Hi
My husband and I just purchased a home for investment purposes (long term)and now are going to rent it out. Do you have any advice either from the owner/rental perspective? I've never rented except for in college and I vaguely remember that except for the fact that our land lord would bake us meringues at Christmas time. Is that normal?
Thank you

Hi there,
I currently rent my home. My landlord tells me all the time that we are the ideal tennants.
Some ideas I ahve that make good landlords:
1. Do not pop in un announced.
2. Let them treat the place like their home. For example, if they want to paint a bedroom, then let them with the understanding that it will be re painted before they move.
3. If they want to have pets, let them. Again, charge extra or an extra security deposit with them.
4. Check references.

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Be careful what you wish for.....

I bought a home as an investment property and my sister is living in it.

She pays less than the normal monthly payment because she couldn't afford the higher payment and we had a couple of last minute items that came up at closing. I stuck by our agreement and charged her the lower rent.

She never gives me a minutes peace. She wants me to redo the yard, the drain is slow in her bathroom, there are puddles in the backyard when it rains, the a/c bill was too high, she wants me to chop down trees that are perfectly ok, she thinks there are tree worms (there weren't), she wants all new appliances. Oh, and will her rent go down this year?

Storm damage now to the roof and we are dealing with roofers and dryall people... minimum out of pockect will be $2300. She is mad that we didn't have roofers there on the weekend...(couldn't find any that were open)...

She looked at this house with me when we were looking for a place...she knew all the stuff that needed to be done..and was willing to go in knowing I was spending all of my savings..I've got a daughter going into college and I just want to cringe everytime my sister calls.

I am going to hold on for two more years....my husband and I will downsize into this house and then sell both homes (never again).

I will add to Dannics list.

5. Check references with an agency you pay to do this. Don't believe what their references say when you call. You have no idea who they are. We actually had a woman who pretended to be one of our tenants current landlord.

6. Don't rent to a relative, unless you have a very specific written and notarized agreement, and even then I would think twice.

7. Put in the lease that any changes to the property or painting must be approved by you. One tenant said the trees needed trimming, which was okayed and instead she just cut them down.

8. As said above, and as much as possible, allow them to make the place their home. That way maybe they will stay longer and be really great tenants.

9. Do pop in at least once a year, but also as said above, not without a week or two notice. After they've been in a couple of years, and you are generally happy with them, you can probably stop this.

10. You will probably have a grace period for the rent. Once the grace period has passed and no rent has arrived, start the eviction process. Do not wait. Send them a signature required notice that you are starting the process. It varies from area to area as to how hard it is to get people out, so you need to familiarize yourself with your local laws and processes. And don't wait until the worst happens to do that research. Know your rights and know their rights before going into a contract.

I agree, once the wait period for the rent has passed, we send a late notice along with the late charges as per the lease (we had our lawyer advise us with our first lease), and then we start the eviction process. We have let people be late and it never seems that they can get caught up.
Be careful about letting people do too much to your property since the security doesn't always cover the repairs and even if you win in court you win a judgement, collecting that is another story.

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Sometimes the elevator often the shaft

You need to be familiar with the Landlord/tenant laws in your state or have an attorney you can consult with. Being a landlord has responsibilities along with rewards. In our city, your property must be a licensed rental--which means you must pass an inspection every three years and pay a fee for the license (ours is 225 for 3 years). You should check backgrounds of all prospective renters (I can access MN court records, both civil and criminal for free), verify employment, have them do a complete application before you sign the lease. Keep records of all rent received and all maintenence or improvements done on the property for your tax records.

Also, do move in/move out inspections. Make sure you specify what should be done at move out...for example, don't say "property should be clean"--specify oven should be clean, cupboards wiped out, all garbage disposed of, etc etc.

I have been a landlord for 4 years and just went through the eviction process...it was surprisingly easy---there really is no defense to non-payment of rent. I won a judgement against them, but haven't collected a penny yet so far.

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"It's not about how much baggage you have, it's about whether or not you can carry your own baggage with grace and dignity."

And I might add to Jeeplady's advice, to take date and time stamped pictures before your renters move in, each time. That way you have some proof of the condition of the unit before they take over.

I just moved into a new apartment after having a landlord from hell
Here is some what NOT to donote..most of what I am about to say is common sense lol)

1. Do not bring your personal life into the lease.. I was constantly brought into the middle of their marital problems. Such as "Don't give my wife the rent, only deal with me" or "my husband never gives me any money so as a woman you should give me the rent" BUT yet they both signed their names on the lease as the landlords

2. If something breaks or leaks... fix it as soon as you can. We have a pending lawsuit against them now because of this. I also had a leaky toilet for almost 3 months because he would always have an excuse why he couldn't fix it. Also, if you have a professional tell you that something needs to be changed dont laugh it off and just leave it. He was told by a few plumbers that he had up in my apartment that something was wrong somewhere because the hot water in my kitchen was coming out hot enough to give you a 2nd degree burn, He just laughed it off and said she will just have to make sure she puts the cold water on first

3. Make sure you both have an understanding of when the rent is due and how it will be collected. I would have to basically hunt him down to pay the rent, although he lived right down stairs, he would be home and not answer his door or wouldn't answer the phone then days later when I would finally make contact he would say "Oh I thought you were gonna pay me on the 1st, and when he would be told about the attempts made or asked why he just didn't come up stairs, he would say 'I dont want to hunt people down for my money "

NOW with my new place.. I can say Its a LOT better; Here are some suggestions of what you can do:
1. Give them a move in check list and let them advise you of anything that may have been over looked when you did your inspection. My apartment was just re-done so they thought it was in excellent shape, however a few minor things needed to be done for instance outlet covers in 2 places and my dining room light was hanging too low so I needed it adjusted
2. they gave me a move in welcome folder, which even though I've lived in the area was very nice, it had a list of places in the area, such as grocery stores, gyms, post offices, the police department and libray.
3. after a week just do a quick check in with them to make sure they are settled and/or if they needed assistance with anything.

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~~~~**Maryann**~~~~

I just got a firm grip on reality....
Now I can strangle it

Thank you very much for all the tips and advice. I will definitely print this list out and go over it w/ my DH. I think and now know I have a lot to learn about this process. I live in So. CA so it's an always changing place. Once again, thank you