Screening In a Bad Economy As we move toward the end of the year, high unemployment rates continue their impact on rental housing affordability and availability. Landlords are facing increased competition for qualified applicants to fill their vacancies. In some markets, properties are staying vacant much longer than even just a year ago. It is […]

Preparing For Vacancies Some landlords do not adequately prepare for vacancies. When landlords don’t prepare, they can only react, and reacting to rather than preparing for vacancies usually makes the vacancies more costly. Changing conditions in the economy, changing conditions in tenants’ needs and wants, and effects of life events will have significant impact on […]

Have a Maintenance Plan Not Staying on top of needed maintenance and repairs is one of the most shortsighted and costly mistakes that landlords can make.  It is easiest to stay on top when one has a good maintenance plan in place.  It is impoirtant to stay on top for a number of reasons. First, […]

Lease Buyouts It is often advantageous for a landlord to allow a tenant to buy out his lease. Reasons for Buyouts There are basically two reasons for a lease buyout. One is the tenant wanting or needing to break a long-term lease. The other is the landlord wishing to be rid of a tenant even […]

Being a Successful Landlord Most landlords get into the business because they think that owning rental properties would be financially rewarding either in the short-term, the long-term, or both. Many landlords have been successful, some spectacularly so. It is important to understand that landlording is a business that requires knowledge, organization, and a lot of […]

I Bought a Rental House with and Existing Tenant. Q1 I bought a rental house about 5 months ago that had an existing tenant. I was told by the seller that the tenant had no security deposit. The tenant is now leaving and claims to have a $600 deposit that he wants returned. Who is […]

Oral or Written Lease Agreement? In general, contracts of almost any kind can be either oral or written and each can be equally valid and enforceable no matter what the legal purpose or dollar amount involved.  However, most states have adopted a legal doctrine called the Statute of Frauds and put the doctrine into their […]

Applicant Bankruptcy on Credit Report.  What should I do? Landlords have the right to set specific tenant selection criteria to include any factors based on valid business principles. As a landlord, you are free to choose to use almost any standards as long as legitimate business criteria have been applied, consistently, without discrimination, and in […]

Q1 I closed on a rental home in Tucson, AZ a month ago which had a tenant whose lease has over 6 months remaining. The rent is due in a few days, but the tenant provided a “Notice to Terminate Lease” in 30 days. Her basis for termination is that the rental agreement does not address […]

Expenditures – Part 4 –Travel Away From Home In previous installments of our series regarding expenditures we discussed some basic principles regarding expenditures including “travel expenses related to the property or management thereof.”  The most recent article concerned local travel. In this article we will discuss another issue regarding travel, specifically expenses related to travel […]