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Investing in property can be a very lucrative way to bring in extra funds, but you need to do it properly. If you’re not a good landlord, you can find your property is empty and that you have a lot of extra work to deal with. Whether you already have a good property portfolio but are looking to bring your landlord work in-house instead of hiring an external company to sort things out for you, or if you have just started with property investment, you might wonder how you do it. In this article we look at some top tips on how you can be a good landlord for your investment property.
Ensure you know the rules and regulations
The first thing you need to do when becoming a landlord – and being a good one – is to become well versed on the rules and regulations. There are many things you’ll need to be aware of, from your rights and your tenant’s rights, to things such as notice periods, contracts and safety requirements for your property. By ensuring you know all of this, there won’t be any nasty surprises further down the line or any potential law suits should something happen. You’re covered and both you and your tenants should be happy.
Ensure the property is well maintained
When renting out a property that you’ve invested in, you want to make sure it’s a well maintained and nice place to live. Think about the decor, from the walls to the carpet and ensuring it’s something your tenants will take pride in. If you do cheap carpet and don’t bother fixing things up such as the wall paper or paint, they are less likely to have as much respect for it and want to keep it nice. If things break, be good at getting them fixed in a timely manner and generally keeping it a lovely place for them to be in.
Be good with your communication
One thing many tenants complain about is if they can’t get hold of their landlords, particularly in a time when they’re really needed. While you don’t want to be at their beck and call for silly questions all times of day and night, try to get back to them within 24 hours for anything non urgent, or asap for anything urgent. This could be a leak, hot water not working or something else that can really affect their quality of living and their health by not having access to these basic needs.
These are just a few ways that you can be a good landlord for your investment property and ensure you have tenants that enjoy living in your properties and will stay for a long time to come. The better and more long-term tenants you have, the less you have to worry about and you’ll know you have the regular income coming in. What are some top tips you have for being a good landlord? Let us know in the comments below, we’d love to hear from you.
