Renting your home can be a challenge.
How do you find tenants? What do you put on a lease? What if someone trashes the home you worked so hard on? Many people experience these fears, and honestly, they are not unwarranted. It is important to set your rental property up correctly. If you don't want to jump into a property management relationship just yet, here are four main tasks that make renting your home a lot easier.
1. List your property and SCREEN your tenants.
We cannot tell you anything more valuable than to screen your tenants. Websites like Zillow and Rent.com can screen for criminal and eviction history. Are they always spot-on? No. If a background check comes back clean, does that mean you'll have no problems? Also no. But screening dramatically improves your odds of getting connected with a great family.
Property management tip: We also verify income and employment — we want to make sure we aren't putting someone in a position where they may struggle to make rent every month.
2. Make sure your lease is airtight.
Lease laws in West Virginia can be a little overwhelming. Lawyers are expensive. Can you download a lease online? Absolutely — but enforcement is the hard part. Our leases have been refined over years to address specific issues we see in West Virginia. We cover problems you may not have run into yet, while keeping the lease fair so tenants are comfortable signing it. See also how to write a tenant-friendly lease that still protects owners.
3. Be ready for many, many work orders.
Your home is great. But all the little things you ignored over time — a drip from a faucet, a toilet that runs, an outlet that doesn't work — your brand new tenant is going to expect those fixed, and in a timely manner. That means you need a plumber, an electrician, or a reliable handyman who shows up.
4. Always answer the phone.
To be a good landlord, you need to be available to your tenant. They've put their trust in you to answer questions, be on call for emergencies, fix things in a timely manner, and have great documentation on rent (including a trust account for security deposits). Do you have to do all of these things to rent out your home? No. But it's hard to keep a tenant long-term if you aren't a great landlord.
Final thoughts.
Being a great landlord is tough, but well worth it. If the four items above feel like more than you want to take on — give us a call.
