Growing in a rental

[TortureKill]

Ive been mulling over the idea of a cheap rental property to use primarily as a grow spot. Has anyone ever done this, Looking for first hand experience. Im currently paying a mortgage on a house in the country with my wife and daughter. Our area is pretty rural, in the U.S, and there's a lot of old farmhouses, and other properties I wouldn't necessarily live in, but could house a grow. I plan to stay living in my house, and use the rental to set up an extra veg and bloom room.

The main concern at this point is more space for my projects. Im not talking about turning the entire place into a grow spot, but renting it, getting to know the neighbors and landlord a bit first, and setting up a couple rooms after the first month or two. I work out of town a lot, which would give me a good cover for why IM NEVER THERE>> I also thought about putting a buddy up to stay in the place, but that invites a host of other issues.. Id rather noone else knew about it. Is this completely crazy, Bad idea, or can I pull it off. I planned just to rent it until next spring. It would take a lot of thought, and cojones, but I think its doable. I know couple old heads that pulled this off for years, but eventually had to shut down after someone was tipped off.

Of course, under the right circumstances, it would be no problem, and if I decide to go for it, I will have all bases covered. Ive got a little bit of coin to invest now for scrubbers, set up, and rent. I figured if I had a small bloom room running It would cover the cost of the rent after a few months.
So if you have experience or ideas, or know someone who has successfully pulled this off let me hear about it. If you think this is absolutely crazy, and just asking to get nailed let me know.

 

[AliasAO]

Ive been mulling over the idea of a cheap rental property to use primarily as a grow spot. Has anyone ever done this, Looking for first hand experience. Im currently paying a mortgage on a house in the country with my wife and daughter. Our area is pretty rural, in the U.S, and there's a lot of old farmhouses, and other properties I wouldn't necessarily live in, but could house a grow. I plan to stay living in my house, and use the rental to set up an extra veg and bloom room.

The main concern at this point is more space for my projects. Im not talking about turning the entire place into a grow spot, but renting it, getting to know the neighbors and landlord a bit first, and setting up a couple rooms after the first month or two. I work out of town a lot, which would give me a good cover for why IM NEVER THERE>> I also thought about putting a buddy up to stay in the place, but that invites a host of other issues.. Id rather noone else knew about it. Is this completely crazy, Bad idea, or can I pull it off. I planned just to rent it until next spring. It would take a lot of thought, and cojones, but I think its doable. I know couple old heads that pulled this off for years, but eventually had to shut down after someone was tipped off.

Of course, under the right circumstances, it would be no problem, and if I decide to go for it, I will have all bases covered. Ive got a little bit of coin to invest now for scrubbers, set up, and rent. I figured if I had a small bloom room running It would cover the cost of the rent after a few months.
So if you have experience or ideas, or know someone who has successfully pulled this off let me hear about it. If you think this is absolutely crazy, and just asking to get nailed let me know.

I havent done this myself but I know its common practice around my parts in Cali.

Ive had "associates" who have rented houses to grow in or even warehouses to grow in.

What they always told me was NEVER arrive at your rental property in a nice car or nice clothes.

Maintain some kind of strict schedule , so that your appearance , departure and reappearance seem to be just BUSINESS AS USUAL.

You know this one but NEVER bring ANYONE else to your grow spot.

And lasty dont get caught with the lights on at night watering without the blinds closed. haha

Im sure there are others but Im blanking..

COjones you will need but you can pull it off..

Great plan about the getting to know the neighbors.

And I agree not to PUT A BUDDY up in your rental. I reasoned with my "associates" many times to NOT do that.

Because like it or not-- another person is another possible threat and big problem waiting to happen.. in other words its another circumstance that you have minimal control over.

Id say go for it. The expansion I imagine will only help you in the Long run.

Id like in to an alarm or some kind of security if you go at it all by urself.

Good Luck TK.

 

[greenthumbdanny]

Thats an excellent idea TK>>I did that my self a couple months ago:)
>>>No need to have all your eggs in one basket is the way I see things<<<know body needs to know about the second house either:ninja

:passingjoint:

gtd

 

[symbiote420]

Tooooooo risky!! I would only do something like that if I knew the landlord personally and had more than a base relationship with the neighbors.

 

[green punk]

Been doing it for decades.

