The Roles a Landlord Must Play
Landlord as a Realtor
As a landlord, you bear the primary responsibility for ensuring your rental units are occupied. In the process of filling a vacancy, you effectively take on the role of a Realtor. This includes overseeing the advertisement of your rentals, arranging meetings with prospective tenants for property viewings, and scheduling times to personally show the units.
Landlord as a Salesperson
To attract tenants to your units, you also function as a salesperson. This role requires you to fully engage in marketing your property, utilizing various strategies to make your unit more appealing to potential renters.
Landlord as a Detective
Whether you enjoy it or not, you’ll need to adopt the role of a detective to choose the right tenant for your property. This involves gathering personal information about prospective tenants through brief conversations with their former landlords, employers, and by conducting credit checks. Key factors to consider include the tenant’s payment history, relationships with neighbors, commitment to long-term tenancy, cleanliness, and tendency to avoid constant complaints. Additionally, you must investigate tenant disputes to uncover the truth and identify the root cause of maintenance problems, such as tracing a roof leak without visible damage.
Landlord as a Negotiator
Landlords also need to be skilled negotiators. This is essential when hiring outside contractors and repairmen, negotiating for the best price and quickest service. It’s also important when buying items in bulk for multiple units, as discounts are often available for larger purchases. Negotiation skills are crucial for signing various contracts, whether it’s a lease agreement with a tenant, a credit agreement with a bank, a repair contract, or an agreement with an electrician for installing smoke detectors.
Landlord as a Debt Collector
Another key role is that of a debt collector, particularly when it comes to collecting rent. This role becomes more pronounced if tenants are late with payments or do not pay at all, necessitating the imposition of late fees or the filing of eviction notices.
Landlord as a Repairman
In some cases, landlords may need to perform basic home repairs themselves. This is especially useful for handling emergency repairs that tenants might request, such as fixing broken windows, replacing light bulbs, repairing faucets, or mending furniture. Knowledge of basic maintenance can save landlords significant money, time, and effort by avoiding the need to hire professional plumbers or repairmen for simple tasks like fixing doorknobs, leaky faucets, or unclogging toilets.