Communication is a very important aspect into being successful as a landlord!
Once of the biggest complaints I hear from tenants, applicants and even learned first hand, is that a landlord is not responsive. As a Landlord you know that nothing happens at a good time. There is a reason Murphy’s law exists. Therefore the key is to set up systems and procedures that are super efficient while as burden- less as possible on yourself!
The two biggest reasons you will need to communicate with your tenant are regarding:
- Repairs
- Rent
As discussed in Tenant Relations: Honey versus Vinegar, what you say is VERY important. As a landlord I have discovered that providing prompt feedback to my tenants creates a lot of good will. But as a working landlord I found that being able to make phone calls at any point of the day is very difficult. Therefore when I figured out great ways to get repairs done or reduced my stress level by connecting vendors and tenants directly (Reducing the Preverbal Middleman), this didn’t fix anything if a efficient communication method between landlord and tenant didn’t exist.
Enter the Power of Text Messages
While everyone is different, I personally provide my personal number to my tenants. As someone who closely guards her sleep I am fortunate that my phone has an awesome “sleep mode”. My phone goes to silent at night BUT it has the apple “sleep” setting. This setting is if someone calls me 2 times in 2 minutes then the call comes through. I also don’t wake up to text messages, so I treat them like a voicemail at night. In the morning part of my routine is to check for and respond to text messages or any voicemails.
4 Reasons Why I Love Text Messages
- Its Quick- Text Messages are no nonsense, quick and efficient. The short and sweetness allows me to figure out the issue and respond with the minimum amount of time spent for the maximum amount of “fixing” occurring.
- Written– It allows me to keep track of what is being said for records.
- Tone Control- I think about all I want to say before it is said. This reduces the heat of the moment and “misstated” thoughts.
- Availability– Let’s face it- A text message is a whole lot easier to squeeze in than making a phone call.
How do you communicate with your tenants? Do you have any tricks of the trade? Have you learned a powerful lesson that you wish you have known “before” you paid the education cost?
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I use text messaging as a means to communicate with the parents of my students. I give my cell number to my parents, or let them know to save my number when I call. It’s a huge time saver to communicate via texting instead of email or phone calls. An added bonus, my parents know I care about their child’s education because I make myself available to them “after work hours”.
I totally agree! I love the versatility of text messaging.
Lately I’ve been receiving “community texts” from my Landlord. I was even texted that my apartment had been “randomly selected” for inspection. Odd thing about that is that I had just left the rental office after paying my rent. I honestly think this Landlord has something personal against me because I rejected one of the maintenance workers after her hit on me(Ick). He IS NOT my type and I take that as sexual harassment. I noticed how his attitude changed toward me(the Landlord’s) after that incident and he raised my rent shortly after It’s kinda hard to chalk these things up to coincidence. I no longer trust him and I DO NOT want him sending me texts of ANY kind, even if they are “community” related. My texts are for FAMILY and CLOSE PERSONAL FRIENDS ONLY. I now keep my phone turned off unless I absolutely HAVE to use it. I have two phones.
I am sorry you are having a difficult time. While I understand your frustration, I personally communicate with my tenants through txt. So if you don’t wish your landlord to use txt. I would definitely let him know, along with your new preference.