their ads. I think any one of them will probably do that as long as they get paid in cash.

Only problem with that is some random craigslist dude that may or may not be a decent electrician now knows where pounds are gonna ready every few months.

 

[Dan Kone]

Only problem with that is some random craigslist dude that may or may not be a decent electrician now knows where pounds are gonna ready every few months.

Indeed. I'm very thankful I've never had to contract out to randoms.

 

[infrared]

Only problem with that is some random craigslist dude that may or may not be a decent electrician now knows where pounds are gonna ready every few months.

Good point. Any way I can mitigate the risk?

Is there any kind of credential I should look for in hiring an electrician?

Also, what do I need to ask for, in order to get power for, say 4x1000w lights and all the accessories? I might be starting to get off into something for another subforum, but what the hell, we've already got this thread rolling.

 

[dtp5150]

hydro stores sometimes have bulliten boards or wahtever with people who can be trusted to do jobs

there's always the whole 'learning how to do simple electrical work yourself' thing

ur lookin to run a 240v circuit with at least 20amps, depending on ur other equipment (superlumens? dehumid, a/c, etc ) other than lights u might need 30amps, but 20 might do.

u gotta run the correct guage ( thickness ) wire for the required amps and voltage. Its easy to find info.

if the wiring is exposed u must protect it and run it inside conduit ( metal or pvc pipe ) for safety issues.

etc etc. I have never needed to run a circuit myself but have troubleshot existing circuits, rewired outlets, etc, but always learning. good luck. luckily i sold some grow lights to a chill dude on craigslist who is an electrician so i'd be callin that person up if i ever need somethin. In norcal.

 

[infrared]

there's always the whole 'learning how to do simple electrical work yourself' thing

I hadn't even considered this earlier, but if it's really as easy as this video makes it look, I might have to give it a shot.

[video=youtube;LXQoOWbU3DE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LXQoOWbU3DE[/video]

Has anyone else done their own wiring, and is it actually as easy as it looks?

 

[SFguy]

Hey RIU,

I'm planning to move to a new home soon, and need to know a few things about rentals.

My understanding is that in California, 24 hours notice is required for any kind of inspection or showing -- basically anything that involves one of 'their' people entering my home.

I plan to use a spare bedroom for my garden, but need to make sure there's no reason for them to enter. Aside from some kind of catastrophe, I can only think of showings being the only reason to enter these bedrooms. Are there any other things I should consider when choosing a room?

How much work am I 'allowed' to do in a rental, altering the electrical setup and getting some 240v into a bedroom?

This brings me to my 'main' question:
Is dealing with an individual owner different than a property management group? I could see the individuals being more nosy and hands-on when it comes to repairs and such. My current home employs a couple maintenance guys all shepherded by one leader, and they practically never need to come in my home. Aside from things I asked for help, I believe they've had to come in one time in all of 2011, and I'd like to make sure I'm not signing up for unwelcome home 'invasions' by renting straight from the owner.

And I'm sure there's a ton of stuff to consider that I've totally ignored, so please help me fill in the gaps with anything you feel could be relevant and helpful

I HAVE UNDERLINED THE PROBLEM YOU WILL FIND RENTING FROM MOST "HANDS ON OWNERS".. definitely find a property managment place, they come in once a year, sometimes not even at all if you really TAKE CARE OF THE HOME LIKE ITS YOURS and dont go leavin trash around send them a REPAIR BILL OR RECIPTS FOR P;AINT ANDSMALL FIXES YOU DO, MOST REALLY LIKE THAT SHIT AND REIMBURSE TENANTS, they will only do drive bys and BELIEVE ME.. THEY DRIVE BY (i work for state farm) and take pic of peolples houses* not a stalker only insurance purpose, buta anywayay.. they do drive by!! i rent from Sole proprieter and, its a pain in my ass cause hes lookin over the fence and shit!!from his truck thats lifted.... scandalous

 

[SFguy]

I am a landlord and I'm familiar with what you can and can't do. Many of the new contracts now contain no illegal activity clauses. The contracts also include no alteration to the property, that includes lock sets. Best advice, don't take free legal advice, evictions and illegal activity is reported and easy for landlords to find out about any negative reports. You may give up a deposit, but then you also take the chance of being drug into small claims court to recover any other costs of evictions and damage to the property. Best way to avoid trouble is; pay the rent on time, keep the yard up, don't let any crap accumulate on the property, neighbors pay attention and will call the owner if your renting from an owner that used to live in the house. Just common sense stuff. An owner has the right to enter the property after legal notice just about anytime they want to. There are lots of laws that require landlords to be responsible for, therefore there are lots of reason to enter the house or be on the property, one of them is the smoke/carbon monoxide monitors. Basically, pay the rent, be respectful and just do the right thing and 99% of owners have better things to do with their time than go and bother a tenant. Hope that helps.

