FROM THE PRESIDENT - Don Schmidt
 The main subject of our last meeting was what are other organizations doing in the Carondelet and Holly Hills area. Our guest speakers were Wendy Cook of the Holly Hills Improvement Association and Brigitte Pidduck from the Neighborhood Stabilization Team.
Wendy described her organization and some of the activities that they have been doing. The organization was formed in 1927 and its primary function is to conduct various activities and events to promote the well-being of Holly Hills. They have bimonthly meetings on the Monday following our meeting at Southern Commercial Bank at 5515 S. Grand.
Wendy also announced that their association was going to have Mayor Harmon as a guest speaker at their next meeting on September 22, 1997. She invited all of our members to this meeting. This would be an excellent opportunity for us to met the new Mayor. If you have any questions regarding the Holly Hills Improvement Association or their next meeting, you can contact them at 569-5708 or P.O. Box 22144 St. Louis 63116.
One of our members described a problem of having a problem property next to the member's building. The property was not being properly maintained, some of tenants were harassing the member's residents, the owner did not want to be involved and was not responding, and the property was being managed by a property management agency. COULD THIS HAPPEN TO YOU? The odds are that it is very likely that it could. We had a lengthy discussion on this matter. You had to be there to appreciate the discussion of this problem. One of the options was to go after the property management agency. The fact was brought out that property management agencies must have a license. If a valid complaint can be made and the agency does not respond, an effort can be made to revoke their license. Also, have you read the Post Dispatch lately? Neighbors are getting together and bringing law suits against owners of problem properties. It has happened at least twice in the city in the recent past. Is this a trend of the future or just a passing fad?
The need for an organization such as ours continues to grow. The more membership participation we have the better our chances are to realize the organizations mission statement, "TO MAINTAIN AND IMPROVE PROPERTY VALUE, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE COMMUNITY, TO ATTRACT QUALITY TENANTS AND TO HAVE A SAFE, DESIRABLE NEIGHBORHOOD." Remember, there is no saturation level for knowledge. A knowledgeable Landlord is a good Landlord and an effective business person. Hope to see you at the next meeting.
TENANTS AND SUB-LEASING
When two or more people rent property together, and all sign the lease/rental agreement, they are co-tenants. When doing your tenant screening, you should screen all the co-tenants individually. Each co-tenant is legally responsible to carry out all the terms of the lease/rental agreement, including being obligated to pay the entire rent and 100% of any damages to the premises even if the other co-tenants fail to pay their share. In other words, each tenant is responsible for any co-tenant's action that violates any term of the lease/rental agreement.
If a co-tenant leaves and the remaining co-tenant wants to stay and finds a new co-tenant that has a good credit history, you might not be able to withhold approval of the new co-tenant and still hold the original co- tenant responsible for 100% of the rent. If, however, the new co-tenant does not meet your screening specifications, you may say no and evict the original co-tenant if the entire rent is not paid.
When a co-tenant leaves and a substitute is offered, you should:
1. Have the departing Tenant sign a Termination of Tenancy statement.
2. Screen the proposed tenant like you would any new tenant.
3. Have the remaining tenant(s) and the replacement tenant sign a new lease/rental agreement.
What should you do if a tenant wants to sublet their apartment? First of all, your lease or rental agreement should include a clause prohibiting sublets or assignments without your written consent. In most cases you should simply insist that the tenancy terminate and a new one begin with the proposed "subtenant" as the new prime tenant. If you allow a subtenancy, you have no direct legal relationship with the new tenant. If you need to sue for damages or failure to pay rent, you must involve the original tenant.
In summary, screen all co-tenant as if they were individual tenants, and avoid subleasing.
CHECK YOUR CALENDAR
We have established a permanent schedule for all our meetings. The Carondelet/Holly Hills Landlord Association's meetings are scheduled for the third Monday of each odd month. All our meetings are held at Southern Commercial Bank, 5515 South Grand in the lower level. The doors are open at 6:30 and the meeting starts at 7:00 P.M. Our next meeting is scheduled for September 15.
ITS A WINNER
As we announced in our last newsletter we will have a raffle at each meeting. The entire membership is automatically entered in the raffle and the prize is $30.00. There are two conditions that must be met to win. First, your name must be drawn and second, you must be present at the meeting to win. If a member's name is drawn that is not at the meeting, no winner will be declared for that meeting and $20.00 will be added to the prize money for the next meeting drawing. Once the raffle is won, the prize money will be restored to $30.00 and the cycle will repeat. So now, when you come to a meeting, you will receive valuable information pertinent to your investments and you might get a cash bonus. SUCH A DEAL. Our first raffle was held during our July meeting and we had a winner. Congratulations to Jim Magnus who won $30.00 from our first raffle.
WHAT TO DO?
What do you want your Landlord Association to do for you? What services would you like your organization to provide? This should be a working organization that serves all of it's members. To do that it needs the input and the efforts of all of the members. Do not be bashful. There is no such thing as a bad idea. Please submit your ideas and requests. You can submit them various ways. Send them to me at:
Don Schmidt
P.O. Box 16392
St. Louis Mo. 63125
OR
E-mail sirschmidt@classic.msn.com
OR
Submit them at the next meeting either verbally or in writing.
All ideas will be treated as anonymous unless otherwise specified.
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