Being a landlord can be stressful at times. Tenants pay 
late (or not at all), maintenance requests can be 
bothersome, and city inspections seem to come all too 
often. As in most communities in the tri-county area, 
mandatory landlord licensing has become commonplace, and 
bi-annual city inspections are required for all rental 
housing units. 
 
Recently I had a number of city inspections and part of the 
inspection process includes having the furnace inspected by 
a licensed heating & cooling professional. A routine 
carbon monoxide test is performed and the heat exchanger is 
checked for leaks. 
 
To my surprise one furnace had to be replaced (it was 40+ 
years old), and two heat exchangers had to be replaced in 
other houses. The two heat exchangers were in furnaces 
that were relatively new; one was 1993, and the other 1998. 
I was lucky that both had 20 year warranties on the heat 
exchangers so I only had to pay for installation and 
shipping. 
 
Like many landlords I too feel put upon by cities that 
require licensing and inspections of rental housing, but in 
these cases I was glad I had the inspections performed. We 
must be mindful of our tenant's safety and protection for 
our own personal liability. 
 
Installing smoke detectors are not enough. I am taking a 
second look at installing CO detectors as well. The cost 
is minimal and the sense of security is great. Just as we 
have concerns over lead-based paint, asbestos, and mold I 
believe we should also be concerned about carbon monoxide 
poisoning in our rental units. "Better safe than...", or 
"An ounce of prevention..." I think you get the picture. 
 
Good Investing,  
 
Ron Watcke, President  
Real Estate Investors Association of Oakland