A lot has been made about the prevalence of accidental landlords in the US.
Some property owners become landlords instead of letting go of favorable mortgage rates, while others inherit property they can't sell. Whatever the reason is for your being a landlord, all you can do is try to make lemonade out of these lemons.
In today's post, we'll give you five essential tips for accidental landlords in Murray, UT. Taking on landlord responsibilities can be a lot of work, but keep reading and we'll make sure you can handle them with ease.
1. Invest in Marketing
Vacancies are every landlord's worst nightmare. The key to making your life as a landlord simple is filling vacancies with quality tenants and keeping them satisfied.
To attract rental candidates, you need rental marketing. Create an attractive rental listing with a thorough property description and lots of great real estate photos. If need be, invest in paid ads and SEO to put more eyes on your ad.
2. Screen Tenants
With a strong rental listing, you should get plenty of applicants. From there, you must take tenant screening seriously. If you don't, you run the risk of getting a poor tenant, which can create a lot of unnecessary work and stress.
Screening looks into applicants' financial and personal backgrounds to assess whether they can afford rent and treat your property with respect.
3. Tenant Portal
When you secure a great tenant, the ball is back in your court to keep them satisfied. The best way to do so is to allow them to contact you easily with any questions and concerns they may have.
To make this simple for everyone, it's in your best interest to integrate a tenant portal into your rental property management strategy. This gives both you and your tenant a single place to communicate, make rent payments, and deal with maintenance requests.
4. Property Maintenance
Speaking of maintenance, the best way to keep your property lucrative and easy to manage is to perform regular preventative maintenance. Not only will this help to keep tenants satisfied, but it'll prevent you from having to pay for costly repairs down the road.
Inspections are key to this. You should inspect your property every few months to ensure it's still in good shape and be proactive about making repairs.
5. Eviction Protection
If you've done your due diligence with tenant screening, you shouldn't have cause to evict anyone. That being said, it's still important to plan for the possibility of eviction.
Start by understanding Utah's eviction laws and tenant rights. Then, make sure your lease agreement clearly outlines the rules of your property, as well as the actions that will be taken if your tenant breaks the lease.
Property Management for Accidental Landlords
This beginner landlord advice is pertinent for intentional and accidental landlords alike. If your rental property is proving to be too much work, however, you can hire property management to help.
At PMI Wasatch Front, we're Murray and the rest of the Salt Lake area's top source for property management services. We can help you with everything discussed here and more, so contact us to discuss your needs today.
