Mastering the Art of Being a Landlord During Economic Transitions
Becoming a landlord can be a profitable move, but learning the ropes requires some effort. It's not passive income (like putting your money in a mutual fund), it is a real job that takes expertise in home improvement, marketing, and law.
Top Tips for Being a Successful Landlord:
1. Treat being a landlord like a business.
2. Screen for high-quality tenants.
3. Develop a 30-60-90 day plan to avoid vacancies.
4. Make sure your lease agreements are in accordance with the law.
5. Staying up-to-date on the current headlines (see below).
Top Mistakes of Rookie Landlords:
1. "Googled" lease agreements that don't comply with state laws.
2. Insurance policies not covering tenants' property.
3. Underestimating costs: property upkeep, taxes, vacancy times, marketing.
4. Not retaining expert counsel.
Whether a single home or multiple residential buildings, property management doesn’t have to be hard. In fact, I believe real estate investment is the key to financial freedom. This means learning to work smarter, not harder and making even more money!
Recap: Work Smarter, Not Harder:
Practice Good Marketing: Make sure you’re working to fill your vacancies starting 90 days ahead of time. Click here to read our 90 day plan.
Get Better Tenants: Vet your tenant applicants! This will better ensure rent paid on time and care taken of your property.
Set up tenant communications: Whether it’s open email communication or quarterly checking, make sure you stay on top your property and give your tenants an easy way to report problems.
If you prefer to work with an expert instead of DIY-ing it, Home Rentals LA is still offering landlords free marketing, photography, showings, applications, credit checks, and background checks.
By setting yourself up to succeed from the beginning, you will soon reap the rewards and become more profitable than ever!
Keep Up With The Headlines:
The Apartment Assn. of Greater Los Angeles, in the federal lawsuit filed Thursday, argued that the city’s efforts to prevent evictions for those who can’t pay due to the economic or health effects of the coronavirus violate landlords’ 5th Amendment rights against government taking of their property without compensation. The lawsuit also targets a measure passed by the L.A. City Council to halt rent increases in more than 600,000 apartments covered by the city’s rent stabilization program due to the pandemic.
The average asking for rent for apartments in Los Angeles County fell last month from the previous year, according to RealPage, a major real estate data provider. The 3.3% decline to an average of $ 2,254 for all sized units followed a 0.8% decline in April and reflects how the economic downturn associated with the corona virus is sweeping through the rental housing market.
We have seen a change in the velocity of the market. Not the demand, but the velocity, in two different ways. Without "broker's preview tour" or "open houses," showings are linear in nature and need to be an hour apart. If ten buyers want to see a home, it literally takes 10 hours. In addition, homes are taking longer to prepare for market. One vendor at a time in a home vs. painters, carpet installers, etc. crawling all over each other. We are learning to be patient.