 

[TortureKill]

s<<<know body needs to know about the second house either:ninja

:passingjoint:

gtd

My thoughts exactly. This is something the old lady wouldnt even know about, for all she knows Im stashing extra money away in savings.

 

[TortureKill]

Been doing it for decades.

Punk shoot me some ideas, details, or pm if u feel more comfortable. What kind of area do u rent from? Rural? Neighbors? Do u know the landlord, how often to you visit, do u keep to yourself, have you met the neighbors..

 

[kootenainatural]

i found using rentels with out of state owners is best when going that route this way you dont actualy have to meet them all busness is done through the mail and fax machines. we never even had to send ID for the last one just money and good conversation.

 

[green punk]

Like Kootenai said absentee landlords work great. Inheriting a spot from a tenant that has had similar motives works too. Where I live is a college town with all kinds of dive rentals. In this town you can find some landlords who just want their check. People talk about how cool their landlord is etc.
I definitely would interact with neighbors if you have the chance. Defuse the "our new neighbor is shady" statements. If they're elders definitely pay the lip service. Avoid pissing off the younger (playa/balla) neighbors, because they likely will have
you pegged. Keep up the yard. It can be a bitch. I had a spot (a real good one) kind of isolated had about a 2 acre lawn that had sprinklers. Mowing it cost 120 per week. Then the dam sprinklers would fuck up or need to be blown out, that costs add up. If possible find someone who you can trust to help complete the renter profile, this really helps you sleep. It will help answer every what if scenario your 1 week from harvest brain will concoct as you lie awake. If you can't do that, spend some overnights on regular schedule.
Selecting house is real important as far garden design etc. Unfinished basements, central air, wiring, WATER, etc.

 

[GanjaGardener]

I've been doing a variation on the theme for the past 5 years in an old, funky industrial park and was able to fly under the radar until 2 months ago, when remodeling and expansion of my flowering space forced me to move my plants outdoors for a couple of days into the enclosed area** adjacent to my "shop", (**my "outdoor room" until I shut it down a year+ ago after increasing my indoor space) and got I got busted by the manager who was drawn to my unit to see what I was up to w/ the remodel.

I didn't find out about the visit until the next day when I heard a sharp knocking at my door, opened it up, and was read the riot act by the manager. "The owners don't want "it" on their property. Grow "it" on your own property. You've got 24 hours, so move it or get an eviction notice." Needless to say, it felt like my thumping heart had dropped down below my balls. It felt like I'd taken a gut punch. I was staggered.

It took some doing, but I'm OK to go at the same location- have begun reassembling my rooms so I can gather up the remnants of the run that had to be dispersed to my backyard and the backyards of a few trusted friends who grow for themselves, have the room and who have cards, which was no small feat in itself.)

If interested, I'd be happy to fill you in on the gamut that, more or less, rescued me and saved me from the major paradigm shift that pitching a tee-pee and setting up shop on my friends property outside of Garberville would have entailed.

 

[swisscheese]

Works great treat your landlord with respect and let them know you will take care of any repairs the property needs and before you sign the lease make sure they understand how important your privacy is to you.

 

[GanjaGardener]

Works great treat your landlord with respect and let them know you will take care of any repairs the property needs and before you sign the lease make sure they understand how important your privacy is to you.

I went through a series of solutions ranging from a legal offense (ie "w/ all the other illegal shit that's going on around here, ie the poker room next door, I find it ironic that you're picking on a guy who's running legal because he has to cross/dot his i's/t's due to the product line"); to drawing on the owners sense of justice and compassion, (ie "I'm providing for a bunch of 50-60 somethings w/ infirmities that range from a plate in the head received during a tour of duty in Nam, to a lady who recently had a foot amputated or to a guy like me, who uses it as a psycho active substitute for some of the heavier, really addictive shit.")

I didn't act on either, weighed in to get counsel from others, and ended up essentially w/ the same solution that swisscheese advises w/ a twist- I didn't work it out w/ the long-distant landlords. The patriarch is old, extremely rich, conservative, distant, and does't have the capacity for or interest in op's problems.

Because they rarely come to the property and when they do, they don't tour occupied spaces- someone comes to pick up the money- I was able to work things out w/ the on site manager in much the same way that swisscheese suggested above.

