Archive for category AASEW

LANDLORD BOOT CAMP: Only 4 Open Seats Remain

Feb 16

Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in AASEW, Seminars | No Comments

UPDATE 2/17/10 – WE ARE AT FULL CAPACITY FOR LANDLORD BOOT CAMP ON 2/27/10.  If you are interested in attending please contact Paulette at (414) 276-7378 or paulette@apartmentassoc.org and she will put your name on a “waiting list” and contact you should a seat become available.
 
Thank You
 
T
 
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We had a great AASEW monthly membership meeting last night — close to 90 people.  That was the largest crowd that I have seen at a meeting in my many years as a member.  Many of the attendees at the meeting also signed up for the AASEW’s Landlord Bootcamp that I will be teaching in about 10 days.  If you are interested in attending I would encourage you to do so immediately as I am told that there are only 4 seats left.  Looks like we will have a full house!
 
Below is my earlier blog post about the Boot Camp and the topics that I will address on Feb. 27th:
 
 
I will be presenting an all-day seminar on residential landlord tenant law in Wisconsin for the Apartment Association of Southeastern Wisconsin, Inc. (AASEW).  The seminar is entitled “Landlord Boot Camp” and will take place on Saturday, February 27, 2010 from approx. 8:30 am – 5 pm at the Clarion Hotel located at 5311 S. Howell Avenue in Milwaukee.
 
The cost will be $159 for AASEW members and $259 for non-members.  You will receive a 100 page plus manual.  I have given a similar seminar to lawyers, landlords, and property managers over 25 times during the past few years and the organizations that have sponsored these seminars typically charge between $300-$400.  This is your opportunity to learn all of the same information at a much discounted price.
 
I will cover pretty much anything and everything that you need to know about residential Landlord Tenant law in Wisconsin, including:
 
1.   How to properly screen prospective tenants
 
2.   How to draft written screening criteria to assist you in the selection process
 
3.   How to comply with both federal and state Fair Housing laws including how to comply with “reasonable modifications”  and “reasonable accomodations” requests
 
4.   How to legally reject an applicant
 
5.   What rental documents you should be using and why
 
6.   When you should be using a 5-day notice versus a 14-day notice, 28-day notice, or 30-day notice and how to properly serve the notice on your tenant
 
7.   Everything you wanted to know (and probably even more than you wanted to know) about the Residential Rental Practices (ATCP 134) and how to avoid having to pay double damages to your tenant for breaching ATCP 134
 
8.   When you are legally allowed to enter your tenant’s apartment
 
9.   How to properly draft an eviction summons and complaint
 
10.   What to do to keep the commissioner from dismissing your eviction suit
 
11.   What you can legally deduct from a security deposit
 
12.   How to properly draft a security deposit transmittal / 21 day letter
 
13.   How to handle pet damage
 
14.   What to do with a tenant’s abandoned property and how this may affect whether or not you file an eviction suit
 
15.   How to pursue your ex-tenant for damages to your rental property and past due rent (and whether it is even worth it to do so)
 
. . .  and much more.
 
Hope to see you there. 
 
Call Paulette at (414) 276-7378 or email her at paulette@apartmentassoc.org to reserve your seat.

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Landlords Should Attend EPA Lead Renovation Meeting On Feb. 15th

Feb 14

Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in AASEW, Lead-Based Paint, Legislation | No Comments

The Bad News:   Those of you who have been following along on this list have heard about the new EPA Law, beginning April 22, 2010, that regulates any renovation work that disturbs 6 sq. ft. or more of paint per room, 20 sq. ft. or more of exterior paint, or involves windows. This law specifically includes rental property owners, management companies and their employees.  Your workers and company will need certification as well as changing your work practices. 

This law will increase the cost of doing work as well as subject violators to fines of up to $32,500 per day/violation..  You really don’t want to make a mistake here.

The Good News: Steve Antholt of the Wisconsin Department of Health (The people who will enforce this law in WI) has agreed to be at the AASEW’s Monday general meeting to  talk about the new EPA Law and the state companion rule Wisconsin Lead-Safe Renovation Rule, DHS 163.  He will explain why it is important, and what steps Rental Property Owners and Managers need to take to comply.
The Better News:  Steve has agreed to answer any and all questions that we may have on how to comply and keep our butts out of trouble. 
 
The Alternative: If all this makes you want to be rid of your properties… this Monday’s meeting will be the first to feature the new  Traders’ Corner!  Beginning February every month prior to our General Membership meetings our Traders’ Corner will meet to give members the opportunity to talk about their real estate needs. 
Join us Monday, February 15th 6:30 p.m if you wish to participate in the Trader’s Corner and 7:00 p.m. for the general meeting featuring Steve Anholt of DHFS 
Where:  Best Western, 1005 South Moorland Road, Brookfield, WI 53005.
HT to Tim Ballering

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AASEW’s Traders’ Corner To Be Introduced on Feb. 15th, Prior to Monthly Membership Meeting.