hits the nail on the head!!! because hes a landlord! but you still get nosy guys.. i say prop managment>sole proprieter any time.. unless tiger hwy wants to rent to me...


hahhhahhhahahha i didnt make it to page 3 yet

 

[Dan Kone]

hits the nail on the head!!! because hes a landlord! but you still get nosy guys.. i say prop managment>sole proprieter any time.. unless tiger hwy wants to rent to me...


hahhhahhhahahha i didnt make it to page 3 yet

What you really want is to respond to adds where the phone number has a different area code than the area the property is in. That's pretty sweet if you can find one. Nothing better than renting from someone who lives far, far away.

IDK though, I've never had an issue with nosy landlords. Lived in three houses in SF over 6 years without ever seeing a landlord other than to hand them the application and pay the deposit.

 

[SFguy]

maybe its cuz im not in SF... LOL small towns where its at, well semi small town, i lived in sacramento for about 4 yrs but i love being here by the coast=)

 

[Dan Kone]

maybe its cuz im not in SF... LOL small towns where its at, well semi small town, i lived in sacramento for about 4 yrs but i love being here by the coast=)

I lit up a house in the sunset for 3 years. Little old Asian lady as a landlord. She owned a ton of buildings down there. She'd call me like twice a year and asked if I needed anything fixed. I'd just tell her "naw. I'm handy and like to fix stuff up" and she never bothered me. Awesomeness.

Really you just got to feel out the landlord. If they seem like nosy types, just move on.

 

[dirtsurfr]

I find it hilarious that in my recent google search for "electrical work in rental home", this thread is the #9 result.

And this brings me to my latest inquiry:

How can I find an electrician who will do work in a home I don't own without getting permission from the owner?

You won't find a Contractor, they can't touch a place w/o the owners permission up front.
How about you find a 420 friendly owner??
If I found out there was some one fucking up my house growing weed they would be out on there asses and take their weed too!!
Most people don't know what their doing in home repairs, I see it all the time.
I had a gut living down the street growing weed and his neighborer turned him into the owner, the owner found out this guy made eatables
and bartered for some of the rent. He also told that noisy neighborer to go screw himself.
So talk to the owners maybe save some trouble latter down the road.

 

[collective gardener]

I've grown in rentals, either homes or warehouses, for the last 25 years. The key to the home grow is the ability to break it down fairly quick and easy. Once I rented 2 U-Haul trucks (one veg with 8 lanterns in it, one bloom totally dark) to store a 5k grow while the landlord did an inspection. You can always put them off for 72 hrs prior to inspecting. If you build the grow with possible breakdown in mind, you'll have an easy time of it. I actually remove the carpet in the grow and save it. At inspection time I have a carpet guy kick back in the carpet for $150.

Once we grew with 4 lights in a garage. Instead of builing a room within the garage, we just sealed the whole garage. A few time a year I would move the plants into the house, break down the lights, and open the garage for the weekend to let the neighbors see that nothing is going on. The more experience you have growing the easier it is to build an op that breaks down easy. Even our current 18k show is all screwed together. Sure, it would take 4 guys a few days to totally break it down, but it can be done.

My partner and I also did a climate controlled greehouse in the backyard of a rental. The landlord discovered it about 2 weeks before a really big harvest. I offererd him 10% to just let us finish. It was all I could do. It worked. The reason it worked was because the greenhouse looked like an operating room. Everything was clean, tight, and safe. I doubt he'd of felt the same way if it was some sloppy amateur settup. In fact, he was so impressed with what he saw, that he became our partner for the next couple years. So, there's that option.

The bottom line is, growing in a rental always has some risks. You just can't avoid it. Knowing that an inspection could be coming will help you design the grow for that possibility.

 

[DinafemHashPlant]

grow a bunch of small plants under 2ft tall...best idea...easy to move and prob use tents so u can just fold them up put under a bed and put the lamps in ur car and plants in cardboard boxes...That will be my plan..But hopefully i can be chill with my landlord and they will understand..

 

[SFguy]

You must spread some Reputation around before giving it to collective gardener again.