Are you a landlord in Seaford? Many Seaford landlords today are all too aware of the overpowering public image of “the bad landlord.” The bad landlord is the landlord everyone is hoping to avoid when they search for a new place to rent in Eastbourne: the one they’ve heard stories about, who wouldn’t fix their heating in the middle of winter, or kept the entire security deposit for no good reason.
The good news is, being a landlord doesn’t have to be the job of nightmares. Coast to Country Lettings in Seaford has compiled these five tips for being a respected, successful landlord in a sea of bad ones.
Five Tips For Landlord Success:
1. Get into the business mindset. Presumably, you’re not a landlord simply for hobby, so do not treat your business as such. Approach your landlord position as you would any business
venture.
2. Screen your potential tenants. You’ve invested in your rental property, now you need to find someone who is going to respect your investment, pay on time, and not cause you any trouble. A bank wouldn’t loan a large amount of money to someone with no credentials, and as such you shouldn’t trust your investment with the same. Screening your tenants means making sure they can prove they have a monthly income more than double that of your monthly rent, good credit history, no county court judgments, and references from their employer or accountant, previous landlord or letting agent. If you find the right person to let your property to, being a landlord can be a breeze.
3. Respect Your Tenants. Tenants should be treated with the same respect as any business relationship. You don’t have to like your tenants personally, but all interactions should be held with the utmost courtesy and respect for your tenant, including everything from handling essential repairs in a timely manner to listening to and discussing any tenant concerns.
4. It’s your job to be fair, not nice. Nice and fair aren’t always the same thing, but if you expect to run your rental property as a business, you have to leave emotion out of the equation. This means expecting tenants to uphold their end of the agreement as much as you do yours. So if rent is due on the first, it should be paid on the first.
5. Hire others. Being a landlord requires a myriad of responsibilities to be fulfilled, and it will not always be possible to do everything yourself, especially if you own multiple rental properties. You will need a reputable, qualified electrician, plumber and gas engineer and may need a handyman for general repairs and maintenance.
Coast to Country Lettings in Seaford Provide Landlords with Property Management Services
If you have a rental property and wish to be hands off with the entire process, Coast to Country Lettings in Seaford provides full property management services to landlords. We handle everything from advertising your rental property, to finding tenants, to organising repairs, and so much more, all with the professionalism and expertise that comes with years in the business. Alternatively, if you are happy to manage your property yourself, our tenant find service could prove indispensable.
Your property will be advertised on property portals such as Rightmove, Zoopla and Prime Location and you can relax knowing our professional referencing and credit check procedures will filter out
unwanted tenants and verify desirable tenants for your property. If you would like to learn more about what Coast to Country Lettings can do for your rental property,
or if you would simply like some more landlord advice, give us a call today 01323 898911.
How to become a successful Landlord?
For you to become a successful Landlord, you can follow 5 simple tips. These are treating your business like a business, screen out the bad apples, treat your tenants with respect, don’t be too nice, and get help as a landlord.
What makes a good landlord?
Typically bad landlords fall into two camps –
the pestering menace or the allusive impossible to contact: those who won’t
leave you alone for five minutes; or those you never ever hear from, no
matter what goes wrong in their property.
So it makes sense that a good landlord treads this tricky tightrope of
communication and discretion with dexterous ease, not making you feel
uncomfortable in your own bed at night, and yet happy to help when something
goes wrong.
Perhaps the best analogy we’ve found is that a good landlord is like your
favourite bartender: they leave you alone when you don’t need them; but they
act fast when something needs to be done.
What a good landlord checklist should contain?
The good landlord checklist should contain communication, documentation, maintenance, customer service, transparency, reasonable, distance, flexibility, and trust.
How can a landlord screen their potential tenants?
You’ve invested in your rental property, now
you need to find someone who is going to respect your investment, pay on
time, and not cause you any trouble. A bank wouldn’t loan a large amount of
money to someone with no credentials, and as such you shouldn’t trust your
investment with the same. Screening your tenants means making sure they can
prove they have a monthly income more than double that of your monthly rent,
good credit history, no county court judgments, and references from their
employer or accountant, previous landlord or letting agent. If you find the
right person to let your property to, being a landlord can be a breeze.
How should a landlord treat their tenants?
Tenants should be treated with the same respect as any business relationship. You don’t have to like your tenants personally, but all interactions should be held with the utmost courtesy and respect for your tenant, including everything from handling essential repairs in a timely manner to listening to and discussing any tenant concerns.