Being a landlord does not have to be problematic. In fact, when your rental properties are managed efficiently and effectively, being a landlord can be a significant source of revenue. However, landlords often have a bad reputation, for being greedy, lazy, and uncaring. Make sure you are not one of them and have a queue of tenants waiting to move in with these handy tips.

Make sure you are committed

Being a landlord is the business of safeguarding and growing an investment through careful tenant placement and management. All of your efforts to acquire rental properties will be for naught if you do not manage them properly because it is how you defend your investment from failure and help it grow in value with each year that passes. 

Being a landlord is not for everyone; it is for the select few who are willing to accept responsibility in order to provide a better financial future for themselves and their families, as well as look after the tenants that they have placed.

Pre-screen your tenants

When potential tenants start contacting you, you are going to get a lot of bad seeds. As a result, before accepting an application, and even showing a property,  it is critical to sift through the options. Pre-screening begins with advertising and continues with each interaction. If someone does not feel right, they probably are not right. 

Have a solid screening process

When a prospective tenant decides that your property is the best option for them, they must complete an application. The application is intended to provide you with an inside look into their lives and to assist you in making a quantitative decision rather than one based on intuition. The application should be detailed but not so much that it turns off potential tenants. Include credit checks and criminal record checks, as well as asking for references from previous landlords. 

Lay down the rules from the start

Firm but fair is what you want to be. You do not want to be an ogre who will not let your tenants breathe without the threat of eviction, but at the same time, you need to ensure boundaries are in place as to what you will and will not accept. For example, penalties for late payment, who is responsible for what, and neighborly relations. You do not want to be known as the landlord who always has nightmare noisy tenants. In this situation, a noise monitor helps you avoid complaints from loud tenants. 

Make sure you keep up with the maintenance of your property

You will be responsible for many of the ‘big’ jobs and structural issues, so if the tenant contacts you with something leaking, broken, or not working, make sure that you get it sorted as quickly as possible. Not only does this protect your house and you from potential legal action, but it also makes life easier for the tenants. After all, they are the ones living in your property and paying good money to do so – they deserve to have a safe and comfortable home.