When I got out of the service at age 21, I decided I was going to make my fortune in Real Estate, so I purchased with my discharge pay a large house with 7 bedrooms and two bathrooms and made my first rooming house. I converted the porch and the dining room into 2 more bedrooms, making a total of 9 bedrooms which I rented out in those days for $50.00 a week each. I didn't give anyone use of the kitchen and I didn't allow anyone to have company, you just went directly to your room and basically went to sleep and that was it. I allowed no food in rooms or any loud noise after 10 PM. It was a great place if you had a job and you were making minimum wage.
My mortgage payment was $250.00 a month, my electric bill was $165.00, my gas bill averaged 150 a month year around and because I had a well and septic tank, even getting them pumped out and serviced a couple times a year, only cost me an average of $35.00 a month. My Insurance ran me only $50.00 a month, about $25.00 a month for maintenance, so the expenses were $ 670.00 per month. My Income was $1330.00 a month on my first property net.
There I was back in the late 1950s making over $17,000 a year, not working for anybody. It was very important to get a lot of information about your tenants such as next of kin, Mother and fathers name and address, social security #, Employers Name, Landlord history, last job etc. I always had an application ready for them to full out. That way if they do any damage to your property you can chase them down.
