Student Housing Units

[Allison Hodges]

After years of using a property management company, I'm looking to self manage two 4 bedroom/2 bath student housing condos I own in a college town. 

Three Questions: 
Is it better to have 4 separate lease agreements (lease by the room) or to lease by the unit, which I would prefer?  What are the pros and cons?  I own two units and one is leased by the unit for the upcoming 2024-25 school year.  The lease states that the tenants are responsible for the full unit rent regardless of the number (in the event one tenants moves out before the lease ending date).  Trying to decide out to lease the second unit before I market it. 

I"m re-doing all the flooring this summer in one of the units.  Laminate or LVP?   For the kitchen and bathrooms, would I need to do EVP for potential water issues? 

Lastly, what is your recommended self managing software for leasing/screening, maintenance, etc? 

Thank you! 

[Austin F.]

Single lease as one unit. No one wants to rent with people they don't know, in my town groups will set out to find houses, not singles.
Then as I tell the kids when they complain "Its much more motivating to come home to a house full of angry roommates than it is for me to call you a few times"
Continuing: If someone leaves I put the students in charge of finding their new roommate, I don't want that responsibility. I tell them something to the tune of "rent is the same with 3 people or 4, so better ask all your friends"

I like LVP. The harder wear layer stuff gouges less when someone drags a bed across it.

I use Innago, free, very good. Screening college kids is tricky, they don't have any credit history, and I'm not going to call their RA (if they're straight out of the dorms or their parents house). I find that listing very early attracts the best tenants.

Maintenance: I set up a group text message with me and all the kids living in the unit and tell them to direct maintenance requests to that chat. Makes it easy for me to talk to all of them at once, and then I don't get 4 individual tickets for a broken toilet.

Love my students, just remember to speak their language.