How to Be a Long-Distance Landlord

Long-Distance Landlord Tips and Tricks

Define and Enforce the Lease Terms

Your first line of defense as a remote landlord is a watertight lease agreement. This document sets the stage for your relationship with tenants. 

Make sure your tenants have a full grasp of their roles and responsibilities. You also need mechanisms for ensuring compliance (more on that later). If a tenant breaks the lease terms, do not overlook it even once; send them a formal warning.

Find Quality Tenants

As a long-distance landlord, you need a tenant-screening methodology that is detailed in order to keep vacancy rates low. The best way to protect your rental from tenants who will delay the rent, damage the property, or violate the lease agreement is to spot those tenants during the application process. This will only happen with professional tenant screening. 

Set Up Automated Payments

Automated payment systems help you to streamline rent collection. They eliminate the need for cash or cheque payments because tenants can pay directly into your bank accounts. 

They also eliminate the need for a third party to handle your finances. You can send reminders, keep track of payments, and issue receipts, all from within the app. Automated payment systems make it easy to maintain up-to-date records.

Build Relationships with Local Service Providers

Building a winning team and cultivating long-lasting relationships is essential for a successful rental property. Finding local service providers like plumbers and electricians who are reliable is going to be one of your biggest challenges. 

Ask friends and family members who live in the area for referrals. The local hardware store and other landlords can also help out. Do not rely on just one service provider for each problem that could arise in the property, have multiple providers on your contact list.

Communicate with Clarity

Clear communication protocols help you avoid misunderstandings resulting from wrong expectations. This system should be two-way and based on tools that are accessible to your tenants, such as email, text, chat, and SMS. 

Explain how you expect maintenance requests to be communicated and how much time tenants should give you. On your part, ensure that all communication is acknowledged and that the response is prompt.

Visit the Property Periodically

In-person visits are critical. They give you a chance to assess the property by yourself and also strengthen your relationship with the tenants. 

Use these visits to meet with the residents to listen to their complaints, address lingering issues in the property, initiate repairs, or take other necessary actions. These visits serve as a reminder to your tenants that the property is under your full supervision.

Conduct Seasonal Inspections

Seasonal property inspections do three things for you: they let you assess tenants’ use of the property, catch problems before they become major costs, and cut down on the rental’s maintenance costs. 

These inspections should be conducted by a professional, and if possible, let your in-person visit coincide with your seasonal inspections. Also, do not overlook the importance of move-in and move-out inspections to help you manage maintenance and turnover costs.

Stay Up-To-Date with the Rental Market

To continue attracting quality tenants and also maximize the returns on your property, stay informed on the current rental rate for properties like yours. If your rent is higher than the average rent for similar homes in the area, you will have a low occupancy rate. On the other hand, you will be shortchanging yourself if you charge a rent that is below the going rate.

Keep Things Organized

To keep things running smoothly, you need the following to help you stay organized. A property management checklist helps you stay on track with tasks. 

Digital record-keeping systems let you manage documents without dealing with stacks of paper. Scheduled performance reviews ensure that your rental property is actually making a profit, while also highlighting areas that need more work. These steps help to minimize problems and maximize tenant satisfaction.

Ensure That You Are Adequately Insured

The standard landlord insurance will protect you from financial loss due to property damage from a number of perils. Most policies also protect you from lost rental income and liability if a tenant or a visitor to the property is injured. 

As a remote landlord, your property is more vulnerable than usual, and you may want to add extra insurance and also require tenants to have renters’ insurance.

Consider Hiring a Property Manager

To have an authoritative presence on the ground, both to supervise maintenance and repairs and ensure that tenants respect the lease terms, consider a professional property manager. 

The property manager is your eyes and ears in your rental property. They handle every aspect of the rental’s operations, from marketing to tenant screening and managing tenants.

Conclusion

Managing your rental property from a distance is difficult but not impossible. With the right systems and relationships, you can oversee this extra source of income without complicating your life. Contact American Heritage Properties today to see how we can help you be a successful long-distance landlord!