Once you have a place you want to purchase and someone who will be a tenant in said place, you’ve officially become a landlord. Being a first-time landlord can be a lot of work for someone. You can’t restrict yourself to only federal laws only but local laws as well. The first time you start being a landlord, you might find yourself feeling a little bewildered. When one comes to know how much work they need to do to get everything ready to be a good landlord for the potential tenant you’ve found.
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Treat being a landlord like running a business
When you were in the process of searching for a tenant, you may have felt like you were running a business.That feeling isn’t going to be going anywhere as long as you are a landlord. However, this second job does come with the fact that you will be getting rent payments and earning money off your purchase. If you maintain your rental like a business, you will find yourself better able to manage everything. This could mean not renting out your property to friends and family that will expect you to give them some slack.
Remember that treating your rental as a business isn’t just limited to how you have to run it. When you visit your tenants, you’ll want to look presentable. You will be expected to follow the rules in the lease agreement and those in the state laws.
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Compare yourself to other rentals
Set your rent as per that of your competition, i.e., other rentals. Make notes of both – the amenities they offer and the prices they charge. Was the housing market in 2010 San Diego the same as in 2021?
If someone wants to live specifically in your rental because of the neighborhood, then any other place in the area with lower-priced rentals is your competition. It’s beneficial to know what other businesses are doing. This allows you to give your tenants a quality experience and may help you retain them. There are an abundant amount of rooms for rent in San Diego so you must set yourself apart.
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Screen your tenants properly
When screening tenants, using your heart is as important as the actual research itself. You must abide by the Fair Housing Laws, but at the same time, you should decide who is better suited to your rental. It would be best if you were upfront about everything while in the screening process. It would make both of you exist stress free if you let them know what they can and can’t do. This allows for no ambiguity, and in case of a dispute, you will have your proof.
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Fair Housing Law
You must’ve found Fair Housing Laws when you were in the process of going through the screening process. There are a set of laws that state that you cannot discriminate against people because of their race, religion, sex, familial status, or disabilities. The state of California protects not just the people on this list but a few others as well. When interacting with your tenants, treat everyone equally. Give everyone the same respect and don’t discriminate based on any external reason. These laws protect tenants, and if you violate them, you might find yourself in more legal trouble than it’s worth.
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Perform regular inspections
The inspection process can be extremely simple. As a landlord, there are several extremely simple reasons why you may want to inspect the property. Mainly to see how the property was maintained and a before and after version. It would serve you well to have video proof of what the rental looked like before and after to have hard proof and documentation.
As a landlord, you can decide when you want to do your inspections (be sure to give at least 24 to 48 of prior notice to your tenants). There’s no set amount of inspections you must do. Some don’t do any, while some go multiple times a year. During an inspection, your main objective is to ensure that your rental is being well maintained. You should try to avoid nagging your tenants but, at the same time, have them do some tasks to maintain some upkeep of the property.
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Take out insurance on your place
Although getting insurance may not be the first thing to come to mind, it’s especially important to properly insure your property. Insurance can protect both – your property and yourself from any damages that are likely to happen and the ones that are beyond your control. You should also check to see if your insurance covers you and any potential damages that may occur within the premises. This safeguards you against potential lawsuits.
You can use a lot of online portals to let people know about the availability. Allowing them to rent a room in San Diego easily and save you the hassle of having to go tenant hunting.
