Let’s face it: being a landlord is harder than it seemed when you first invested in property, right?
You have a lot of responsibilities to take care of. Not only are you maintaining your own home and family, but you also have to maintain all of your rental properties and keep your tenants happy.
Are you doing everything right, or are you making some serious errors with property management?
We’re here to help you figure it out. Keep reading to learn more.
1. Not Screening Tenants
Many new landlords are so focused on filling up vacancies that they don’t take the time to screen their new tenants. While most tenants are great, having a bad one is a nightmare and you don’t want to have that problem.
Screening tenants is time-consuming, but the tenant screening process will make your life easier.
You want to look for background checks, rental history, proof of income, and anything else that could potentially matter in regard to your property.
Keep in mind that you may need to be flexible about some of these things. For example, a new renter who’s just moved out of their family home, or someone who has owned a home, may not have a strong rental history.
Don’t miss out on good tenants because your restrictions are too strict.
2. Neglecting Your Marketing
Speaking of finding tenants, how are they finding you?
As a landlord, you’re likely not also an expert marketer. While marketing might look easy, in reality, it’s a lot of work. You’ll have to maintain a website, a strong social media presence, and open communication with anyone inquiring about your property.
If you don’t do these things, people aren’t going to find your rental. It’s not as simple as putting a sign up in the window anymore.
3. Not Focusing on Maintenance
Too many landlords who try to manage their own properties don’t pay enough attention to property inspections and maintenance. They may only handle maintenance when tenants call in with problems.
So what’s wrong with this?
When you don’t do routine maintenance and inspections, you’re setting yourself up for more problems in the future. For example, if you routinely check for HVAC problems, you’re less likely to have an HVAC emergency.
When your HVAC system goes down, it might make the property uninhabitable. This means that your tenants can break their lease or that you’ll have to compensate them.
In other words, it’s more expensive to neglect maintenance.
4. Trying to Do It Alone
A small-time landlord with one or two properties won’t have a hard time managing them, but if you have several properties or a full-time job, you might need help.
This is where a good property management service, like Sellstate Alliance Property Management, can swoop in to save the day. Property management companies have all of the necessary property management software and experience to take over all of the behind-the-scenes work so you can focus on other responsibilities.
Avoid These Errors with Property Management
Make sure not to make these common errors with property management. To avoid them, consider hiring a professional property management company to take care of all of the nitty-gritty details. You won’t regret it.
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