Blog
Tenants in Transition
They were sold the dream of home ownership. And did the lenders and REALTORS® ever make it easy for them. You saw the ads: “Buy the home of your dreams with nothing down and an ‘introductory’ interest rate of only 1 percent,” “Bad credit? No problem. We can find a… Read More
Military Personnel May Break Leases
As the country continues to mobilize into almost war time conditions, with no clear cut or specific time frame for its duration, apartment owners and managers are being reminded about a law that gives residents who are called to active duty the right to break their rental leases by following… Read More
Defining Wear and Tear
A hole in a plaster wall, a broken window, crayon marks on the ceiling, cabinet doors torn off their hinges—those are obviously above and beyond normal wear and tear. How about a worn place in the carpet, or tiles on the kitchen floor that are cracked or missing? That is… Read More
How to Attract Quality Tenants and Avoid Fraud in the Process
As an investor, you already know what kind of investing strategy you want to take. However, what you may not know is how to find and attract quality, longer-term tenants. I will give you a hint on the best way to do this and it is probably not in the… Read More
What Did You Just Agree To?
There was a time when a handshake meant an agreement had been reached. There was even a time when a handshake was enough to cement an agreement with a tenant when you rented to him or her. Those were the good old days. The days before landlord-tenant laws, landlord-hating attorneys,… Read More
Identity Theft & Fraud Alerts
The next time you order checks, have only your initials (instead of your first name) and last name put on them. If someone takes your check book they will not know if you sign your checks with just your initials or your first name, but your bank will know how… Read More
Bugs! Whose Problem Are They?
When that itsy bitsy spider comes down the waterspout or hangs over the baby’s crib, should we, as property managers or landlords, care? I conducted a random survey of property managers to find out what policies, if any, there are concerning insect and rodent issues. Surprisingly, no two are alike…. Read More
Top 10 Management Clauses
In January I was fortunate enough to attend the Leadership Symposium in Dallas, TX. I was inspired by Andrea Caldwell’s presentation on a property sales management clause. I wondered what other clauses that I was missing out on just because I had not experienced a conflict with an owner or… Read More