Top 7 Mistakes Landlords Make Starting and How to Fix Them

Save Money and Time with Your Short-Term Rentals

If you’ve recently become a landlord or are considering purchasing a second home for renting purposes, you’ve likely been introduced to a large bevy of responsibilities and duties you never expected you’d have. You can also find many mistakes landlords make. While renting out your property can be an extremely lucrative business venture, many enter the realm of rentals without proper knowledge or education on the subject and find it’s not as easy as expected. We’ve laid out the top mistakes landlords make when they run into, and the things you can do to avoid them. Top 7 Mistakes Landlords Make 1. Lease Issues Leases are the single most important thing to have completed before allowing someone to live in your … Read more

The Trials, Tribulations, and Struggles of a First-Time Landlord

How To Evaluate The Rate Of Return On Rental Property

Last year, my wife and I joined the league of accidental landlords. We were upside down in our home and couldn’t sell it without taking a big loss. So after relocating for work, we decided to rent our house out. I thought it would be a simple endeavor to charge enough rent in order to cover our mortgage payment each month. But that was hardly the case when the rubber met the road. There were several important factors I neglected to take into consideration that hampered my return. I was struggling just to break even. With a mortgage payment of $1,400 a month, there are many things that took a bite out of my renter’s payment. Forget making a profit; I … Read more

Reader Question – Can I Rent Out Property After Hiring A Property Manager?

This is the next installment in the Reader’s Questions Series, which highlights questions emailed to me by you, the readers of Money Q&A.

Be sure to find out at the end of this article how you can receive a free copy of Dave Ramsey’s book, The Total Money Makeover if I feature your money question on a blog post. If you’re not familiar with Dave Ramsey’s book, you should run right out and get it. It’s one of the top ten best personal finance books you should read. 

Today’s question comes from Jeff who asks about renting his house by himself even after hiring a property manager.

I have been working with a property manager for a few months now to try and find a renter for my home. My wife and I are moving and didn’t want to sell our home. After a few months of trying to find a renter, the property manager still didn’t have the home rented. I started placing my own ads for tenants and finally found someone. Can I still rent out my property to someone after hiring a property management firm?

Rent out property with a property management firmThis question raises a couple of red flags. It makes me wonder if you have chosen the right property manager. There are many questions to ask a property manager before you hire them to ensure that they are a good fit for your family and that you feel comfortable with their work. After all, you will be entrusting them with your most valuable asset, your home.

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Coming To Grips With Paying Your Rent On Time

Coming To Grips With Paying Your Rent On Time

Coming To Grips With Paying Your Rent On TimeWhether you have recently left home or full time education or your circumstances have changed, taking responsibility for paying your rent on your own can be a daunting prospect. Probably your most important outgoing will be your rent cheque, be that owed to a property management company, a private individual, local authority or a relative.

Paying your rent and in line with your contractual obligation takes some organization. For even more practical and clear advice on subjects ranging from universal credit to where to get help if you fall behind with your payments, visit the Money Advice Service.

Paying Your Rent On Time

Below is a list of things to consider for making sure pay your rent on time to your landlord.

Direct Debit

Renting a property and moving on in involves making important obligations to your new landlord. You will be bound to pay your rent on time and usually in full, unless your agreement has more flexible terms.

Scheduling your rent payment by direct debit is one way to minimize the risk of missing your payment date. Missed payments can lead to losing your deposit or even eviction.

By setting up a standing order from your personal bank account or from a joint account with your partner straight to your landlord’s designated account, you minimize the risk of riling your landlord or worse. And, it will help you in paying your rent on time every month.

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Why I Don’t Mind Losing Money As A Landlord

Landlord hands keys to tenantI have a confession to make: I lose money on my rental property every month. But I’m OK with that. I’ve got a long-term plan. Or I’m still delusional and hoping for a turnaround in the housing market. Either way, I stubbornly refuse to lose $30,000 in home equity by selling. I’d rather pay $300 a month out of my pocket in the hopes of hanging on to what little equity I have left.

It’s a Renters Market Out There

Much like a home buyer, a renter has a lot of purchasing power. It’s a pure case of supply and demand if there ever was one.

There are simply more homes on the market for rent in many parts of the country than there are renters. Renters have pricing power to force homeowners to lower the price of rent they pay each month, and as a landlord this causes me to personally lose about $300 a month.

But I’m fine with losing $300 a month. In fact, I’m actually happy about it. Let me tell you why you should be, too, if you’re ever in the same situation.

My Tenants’ Rent Doesn’t Cover My Mortgage

Like many accidental landlords, I found myself stuck with a house a few years ago that I couldn’t sell. Or, if I really wanted to sell it, I would’ve had to at a steep markdown from what I’d bought it for just six years ago during the housing market boom.

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Are You Ready to Invest in a Rental Property?

This is a guest post from Emily Guy Birken who writes at One Money Design. Now seems like the perfect time for investors to get started in the landlord business. The housing market is still recovering, which means that home prices are reasonable, interest rates are low, and rents tend to be relatively high. Under these circumstances, buying a rental property seems like a no-brainer. However, owning an investment rental property is not all about pushing wheelbarrows of passive income to the bank. Being a landlord comes with many risks-and just like any investment, you may not see a payoff. To know if you’re ready to handle these risks, ask yourself the following questions: 1. Do I have the necessary cash? … Read more