We have eight rentals and I manage another four for family. All of our rent is due on the first late on the 5th. So for our rental empire, the sixth is the day of recogning. Did all of our tenants pay their rent on time. Depending on the answer .....The 6th can be the best or worst day of the on the month. If it's the 6th and your rent has been paid, tehn its a great day. On the other hand, if you check your bank account and your tenant has … [Read more...]
How to Write a One Page Lease Renewal!
" As ALWAYS, I am not a lawyer and I in NO WAY offering legal advice. This is just my PERSONAL thoughts as an experienced aka jaded landlord" As we discussed in 3 ways to Renew Your Lease, there are three ways to renew your lease. Personally, I use a one-page renewal letter 80% of the time. So far I have not used automatic renewals at all in my leases (my markets don't support them) and I only do full lease renewals when something huge has … [Read more...]
The Ultimate Guide To Cozy
Being a self-managing landlord is TOUGH. As an investor of eight properties and a self-manager of 12 including four for family, I am here to tell you that doing it yourself can be daunting. Not only from a management standpoint but also from finding the resources needed to manage said properties. Since I became a landlord in August of 2012, I have had so many struggles and made many mistakes all in the name of overcoming these struggles. After … [Read more...]
The Complete Guide to Installing and Managing Tenants
As an empire-building landlord, installing and managing tenant has led to many ulcer-inducing moments, especially when we were first starting out. I began The Reluctant Landlord to share my experiences and help others learn from them. Before we get started I wanted to share my favorite resources. Background and Credit Check I previously used Buildium and than I switch to Cozy as it saved me over $500 a year and is absolutely free for … [Read more...]
Are You Worried About the Rental Competition?
As a landlord of a growing empire of 7 & counting rental houses, no matter the amount of times you have placed a house or the amount in your emergency fund, having a house come up is for rent is stressful. Even a professional like myself still stresses about their ad. I don't know about you, but having to cover that extra $1,400–$1,900 mortgage payment is not how I wish to spend my funds. Traveling to Bahrain, Fiji, or even going … [Read more...]
How to Find Quality Tenants
As a self-managing, empire building landlord, tenants are the most important part of my business. I have learned over the years tenants can either make or break your success. No vacancy with the tenants paying their rent on time means we have enough money to cover our mortgage, expenses, and even provide extra money to pay me a "salary" (check out out our Bare it All October Income Report to see our actual numbers). If our tenants had not … [Read more...]
A Beginners’ Guide to Postlets.com: Part 1
Authors Note: I put together this resource hoping it would help after seeing many questions on Postlets.com. I am not affiliated with the company nor is this legal advice. All information within this post is my own based on my personal experiences and what I have seen over the years belonging to various forums. As always, my goal is for you to have the most successful landlording experience as possible. One of my absolutely favorite places to … [Read more...]
16 Common Mistakes Found in Rental Ad Listings
You have decided to rent your house. You have decided on a price to list your house. The decision has been made regarding what extras you will offer (washer and dryer, landscaping, etc). You are ready to list your home and have decided which of the 18 different places you will list the house. The next step is to create a great rental ad. If you are anything like me the first time I listed my house, you are stuck. You don't know how to put … [Read more...]
“Bare It All” October Monthly Rental Income Report
Many landlords are reluctant landlords trying to survive and hold on until they can get out. Many have been burned by housing prices, losing money on their rentals or are jaded because of horrible tenants. I would be lying if I didn't say that being a landlord had many ulcer-inducing moments. I have lost money, had lots of pain and agony and even had over a $4,000 repair bill on three houses in less than 36 hours. Let's just say I was very … [Read more...]
