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Painless Property Management

Frederick Tingley, of Salt lake City, Utah, is a Real Estate Instructor for Enlightened Millionaire Institute. property management

Over the years I've worked with many people who tell me that they only want to flip properties. Upon further probing, I find out that they have heard horror stories related to owning rentals. These stories stop many people from moving forward as real estate investors. Hopefully, by the end of this article you will see that managing a property can be rather painless as long as we do just a few things correctly.

Managing property has two aspects to it: The first is the physical up-keep of the property. The second, and the one we will spend most of this article discussing, is tenant relations.

Physical Upkeep

Discussing the physical up-keep should be self-evident. You want to keep the property in the best possible condition to maintain, and even increase, its value.

The other day, I was talking to the owner of a property who made this astonishing comment: "This property is the worst property on the street because it's been rented for the past sixteen years." This property was being offered thousands below comparable properties in the area. Personally, l hope I will never have to make that comment about any of my properties. Just because a property has been a rental for a number of years does not mean it cannot look as good as the other properties in its neighborhood.

Your property will rent faster, stay rented longer, and the tenant will be more inclined to take better care of it if it is clean and neat when you rent it out. The next steps would be finding potential tenants, screening the potential tenants, and developing good and ongoing relationships with the tenant applicants after they are chosen.

Have A Good Ad Ready

You should have a good ad already written up. Your ad, in some respects, should pre-qualify the applicants The Information should include the number of bedrooms, baths, rent range, etc. Some investors will pre-qualify further by stating whether or not pets are allowed. I personally don't do that, but if I do allow a tenant to have a dog or a cat, I will have them sign a pet agreement and charge extra for the privilege of having 'Fido' or 'Tabby' inhabiting the property.

Charge A Fee To Cover A Credit Report

As prospective tenants call the number listed, I have a pre-recorded message giving the address and letting them know that I will be at the property between 9 AM and 1 PM on Saturday. Showing the property this way reduces the amount of time I spend showing the property, plus it makes the property seem more desirable to the prospective tenant as he sees others there.

Have the prospect fill out an application. Get a fee to cover a credit report and eviction/tenancy report. In Southern California, there is a firm called U.D. Registry, Inc. that will provide you with this information. If you wish to see if they have a branch in your area, call 800-464-1087. Most apartment owners' associations will provide this service, plus provide information on landlord/tenant laws for your state. The bottom line is to check your applicant out.

Good Tenant Relations

After you have selected your tenant, have them meet you on the property to do a walk through. Have a move in/move out form, and have them check the boxes on the form as you go through the house. Several years ago, I started taping these walk-thru's with my video camera. This way, I not only had the tenant's signature on the move-in form claiming everything was okay and in good working order, but I also had them recorded on tape. Make sure you review the lease with the tenant. Another good practice is to list on the lease the names of the people who are to inhabit the unit. Some tenants will try to move others into the unit to cut expenses. Remember the more people inhabiting the property, the more wear and tear the property receives.

At the time of lease signing, I let them know I will be coming by at the agreed-upon time--usually the first of the month--to pick-up the rent check. I do this for a couple of reasons. The main reason being it gives me a chance to develop a relationship with the tenant, as I ask about the tenant's family, make sure everything is okay, etc.

Do The Walk-Thru With A Video Camera

If there is a problem with the property, I want to know about it and deal with it quickly. After a few months, I usually just tell the tenant to send me the rent. This happens usually after I feel that we have developed a rapport. If you will maintain the property, check your applicants thoroughly and develop a rapport with your tenant; you will find that this will decrease any problems significantly.


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