 

[GanjaGardener]

Oops. wrong thread.:hi

 

[bellsnickle]

Not a bad idea at all, i have done it in the past. main concerns are the landlord out of town works best. Neighbors how nosy and how close are they. how much of a hassle is it to visit there on a regular basis... smell of course so don't scrimp on the scrubbers. also you can have security systems installed that notify u instead of authorities with cameras that can accessed thru your smart phone. also consider using some form of automation IE grobot system so it needs less of your attention on a daily basis...just something to toss around hope it helps...

 

[Ohiofarmer]

Best buy 350 dollars each for individual cameras that can be linked to an online proxy server, It's a no brainer idea, be friendly to neighbors but not over friendly; be somewhat stand offish. Maintain a small relationship with landlord and make sure to have a contract which limits his ability to come in at any time. Also if your renting a place that has a basement it's a good idea not to setup in the basement. The basement is the first place anyone will check for an op and also most states in the U.S. have laws which allow a landlord to come into a residence to check everything in the basement(furnace;hotwater tank etc) as long as they give 24-48 hours notice(depending on what state) this law trumphs contracts between you and your landlord, inless in the contract it specifically states he cannot come in at any time. Over it's a great idea and one which many people have used with awesome success for many many years. Another route you could go would be to purchase a mobile home in a park somewhere; this is a superior idea and requires low maintanence, low rent, low bills and allows you to operate as normal as possible also mobile homes come with a deed or title which protects against landlords. In conjunction many people in trailer parks could give a shit less what anyone else is doing plus many trailers in parks are rented, so it's not uncommon to see somone just come over to a mobile once or twice a week but not live there. Hope this helps out Take it easy man:banana1sv6:

 

[iscrog4food]

I have been doing this for a while and I would reccommend:

1) Read your lease. If you have a special addendum on the lease read it! IF the landlord is asking a bunch of stuff in the lease (you have to clean the carpets once a year, you have to maintain the hardwood floors, you have to water the grass and plants ect. then avoid the place.)

2) +1 for absentee landlords

3) if you get a place with a property manager then I would not set anything up untill after they do the 30 or 60 day walk through.

4) Always have a back story for why you are not there often or for any equipment you bring in

5) like said above, be nice to the neighbors so they dont think you are a freak but not too nice so they want to come over and have tea ect.

6) have you plants vegged so after the walk through you can just set everything up.

7) I wouldn't stress privacy unless landlords visits become a problem. If they do just tell him you engage in sexual practices that many find unconventional and you value your privacy (This usually works IME).

8) dont invest anything in a remote garden that you are not prepared to loose. Between cops, and robbers remote gardens are an elevated risk over live in properties so dont put soo many eggs in that basket that you cant afford a total loss

9) move furniture into the house. Nothing is a red flag like doing a 30 day walkthrough and there is no furniture, believe me they will come back in 30 more days tops if they see this. I usually rent a storage unit before I get a new place and get some furniture from yardsales and store it untill I have a house worth. If not find someone who has furniture in storage and tell em you will store it for free.

 

[oglovinlife18]

do u put the lease in your name or some one different?

 

[TortureKill]

Thank you very much Bell, OhioFarmer, Iscrog, lots of good info. Ive found possibly the most ideal house, and landlord to pull this off, but location is a bit far for my situation. Id like a place that is somewhat close but not too close. This place is a good drive for me to visit when Id like to. Good question Oglovinlife, Ive wondered this myself, but Id imagine you would need to have some of the utilities in your name as well.

 

[GanjaGardener]

Great stuff, folks! ^^

"The greatest trick a grower ever pulled was to convince the world that he was someone else."
This little play on words lifted from Kevin Spacey's great line in The Usual Suspects, has been the mantra, the theme that I've built my low profile, low-tech security system around. I'm tucked in a corner of an industrial park, have about 50 neighbors working in close proximity to me, and flew completely under the radar for over 4 years. I'm a friendly, but not particularly outgoing guy to begin with, (except w/ my homies) so being cautiously friendly and not drawing undo attention to myself is my MO- I've just have had to be more conscious about it.

Pulled the rest, editing content. Oops!

 

[GanjaGardener]

Hmm... come to think of it, I'm kinda blowin my mantra now. Have 2 think about that one a bit more. Hmm....
Got it.
The bottom of the above message shall seriously self-destruct:mad0233:now
due to author having a mild case of the noids.