Buying a house is such a major investment that it ranks as one of the most stressful life events. Owning a house isn't much better because you have to finance and care for it.
Now imagine if that house didn't only hold your family. Imagine it had a group of needy tenants to tend to.
That's the situation that landlords have to deal with. Read on for five ways they can manage their stress.
1. Setting Boundaries
Write clear expectations in every lease agreement.
Include expectations about how and when your tenants can contact you. This reduces the amount of stressful, unexpected calls you'll get.
Let the tenant know the rent due dates and amounts. Include information about inspections and the process for breaking leases.
Communicate with them about any misunderstandings before they escalate into fights. This creates better relationships, reducing stress and encouraging them to stay longer.
2. Financial Planning
Financial responsibilities are one of the biggest sources of stress, no matter what types of properties you own. The remedy is to do the best possible rental property accounting you can.
Focus on forecasting and planning for the future. Make a budget for every part of the process to prevent negative cash flow.
That includes creating a fund for emergency repairs and issues. It's reassuring to know you have enough money to cover them.
3. Maintenance
Maintenance is an expensive and time-consuming source of landlord anxiety. 34% of landlords cite its costs as their primary concern.
Budgets help reduce financial worries. Schedules help with the time management part.
Create a timeline for all your rental property inspections. Let your tenants know when they're happening and encourage them to report issues.
Attend to any maintenance problems as soon as you can. Fixing a minor problem keeps it from turning into an emergency later.
4. Tenant Screening
93% of landlords have seen an increase in tenant fraud in the last year. This included false income documents, identity fraud, application fraud, and unauthorized cohabitants or subletting.
This makes it more important than ever to perform thorough tenant screening. The only thing more stressful than a vacant property is one with a problematic tenant.
Performing the right checks is a necessary but time-consuming process. There's one easy way to reduce this stress. Outsource the screening process to let experts give you more thorough and effective results.
5. Outsourcing to a Property Management Team
When landlords can barely keep their heads above water, they need to reach for a life preserver. This means hiring property managers.
The benefits they provide help avoid burnout and stress. You can outsource the entire process with a full-service option or have them cover specific tasks that you can't handle alone.
We Can Help Landlords Lower Their Stress Levels
Landlords have an even more stressful task than homeowners. They can reduce that stress by setting expectations, tenant screening, careful accounting, maintaining the property, and hiring property managers.
SCUDO is the Italian word for shield. We gave ourselves that name because of our goal to protect real estate investments.
We cover a range of transactions, from first-time purchases to diversifying portfolios. We look to form long-term relationships with our clients from the beginning to the end.
Contact us to start relying on the SCUDO shield today. If it's real estate, we've got you covered!
