Yep, yep, I posted as a "tenant" and not as someone who has worked in real estate, including property management for independent landloards, for more than 10 years...
I'll say it again:
- Allow
small pets. By that I mean, no more than 2 per apartment, both pets under 20lbs, both spayed or neutered, with shots. Have the tenants sign the usual waiver, which removes you from liability from any damage or injury caused by said pets, and require the appropriate deposits for them.
- Screen your tenants carefully, particularly for good credit. Do not allow persons with poor credit, poor employment histories, or with government assistance (aka section 8) to be tenants in your properties. If you have good tenants, with strong employment and credit histories, they will pay their rents on time and take good care of your property and then you will not be "The Evil Slum Lord."
- Re-invest back into your property for maintenance, remodeling, and upkeep. Once again, if you do not want to be "The Evil Slum Lord," then all you have to do is not own slums.
- Always collect security deposits upfront, appropriate to your market and building. Deposits should be at least equal to 1/2 the first month's rent. Security deposits are not fees. If a tenant leaves a clean apartment upon move-out, refund the deposit. If they don't, don't. You do not want a reputation as a landlord that doesn't refund deposits even when a tenant leaves a clean apartment. Security deposits are NOT income. Same with pet deposits, which should be at least equal to the security deposit, per pet (do not allow more than 2, both under 20 lbs, insist on spayed or neutered). If you wish, charge a cleaning or move-in fee, which should roughly equal the cost of a cleaning crew.
- Always have your tenants sign leases, for at least six months. If you do decide to have your tenants go month-to-month, collect first and last months' rent upfront, in addition to the deposits.
- Always collect application fees for prospective tenants, of roughly $35 per applicant. This keeps the riff-raff from applying.
- Remember that it is always better to have an empty apartment than it is to have a full apartment with a bad tenant. Remember that a good tenant, who pays his/her rent on time, and is quiet, is worth their weight in gold.
- (I'm gonna get flamed for this) It's a well-known "secret" among landlords that gay couple tenants are the best. They have no children, are usually quiet, tend to have good incomes and pay their rents on time, and take pride in where they live and sometimes even occassionaly do upgrades and remodels for you. I have known some landlords, particularly for single-family homes, that will ONLY rent to gay couples.
- Last but not least, get the appropriate umbrella insurance policy for your building.
You can take 2 sides to being a landlord. You can think of your tenants as scum, as the enemy, like tcsenter suggests, and guess what? They will think of you the same way. Your building will become a pit and you will have to accept lower quality tenants just to keep it occupied. Or you can think of your tenants as your valued customers and your building as an exclusive location for the privledged to live in, maintain it and upgrade it to reflect that thinking, and guess what? It will be, and you will be able to select from high-quality prospective tenants and charge high rents.
Either way, I still suggest that, if you intend to be a non-occupant landlord, you hire a good property management firm with an excellent reputation in your area.
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