From a renter's point of view....
 

If you wish to hold on to "returning" renters.... we pay $3,000/mo. We paid an extra $100 this year to add to our comfort in our rental. Shouldn't have had to be necessary. We also took care of getting the satellite and remotes that didn't work. We scrubbed down the lanai and wrought iron furniture. Spot cleaned the carpet and washed the small area rugs. We are not "white glove" people. Far from it. But we don't want to complain to our landlord about so much that should have been taken care of. We want to be good and responsible renters, but for $3000 a month...we expect a little more....

1. Comfort is key! Please update uncomfortable furniture, mattresses, etc.
The cute matching upholstered furniture of years back have cushions that are completely flat now and we are sitting on the wooden seat frames now.
We'd love to put our feet up on ottomans (found 2 at resale store) or have recliners!

Patio umbrellas are great to keep the sun out of our eyes and cushions on the wrought iron chairs would be nice. (I had to purchase some at a resale store this year.)

The low adirondack chairs are all the thing now, but we are older and can't get in or out of them because they are so low!



2. Cleanliness! We pay for the cleaning people in our lease. But the carpets are spotted and the north-facing lanai is covered in dirt and moss.

The plastic outdoor chairs are stained with dirt and the wrought iron furniture's paint is peeling.

The throw rugs are filthy and stained. The vacuum doesn't work well.

The shower doesn't get hot water.

Perhaps your cleaning people might tell you of these things or you could do a "walk through" to check on them.




3. Amenities...

Please check out the tv remotes and satellite to be sure they work.
Wireless would be nice.
A printer would be nice.
The tires on the golf cart are so worn it is scary
The golf cart's batteries need to be replaced as we can't get up a small hill.
A couple of fold up chairs to take to the square would be nice so we don't have to bring them with us in the car.

4. Kitchen

Plenty of extra dishes if we have company would be nice. They don't have to be fancy expensive dishes.
A crock pot would be nice.
Some serving platters would be nice.
Ice cream scoops (left and right handed one), kitchen sheers, wine bottle opener, colander would be nice.


5. Ample lighting is helpful so we can read no matter where we are in the living room.


6. Safety!
Safety bars in the showers are a must for older people!
The carpeting is loosening and should be tightened!
Area rugs are sliding.
The lights flicker at night. The outlets blow fuses.

7. Pets...
A "pets welcome" home will probably get return renters. We know that is a sore subject amongst landlords, but our pets are our family. 99%of us are responsible pet owners and willing to pay for extra cleaning should it be necessary.

Wow, sounds like complaints to the land lord are in order. That being said, Let the buyer (or renter) beware.... - before signing the rental agreement. As long as the renter continues to get the inflated fee without complaints no changes will be made. Of course, they may not make any changes anyway. Contact the renter - what have you to lose?

We had relatives rent in TV and the renter went over the house from one end to the other with them and even asked if they had everything they needed for their stay. He added that if something came up to call and he would handle it.

As far as pets - good luck! We are pet owners, but would not even consider renting our house to someone with pets.

Let us know how your conversations with the renter go.

katsudden: You may want to find another rental or better yet just buy here.

Well Katsudden.

It must be bad. I wonder if the owners know all this. ;) Things aren't going well for you this time, what with the event staff throwing your cushions into the bushes and all that seat saving problem.

For mere $3000 a month your rented a total Resort .
Complete with pools , activity's,golf nightly entertainment ect ect
I really don't get whats to complain about that was a bargain
Or basically you got what you paid for

Wish you had rented my new villa instead. I think my renters may have been related to your owner. Lets hope they eventually meet each other. I think thats known as KARMA.

I don't understand why some unhappy renters are kvetching to this forum about their expectations. I am a full time resident and do not care about your renting problems.

Complain to the people you rent from. It is not pressuring them to do anything even if they would read it on this forum. You did not identify where you are renting nor who the owners are.

