You carry certain expectations when you attend your college on the first day. You later reset your expectations based upon what you see and experience in the classroom and other places in the premises. Your teachers play an important role in resetting your expectations. The same is the case with tenants. They move into your property carrying certain expectations. As a landlord, it is your responsibility to set realistic expectations in the minds of your tenants.
Setting the expectations of your tenants right and realistic from the start is the best way of ensuring a smooth and happy relationship between them and you as a landlord. Everything should be clear in the minds about your tenants and they should not be left to assume anything. This is what creates confusion and rift between you and your tenants.
Do not leave anything for interpretation in the minds of your tenants. They should be very clear about due date of rent payment, how they should treat your rental property, and how they should treat you and your staff. Also, they should have a clear idea of what treatment they can expect form you as a landlord.
How to make clear your expectations?
Do not assume anything. Tell your tenants what is expected of them right at the start. The best time to spell out your expectations is at the time of signing the lease agreement. This is perhaps as important as the leasing agreement itself because violations take place only when the tenants are left to do their own interpretations of various clauses in the agreement. Take upon yourself to remove all doubts from the minds of your tenants to set their expectations right. Here are some important points to discuss with your tenants right at the start.
- They must pay the rent on the due date every month
- You will initiate eviction process if the rent remains unpaid after due date
- They should know what constitutes damage and what normal wear and tear is
- What constitutes an emergency?
- How their repair requests will be handled by you
- How tenants can get their security deposit back when leaving your premises
- You will help them only if they follow the rules and regulations
Many landlords feel shy about talking about their rules and regulations bluntly and prefer to convey the message with the help of a written document. However, the correct approach is to talk to your tenants and make your expectations clear so that there is nothing left to assume. If you do not tell them that they cannot call you in the middle of the night just because a tap is leaking in the bathroom or kitchen, you cannot blame them if they do so. Similarly, you cannot assume that your tenants will take all their stuff and clean up the unit when moving out until you clearly tell them so.
Your tenants need to know all the rules and regulations in clear terms to behave according to your expectations with rental property. Many of the problems faced by some landlords are automatically solved when they tell their tenants what is expected of them. Of course, setting the expectations right is the responsibility of the landlord. It takes some time and effort on your part but goes a long way in making sure rules are followed by your tenants. The way in which you make your expectations clear to your tenants is your own choice. You can be blunt and cold, or you can choose to talk like a mentor. You need to tackle your tenants firmly without hurting their sentiments.
If you’d like to talk more about property management, or you need help with Everest Property Management, please contact us at Everest Realty.
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Palm Coast Property Management
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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.
