From a distance, the profession of a landlord appears to be great. He does nothing and enjoys attractive rental income month after month. But dive deeper and you start to learn the complexities of this profession. One of the biggest challenges for all landlords is to find good quality tenants and keep them for long time periods.
A good tenant is one who pays rent on times and behaves nicely with your rental property and other tenants. You can find good quality tenants through marketing and tenant screening but to keep them, you will need to behave like a guardian. Understand and be responsive to their needs and you will find that your tenants will not want to leave your property for a long time.
Find out how potential renters look for properties
Potential tenants find out about properties in their areas from different avenues. Some read newspapers while others search them on internet. Some hire services of a broker while some look for yard signs to find out suitable rental properties. Find out what renters in your market do to find out suitable properties. Focus upon the method they prefer to find to properties. Be aggressive in your marketing and try to highlight the positive features to catch the attention of your target group of renters.
Start your screening process from the word go
The real challenge for you starts once you have been successful in attracting large number of potential renters to your property. As soon s you receive a call from an individual, you can shoot off questions to start your screening process. Ask indirectly if it would be convenient for them to see the property after they are back from work. You can judge if they can afford the monthly rent by mentioning it on phone and adding if this monthly rent is OK for them. Answers to these questions will confirm if the individual does a job and whether he earns enough to afford your unit.
Make every applicant to fill up a form containing a set of questions that you will use to evaluate their trustworthiness. Ask about rental history, employment history and check out the credit history with the personal details provided by the applicant. Do not fall prey to the appearance of the applicant that can be very deceiving. Also, do not accept any money in the name of advance rent as many landlords have been duped by squatters using this ploy. Insist on conducting a background check before signing the lease agreement.
Be a professional and fair landlord to your tenants
Once you have found good quality tenants after all the marketing and tenant screening, it is your desire to cling on to them for as long as you can. This is because tenant turnover can be a big headache for you besides causing loss of rental income. The best way to make sure your tenants feel comfortable in your property is to listen to their complaints and suggestions and carry out repairs whenever requested by them. Tenants do not mind if you ask them to follow the house rules if you are consistent and punish the violators.
Reward tenants by keeping your property well maintained and by providing all necessary amenities. If you behave professionally and fairly with all your tenants, you will find that they will also take care of your rental property and pay their rent on time. Respect your tenants and solve disputed in an impartial manner to earn the respect and trust of your tenants.
If you master the art of finding and keeping good quality tenants, you will start to enjoy being a landlord also.
If you’d like to talk more about property management, or you need help with Everest Property Management, please contact us at Everest Realty.
Property Management Service Areas
Palm Coast Property Management
Flagler Beach Property Management
Ormond Beach Property Management
As a top producing Realtor and Property Manager; Terry specializes in sales, extensive construction homes, rentals, REO’s, short sales, and all aspects of Real Estate. After graduating the University of Michigan with a master in MBA, Terry continued his endeavor and now has over 15+ years of experience in the Real Estate world. If there is anything that has to do with Real Estate and sales, you can always be sure of Terry to provide important, specialized knowledge.