If you did not like that house, you would just not rent it again. I don't care what you do. :boxing2:

well i'm not going to be so hard on the rentee. He feels he is paying alot of money and is maybe offering some tips to people who rent their homes out. Did you speak to your landlord? Maybe they would be willing to correct some of these issues.?? Or try another home. There are plenty to rent in the villages. Good luck

from a owners point of view
 

While I acknowledge that your concerns are valid, I as an owner do not live in the villages yet. Renters have been in my house more than I have. While I have the absolute best managers in TV, even they can't read minds. Since I don't have direct contact with the renters, I can only rely on my managers and they can only rely on the renters telling them what they feel is wrong.
I honestly think my kitchen in TV is better equiped than the one here. Our home is pet friendly and while spots and stains can occur, they are regularly professionally cleaned and tightened. However, since the home is rented for the "high" season" things can occur during that time that might not be noticed until no one is there. Items have appeared and disappeared during that time also. Alot of the issues you have mentioned wouldn't be noticed by cleaning people such as lights flickering or the shower not getting hot water.
I strongly suggest you contact the owner/manager. If they want repeat business they would surely take your concerns to heart.

A left handed ice cream scoop? Are you serious?

That was a discounted rent. Most places get $3,500 in season. You get what you pay for.

I was thinking the same thing and I'm left handed. What the heck is left handed ice cream scoop?

Well, I for one think this renter is completely within his rights to be upset and disappointed. We rented our place out for years until we could come here full time. We kept our house immaculate and well appointed. He is paying top dollar and deserves top dollar conditions. I'm frankly surprised he finds himself is this position and wish I could rent him our place to show him how wonderful it could be. Good luck to him, and yes, do let the property manager know. We would have fixed everything toot sweet!

Nice of you to purchase cushions, etc. I'd say some of your complaints are very valid and should have been taken up with the homeowner/caretaker, such as the flickering lights and hot water issues, cleanliness issues.

Not sure what to say about the older furniture. It sounds like it needs replacing but I doubt many homeowners are going to do that in a rental until they get several complaints.

However, depending on the type of lanai furniture, cushions may be your preference but not normally used for that style. So, if you want 'em, buy 'em. Ditto an ice cream scoop (left or righthanded) and crock pot. I agree that every home should have a colander and at least one serving platter.

Surely you knew before you rented that there was no wireless in the house? If that is a requirement for you, be sure you rent a house that has one, not expect the homeowner to add one. As to a printer, few houses have one for good reason -- renters use all the ink, do not replace paper, jam it. To be polite, printers are a royal pain to maintain. So, I'd say some of your complaints are really not reasonable, but most definitely are.

Honestly, from what you described, you had homeowners who did not care what you were getting and just wanted your money. Fortunately, most homeowners here are not like that. Most care about what they are renting and their renters. Hopefully, your next rental here will be more to your liking.

do have to say the ice cream scoop is a bit over the top. most valid complaints. some unreasonable.

Wow - talk about shooting the messenger. This is certainly the appropriate place for a post titled "from a renter's point of view". It should serve to alert folks that are renting out their homes how they can make them more comfortable and have renters return or recommend their homes to others.

Just 'cause you don't care doesn't mean others aren't interested. And why are you even reading posts you aren't interested in.

I read it because I would like to know what renters want. As soon as I saw left handed ice cream scoop, it made me question the whole post. If someone is so upset by not having a left handed ice cream scoop that they post it on a message board, I probably don't want them renting my house. Granted, a few of the complaints may be valid, while others they should have known about before renting.

The left-handed ice cream scoop pretty much invalidates the whole thing.

I've spoken with rental property managers who do all renting over the phone, without photos by email or website. I would never rent a place without recent photographs. You can tell a lot by looking at the furniture and upholstery, and other furnishings that should have gone to Salvation Army 20 years ago.

And $3,000 is on the low side of rent in the winter season here, too. That's $100 per night, and where can you get a hotel room for that price that includes sales and hotel tax etc.....and the hotel would have nothing but two beds and a bathroom.....for about $150 per night even at Hampton.

I have a right to left handed ice cream scoop... I call it Baskin Robbins LOL

There are to many responsible owners out there for you to have to deal with substandard accomodations. My opinion is to find a new place next time, but start your search now.

Same as a left handed crescent wrench

"Seat savers" thrown in the bushes at the Square....no left-handed ice cream scoops....and no hot water in the shower.....

This TV place sure is a dump.