Feb 9

Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in AASEW, Investing In Rental Property | No Comments

The AASEW is constantly striving to make our monthly membership meetings more interactive, informative, and fun for our members.  Toward that end, we have formed a committee comprised of 3 board members (Alan Rusk, Kim Queen & John Coons) to explore and suggest ideas to improve the AASEW’s monthly meetings.  Our attendence has been up over the past year and we want to maintain (and even increase) this trend.

The first of the ideas to be implemented will be the Traders’ Corner.   The Traders’ Corner will meet from 6:30 pm – 7 pm on Monday, February 15, 2010 (and will continue to meet 1/2 hour before the start of the AASEW’s regular monthly meetings) at the Best Wester Hotel located at 1005 S. Moorland Road in Brookfield.

The goal of the Corner is to allow for members to meet and discuss their real estate ”deals.”  If you have a rental property that you are looking to sell or if you would like to purchase additional rental properties – the Traders’ Corner is where you want to be.  Come and tell us about how you found your most recent “deal” and how you analyzed it and determined that it was something that you should go forward with. 

The meeting will be very informal and we will let those in attendence dictate what we talk about.  Ideally we hope this new event will allow members to meet and interact with one another more and allow for all of us to learn from one another.  Our members possess a wealth of real estate knowledge and experience and that is something that the AASEW is hoping will be shared.

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Did Your Tenant Write You A Worthless Check? Consider New Restitution Program

Feb 4

Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in AASEW, Bad/Bounced Checks, Collections | 2 Comments

One of my earliest blog posts, back when I had just started Tristan’s Landlord-Tenant Law Blog, was about the fact that the City of Milwaukee Police Department had a policy in place where they refused to investigate crimes in which a tenant made their rent payment with a worthless check or stopped payment on the check.  Shortly thereafter I wrote about a new diversion program that was being created to assist landlords in such a situation.

I was attending the February monthly meeting for Milwaukee RING (Real Estate Investors Networking Group) this past Monday and they had a speaker from the company that is now running this new program.  Mr. Rufus McNealy of Financial Crimes Services, LLC (FCS) spoke to us about the diversion/accountability program that is now in full effect. 

Mr. McNealy handed out a very informative guide outlining the program and including the necessary applications to enter into the program.

With the current recession the District Attorney’s Office says that they are receiving more and more complaints of people passing worthless checks.  Due to limited funding, the DA’s office cannot afford to prosecute all of these these crimes.  So the DA’s office and FCS partnered to try to get some of that money back for the victims — and this includes landlords.

The goals of the program are:

1.  Increase the amount of restitution returned to victims of bad checks.

2.   Increase the accountability of all worthless check writers (regardless of the amount of the check).

3.   Educate local merchants about more effective check acceptance procedures.

4.   Reduce the risk of repeat worthless check activity through training.

There is no cost to any landlord that wishes to try this diversion program.  All costs of the program are born by the worthless check writer.

The program will handle the following kinds of checks: NSF, Account Closed, Stop Payment, Refer to Maker, Business to Business, RENT checks, debit card charge backs, ACH (Automatic Clearing House) charge backs, ACH NSF’s and electronic checks received in Milwaukee County that do not exceed $2,500.

The following types of checks will not be handled by the program: second-party checks, payroll checks, checks that are currently in collections with a collection agency or attorney, and promissory notes or any other situation in which there has been agreement to hold the check for deposit or credit extension.

The final two pages of the PDF that I have linked to above are the “Memorandum of Understanding”  which the landlord would review, sign and return to FCS, and a Preliminary Worthless Check Report which the landlord should complete and send to the Milwaukee County DA Program.  Hold on to these two pages . . .  just in case you find yourself in a situation where this program can help you.

Once FCS receives the above info from the landlord the company will attempt to contact the person that passed the bad check.  The criminal will then have the option of (1) entering into the program and paying restitution to the victim or (2) refuse to enter into the program in which case the matter will be sent for potential prosecution.

It is my understanding that FCS is also partnering with Racine County and Kenosha County in addition to Milwaukee County.  FCS is not currently working with Waukesha County.

Those of you that are interested in learning more about this program may contact Mr. McNealy at (414) 393-9385 or visit his company’s website at www.financialcrimes.net

The AASEW has also schedule Mr. McNealy to speak about this program at its May meeting.

LANDLORD BOOT CAMP: Everything You Need To Know About Residential Landlord-Tenant Law in WI

Feb 1

Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in AASEW, Landlording, Seminars | No Comments

I will be presenting an all-day seminar on residential landlord tenant law in Wisconsin for the Apartment Association of Southeastern Wisconsin, Inc. (AASEW).  The seminar is entitled “Landlord Boot Camp” and will take place on Saturday, February 27, 2010 from approx. 8:30 am – 5 pm at the Clarion Hotel located at 5311 S. Howell Avenue in Milwaukee.
 
The cost will be $159 for AASEW members and $259 for non-members.  You will receive a 100 page plus manual.  I have given a similar seminar to lawyers, landlords, and property managers over 25 times during the past few years and the organizations that have sponsored these seminars typically charge between $300-$400.  This is your opportunity to learn all of the same information at a much discounted price.
 
