As the owner of an apartment complex or another rental property, you want to have a positive experience with your renters. You may depend on them to pay rent, but they depend on your to provide them with a safe living environment and respect the terms of the lease. These are some tips to ensure you have a good relationship with your renters.
1. Answer their requests
Being a landlord means more than owning a property. It allows means coming through for your tenants. Things can go wrong when you least expect them, and there will be plenty of questions to answer, from if they can have pets to dealing with malfunctions. If you have multiple tenants, it can be overwhelming to try to juggle them. A good solution is to answer them in the order they were received. If you know you can’t respond in full when they first message you, you can at least tell them that you’re reviewing the matter.
2. Be transparent
You might hate being the bearer of bad news, but it’s sometimes unavoidable when you’re a landlord. If you know that you’re going to have to something like raise the rent or perform maintenance work that could displace them temporarily, you need to say so right away. Your renters might be frustrated, but it’s better than trying to act like nothing is wrong and dropping the bad news on them at the last minute. Sharing bad news doesn’t mean you’re the bad guy. Instead, it means you’re realistic about what it means to be a landlord.
3. Keep things in order
Building maintenance is a must to being a quality landlord. Whether you hire a handyperson or handle it yourself, you need to make sure projects are completed in a timely and professional fashion. Remember that there’s no shame in hiring outside help. Having a qualified person help out with maintenance can really save you a lot of stress.
4. Be friendly
You might not be best friends with your renters, but that doesn’t mean you can’t maintain a friendly relationship with them. This can be a simple as treating them as a human. Thank them for being good renters and show them tokens of your appreciation however you feel is appropriate. Your renters will be more likely to renew their leases if they feel their landlord is treating them well.
Having a good relationship with your renters doesn’t mean you can’t keep things professional. A good relationship is one where both parties understood their boundaries and are willing to communicate with each other. By following these tips, you can make it so that both you and your renters are satisfied with the arrangement.