The first year, we rented a patio villa from TV with no golf cart in Bonnybrook. The second and third year, we rented a new ranch in Amelia that was immaculate and the property manager was extremely fussy (good for us) with her cleaning crew....but the electric golf cart and wireless were the only hiccups. That said, we had a fabulous time here. We were unable to get that same rental the next year and we rented a designer on the golf course in Palo Alto. The cleaning person HAD to come back,(but we did contact the owner immediately and voiced our concerns) you could hold up the sheets in the master BR and watch television through them but we had a great golf cart and loads of fun. The good times we had here overcame the bad.....and then we bought and don't regret it. By the way, we're still having fun.

Katsudden - did you voice your concerns to the landlord in a reasonable and timely fashion? I hope so. You would be blind siding him here on this site if you didn't. Also did you not walk through the rental before you leased it?

Ok from an owners point of view to OP...

I spent $10,000 on the furniture in my home, nope no ottomens and recliner, but on my web site you can check those if you have them
I have fold up chairs to go in my gas golf cart that goes 22mph
A crockpot, 2 colenders and 3 pair of shears
2 wine openers (one for the experienced, i am a sommelier, and a wine opener for the novice)
We have all been reading about blown fuses and our house is included, and we all know that it take awhile to get hot water here, (there is a thread)
With that covered why do you not want to contact the managment person or owner,,,

Did you let them know you were left handed and needed special items...like the ice cream scoop... Here hoping my renters are always happy, and yes they are returning next year.....

I think everyone is too focused on the left handed ice cream scoop and dismissing the legitimate concerns. If you rent through TV or whoever that is now you don't get an opportunity to do a walk through. You go to the sales office and are handed the keys. And even if you did do a walk through - you are here for a month - what are you going to do turn around and go home??? doubt you would find something else last minute during high season.
And yes I have rented homes bases on pictures only to find them to be below par. And I have showed homes as a REALTOR with fabulous pictures that when you walked in you can't believe you are in the same house. Unfortuantely pics don't tell the whole story.

You are joking, right? Renting here at TV does not even remotely resemble staying at a Resort. You rent the house and everything else is extra. Expecting a clean, comfortable, modern, fully functioning rental for $3000/month is not being unreasonable.

Thank you, I thought that I had missed something. :a040:

I agree. I've seen rentals listed on the forum for around $2800 to $3000, so I think that is a pretty average rental rate (assuming it's not a huge designer with bird age and pool).

We have rented at least one place that was not what it purported to be online (not in TV) and can understand the OP's position on most points. For 3000 in TV, you should get comfortable furniture, good beds, and a better-equipped kitchen. This isn't some place where you're probably gonig to eat out every night.

Also, we have friends who have rented twice site unseen in TV and have found unclean houses. This year they managed to look ahead to next year and spent much time finding a place they could inspect here and now. The downside was it took a lot of time out of their one-month vacation. But that is the hazard of renting from a private owner.

On the other hand, rentals accepting dogs... We finally got tired of the quality of the rentals in FL that accept dogs (EXCEPT for our wonderful landlords and cottage we had for six winters in Key West), and that was the driving factor in buying our own house in TV. I got tired of "ratty."

Pet Friendly ....that may be the missing equation.

Another landlord view point
 

First if you go look at the average cost of the prime months it is $3460 a month. Believe me as I survey over 100 rentals every year to set my rental rates and have spread sheets with 200 plus properties on them updated annually. Ranches run $3390 and designers run $3540 on average for the three prime months. I survey a lot of like properties, location, features, golf cart, wireless, any many others. I throw out the high and the low, take the average and set my rent $100 below the average.

Getting properties cleaned properly between tenants is an issue. I have gone through 3 different companies and none are satisfactory. The problem is they all try to clean 30 homes in a 24 hour period and have nothing to do the rest of the month. Every landlord uses the calendar and rents from the first to the end of the month. So a very short window between homes. I have to go through each home and double check everything after they have cleaned. And I always find something they missed and probably also miss something.

I ask every tenant to keep a list of everything that is a problem. No matter how minor. If it needs attention now, call me and I will get it resolved. Any thing missing or something they want, write it down or go get it and give me the receipt. And believe me every one wants something we never think of. I have been asked for cookie sheets, electric tea pots, DVD recorders, hot plates, crock pots, aprons, knife sharpener, foot stools, ladder, zip lock bags, dust busters, car washing supplies, and other things I wont mention. Most I provide when asked and leave for the next person so over time most bases are covered.

