The way you treat your tenants directly affects your rental business because no one wants to stay with a bad landlord. Whether it's consciously or unknowingly, here are a couple of practices that you should avoid.
Bad Landlord Habits You Should Avoid
Biased Renting Criteria
As a landlord, you are legally prohibited from denying your rental property to an applicant based on race, color, sex, sexual, national origin, or religion. While not mentioned under the Fair Housing Act, you can also get in trouble for using gender identity or sexual orientation as a criterion for renting to applicants.
Ignoring Maintenance Concerns
Ignoring maintenance requests is one of the many sides of poor property management. You might simply be too busy to respond to your tenants, or you might knowingly be ignoring maintenance requests and other concerns. This will effectively drive both existing and prospective tenants away as it will likely reflect on online reviews.
Unfair Rent Increase
Most states have no landlord-tenant laws that put a cap on rent prices, so they might get away with unfair rent prices. In San Jose, California, however, the Apartment Rent Ordinance puts a limit on rent increases on certain property types, particularly apartments that have three or more rental units and were built and occupied before September 7, 1979.
Poor Communication
Clear communication is a crucial element in managing a rental property. Without learning how to talk to your tenants, it'll be harder for you to address or avoid disputes. This also applies to the lack of transparency, which is where you fail to explain lease terms, property rules, as well as maintenance and repair schedules clearly.
Neglecting Property Upkeep
Even if you don't include property upkeep in your rental agreement, residents won't need a legally binding contract to resort to legal action for leaving a rental unit in poor condition and the landlord not making the necessary repairs. Every state has a law stating that rentals should meet basic requirements like:
- A roof that keeps out rain and snow
- Sufficient hot water
- Reliable heat
- Sturdy floors and walls,
- No environmental hazards such as lead, asbestos, and more
- Reasonable protection from criminal intrusion
Intrusion of Privacy
A landlord's inability to recognize boundaries is considered a red flag, as property ownership does not entitle them to enter an occupied unit without proper notice. When conducting inspections, it's important to respect the renter's privacy and provide them with a timely notice before the inspection. Scheduling it at a time that's convenient for them will also improve your landlord-tenant relationship.
Unlawful Security Deposit Requirements
Property owners are entitled to add additional fees to their lease agreement, granted that they are fair and legal. With security deposits, a new California law now puts a cap on the security deposit amount landlords can charge, which is equivalent to one month's rent. It is also within the tenant's rights to get the security deposit back within 21 days after their tenancy ends.
Unreasonable Charges
Some of the damages caused by tenants can be grounds for security deposit deductions or payment for replacements and repairs such as non-payment of rent, property damage, cleaning services, pest control, furniture replacement, and more. What a landlord cannot charge for is normal wear and tear, as well as structural damage, as it is the landlord's responsibility to make repairs and conduct maintenance for those.
What Happens If You Continue to Neglect Your Duties as a Landlord?
Increased Vacancy
Many applicants are smart enough to spot the warning signs of a bad landlord or property manager, and if that doesn't happen, your previous tenants will probably leave bad reviews about your business. It will deter potential tenants from considering your apartment listing. Current tenants will think twice about renewing their lease, which spells trouble especially if you're in a hot rental market.
Frequent Tenant Complaints
When landlords violate their own rules and provide poor property management, tenants may retaliate by not paying rent or leaving the rental in bad condition. This will only cost you more when they move out and a new tenant needs to move in by increasing the time your unit spends vacant.
Legal Complications and Lawsuits
Even when landlords manage to get away from unethical practices, illegal habits will be harder to escape and resolve. Most people will not let a violation of the law pass, and landlords will have to deal with local authorities, court proceedings, and legal fees in the aftermath. If not for ethical reasons, landlords can follow the state and local laws for the sake of saving time and money.
Increased Overall Costs
If the landlord fails to maintain their rental property, more problems can pop up in the long run and get worse. This eventually leads to costly repairs, a lot of which might cost less money if they were detected earlier. This also negatively affects your property value, and you could get a lower amount than your purchase price if you decide to sell the real estate property.
Bad Reputation
The rental business won't be the only thing that suffers when the landlord behaves poorly. This will also reflect in their history and will be detected by lenders and other real estate investors. In turn, it will be more difficult to acquire investment properties, having a more significant impact on the property owner.
Leave Your Worries At the Door With the Help of Property Managers
If you're anxious about whether you have bad habits as a landlord, you can kiss these worries goodbye by hiring property managers to handle daily operations for you. Companies like us at Provident Property Management have expertise in all aspects of the business, both ethical and legal, and you can rest assured that your investment is in good hands.
Live a stress-free life while earning passive income or try and look for other profitable properties to expand with, and we’ll do our best to bring your property to its maximum earning potential.
To get started, explore the services we have on offer to learn more about how we can help you turn your rental business around.
