Just like everything, there are pros and cons to owning rental properties. Depending on the market you are investing in, finding a good tenant is tough! We’ve run into it in the past managing them on our own and then we decided to hire a property management company and yes, it is well worth it! Although getting a property manager was the right decision for us we do understand if you would rather do it yourself, continue reading this blog for some pointers!

Set your expectations upfront:

What do you expect from a good tenant? Are you going to allow pets? Are you going to pay any utilities? What ground rules do you have? Sit down and consider all of these things prior to looking at any applications. 

Market the heck out of your rental property:
  1. Put a sign outside
  2. Post on Zillow
  3. Post on Craigslist
  4. Post on Facebook
  5. Put poster signs around your town 
  6. Ask family and friends if they know anyone looking for a place to rent (Be mindful of renting to family) 

Odds are, you are going to be getting a ton of calls from people looking for a rental and will be receiving lots of applications. Once you get their applications in, now the fun begins. 

Look at the applications:

Go through all of your applications. Separate those that seem like good candidates for your property and those who you think may not be a good fit. 

Research, research, research:

It’s time to start researching these folks. 

  1. Google Search
  2. Background Check 
  3. Call previous landlords 
  4. Credit Check
  5. Meet them in person

When you do this, keep an eye out for bad rental history, evictions, bad credit, criminal records, no steady income, and any other red flags. 

Meet everyone who is going to be living in the property:

I know you’ve heard, “don’t judge a book by its cover”.  You can learn a lot about a person by talking to them. 

Choose your new tenant: 

The hard part is over. Get your leases signed, give them the keys, and voila! Good luck with your new tenants!

I’m sure you know, with every little thing on this list, there are a ton of factors that go into each but remember when you spend a lot of time searching for a tenant, you are losing money because the property is vacant. Time is of the essence! ALWAYS make sure you are familiar with the state, federal, and local housing laws before doing anything. When you buy a rental, keep in mind that if you don’t want to spend a lot of time keeping up with it, add a property manager into your budget! If you are thinking about buying a rental property, call us! We would love to help you get your deal funded! 

Thanks for reading!

-Legacy Frontline Team