Avoid Mistakes

[vc_toggle title=”Hiring a real estate sales agent to manage your property?”]Even though an agent may be perfectly qualified to sell you a home, they certainly don’t specialize in property management. Many agents are unaware of the specific legal policies that could cost you thousands of dollars when a problem arises.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”Hiring companies that only do leasing and not management?”]Companies who only do leasing have a primary motivation to lease to the first person who walks in the door. Without managing the property, they have no feedback as to how a particular type of tenant behaves over time. Their motivation is not to find you the best possible tenant. When we find a tenant we also consider that we are the ones that will be working with them over the course of their tenancy.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”Not Charging Fair Rents.”]Vacancies, turnovers and lease terminators are your biggest expense. Charge fair rents, treat your tenants with respect and respond as quickly as possible to their needs. It is a lot less costly in the long run to take care of the little problems rather than wait until they become big problems. The vacant property is your Achilles heel.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”Not thinking twice before you refuse to settle a dispute with a tenant.”]It is almost always better to resolve a dispute with a tenant (even if it’s not exactly the best deal for you) than to fight it out in court. The landlord-tenant laws are usually incredibly unfair to landlords. In addition, tenants often have access to free “legal aid” lawyers who will fight you with tax-and-charity dollars almost indefinitely with all the laws on their side. In the end, it may cost you thousands. It’s not worth it just to win a point of pride. Usually, the only time it is really important to fight to the end is to get rid of a non-paying tenant. Even then, a settlement where you pay them to leave may be cheaper than paying even more attorney fees to fight to the bitter end.[/vc_toggle][vc_toggle title=”Failure To Re-Invest In Your Assets.”]Most successful investors have well maintained properties. Be sure to re-invest some of your cash flow back into clearing any outstanding maintenance problems there might be on the property. This increases the value of your asset and increases your equity which builds your net worth.[/vc_toggle]