I will cover pretty much anything and everything that you need to know about residential Landlord Tenant law in Wisconsin, including:
 
1.   How to properly screen prospective tenants
 
2.   How to draft written screening criteria to assist you in the selection process
 
3.   How to comply with both federal and state Fair Housing laws including how to comply with “reasonable modifications”  and “reasonable accomodations” requests
 
4.   How to legally reject an applicant
 
5.   What rental documents you should be using and why
 
6.   When you should be using a 5-day notice versus a 14-day notice, 28-day notice, or 30-day notice and how to properly serve the notice on your tenant
 
7.   Everything you wanted to know (and probably even more than you wanted to know) about the Residential Rental Practices (ATCP 134) and how to avoid having to pay double damages to your tenant for breaching ATCP 134
 
8.   When you are legally allowed to enter your tenant’s apartment
 
9.   How to properly draft an eviction summons and complaint
 
10.   What to do to keep the commissioner from dismissing your eviction suit
 
11.   What you can legally deduct from a security deposit
 
12.   How to properly draft a security deposit transmittal / 21 day letter
 
13.   How to handle pet damage
 
14.   What to do with a tenant’s abandoned property and how this may affect whether or not you file an eviction suit
 
15.   How to pursue your ex-tenant for damages to your rental property and past due rent (and whether it is even worth it to do so)
 
. . .  and much more.
 
Hope to see you there. 
 
Call Paulette at (414) 276-7378 or email her at paulette@apartmentassoc.org to reserve your seat.

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Oral Arguments On Important Landlord Case To Be Heard on January 6, 2010

Jan 4

Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in AASEW, Caselaw, Landlording, Tenant Damage | No Comments

The Wisconsin Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on the case of Maryland Arms L.P. v. Connell on Wednesday, January 6, 2010.  This is a very important case for landlords as the decision will affect a landlord’s ability to contract with his/her tenant.

You can learn what the case is about by reviewing my earlier posts from May 28, 2009 and October 15, 2009.

Oral arguments will be streamed at http://wisconsineye.org for those that wish to watch.

The exact time that for the Maryland Arms arguments is unknown.  The case is scheduled to be heard second.  The first case starts at 9:45 am.  More than likely — and assuming everything runs on schedule – the case will be argued before 11 am.

For those of you new to oral arguments, the Wisconsin Supreme Court justices will allow each side to summarize their arguments (which have already been submitted via briefs).  The justices will also interrupt the attorneys in order to have them answer specific questions that the justices may have or to attempt to get the attorneys to concede certain arguments.  Sometimes the grilling by the justices can be harsh.  The justices will not issue a final decision on Wednesday.  A final decision will be issued many months later in writing.

The AASEW, along with three other Wisconsin apartment associations, hired legal counsel to submit an amicus curiae brief setting forth the concerns of the apartment industry as a whole, with regard to the specific facts of this case.  The lawyer for the apartment associations will also be allowed time to present our argument to the justices.

Upcoming AASEW Meetings, Topics & Speakers

Dec 23

Posted by Tristan R. Pettit, Esq. in AASEW, Lead-Based Paint, Remodeling, Seminars | No Comments

The Apartment Association of Southeastern Wisconsin, Inc. (AASEW) has some very interesting speakers and topics for its upcoming monthly membership meetings in 2010.  All meetings are held on the 3rd Monday of the month at 7 pm at the Best Western Midway Hotel which is located at 1005 S. Moorland Road in Brookfield.  There is no cost to attend the meetings.  If you are not yet a member of AASEW, attending one of our monthly membership meetings is a great way to see what the organization is all about and learn how membership can benefit you as a landlord, property manager or vendor.

Our January 18th meeting will feature Attorney Robert Muten of Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren S.C.  Atty. Muten will speak on the issue of employees vs. independent contractors.  Whether a person is an employee of your business or an independant contractor will affect all of us at some point in our lives if the issue has not already confronted you.  I have done research on this very interesting topic for clients in the past and the determination as to whether you are an employee or an independant contractor is very fact-specific.  You will not want to miss this very informative meeting with Atty. Muten.

Steven Antholt of the State of Wisconsin’s Department of Health Services will speak at the February 15th AASEW meeting.  He will discuss the new Lead-Based Paint Renovation, Repair and Painting Program.  This new program will affect everyone that owns or works on rental property and who “disturbs” more than 6 feet of interior space or 20 feet of exterior space, and/or is replacing any doors or windows in pre-1978 housing.  This new law requires individuals to get specific training prior to its enactment date and to comply with a myriad of rules and regulations.  The fines for ignoring this new law will be stiff — so it would be in all of our best interests to be in attendence at this meeting.

On March 15th, Stacy Hegg, Property Manager for Wellston Apartments, will discuss best practices in rental property management and provide us with some management tips that we can use when managing our own properties.  I have had the pleasure of co-presenting a seminar with Stacy a few months ago and found her to be a dynamic, knowledgeable, and enjoyable speaker.  Come learn how to better manage your rentals from an expert in the industry.

I hope to see all of you at these future meetings.

I would like to wish everyone a healthy, safe, and happy holiday season.  I apologize for the lack of substantive blog articles this past week but I have been very busy dealing with all of the crowds while trying to finish my last minute holiday shopping  :  )

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