There is always something to fix between tenants. ALWAYS. And again you have a very short window to get it done. And most don't let you know or write anything down. Hopefully you find it, but not always.

And there are also the things they try to hide. Spilled coffee on the mattress, broken golf cart wind shield, empty golf cart gas tank (even though lease states it's full now, leave it full when you leave) empty grill tank, even though I pay them to get it filled if needed. Almost impossible for us to know how full that tank is or how much someone used the grill. Cut furniture, and spilled wine, and moved furniture, and many other things. And then there is things like the stickers they put on the frig and the golf carts.

And then there is the issue of pets and smoking. Many potential renters ask if there have ever been pets in the home. And if there have, they wont rent from you. It is greater then 60% that do not want a home if there has ever been pets in it. And even though my lease states, no smoking any where, to include the garage, lanai, driveway or anywhere on the property, people will still do it.

I guess the point is that landlords are not perfect and neither are the tenants. Most are truly wonderful people and I have made some great friends from my tenants. Most of my business is repeat tenants and I provide a discount to keep the good ones coming back.

I do my very best to keep and maintain a clean home, in good repair, and provide everything a tenant wants no matter how strange it may seem to me. Doing so does have it's challenges. So please all tenants, communicate with the property owner, let them know anything that will help them provide you with a quality experience.

And no one has ever asked me for a left hand ice cream scoop. :shrug: No idea where I would even find one. But if I could, for the $3 or $4 bucks it would cost, I would get it for a good tenant.

Thanks for an excellent explanation from a landlord's perspective.

I am appalled that someone would "sticker" your fridge or golf cart. Why??:shrug:

Iridehd - and that is why you have repeat business. If most landlords were half as accomodating as you this post wouldn't exist.

You are a careful, diligent and hardworking person who attempts to do anything you undertake ethically and well.


There are a lot of people who come here too young to retire from work, buy a new home, furnish it nicely and rent it out until they can come and live in it.

I would hate to turn over my home to anyone to live in, and particularly if it was new and had new furnishings. I think most people in our age group are responsible and careful But there are a few that you can tell by their posts that they don't care about anything but their own convenience and would be negligent in their care of a new rental home.

I couldn't rent my HOME out. That is just me. I would wait to buy until I could move in myself and take care of it.

12ride says, "broken golf cart wind shield, empty golf cart gas tank (even though lease states it's full now, leave it full when you leave)."

Even after reading all the information on insurance companies saying that a rental golf cart is not covered by your liability insurance, you still rent the house to include a golf cart? Don't you feel this has the possibility of an accident in YOUR cart by the tenants and YOU will be responsible as the OWNER? Couldn't you be sued big-time and lose everything you have worked for so so long?

This is an excellent post! I also welcomed the OP's perspective as we rent out our "home" during the high season. I used the OP's original post as a checklist and came to the conclusion that we provide in our home the bulk the items they indicated were missing. We are too young to retire so we can only spend 3 months a year in TV, we rent our home to defray some of the cost of owning it. I also think the OP's rent is competitive and not out of line.

We rented in TV for 15 years before we bought our home and can see both sides of this. We rented a villa once over the phone and later found out that the landlord had furnished it by giving his young daughter $1000 to go to garage sales to outfit it. It was horrible....

We place emphasis on the fact that the tenant is renting our "home" and anticipate people will view it as such and treat it as such.

We have the same people coming back year after year.We go the extra mile for them if there is some reasonable item missing or needing repair. After all, they are our guests....

I guess another renter stole the left-handed ice cream scoop and it couldn't be replaced since it was the only one ever made.

left handed ice cream scoop
 

yes, they do exist. the type of scoop that has the 'sweeper arm' that releases the ice cream from the scoop is made with the lever that activates the arm on either the right side for 'righties' and the left side for 'lefties'. the lefty scoop is however difficult to find.

:coolsmiley:

That's the one that got me. Several of these complaints seem like they may be legitimate. (but then again I've met some very fussy people in my life.)

But ice cream scoops are what is important? And then a right handed and a left handed one. That makes me wonder just how bad this situation is.

Excellent post. Maybe the admin should consider making a special category for this post for others to refer to like the nuts and bolts section. Hint, Hint.