New to Landlording and Perplexed

[Lexie R.]

Ohio, first multifamily. I'm almost 48hrs into landloring with 2 inherited tenants. Im struggling to understand why they wont give general information. They were inherited with no proof of rent's but have been there for a long time. They didn't reply to messages explaining that there is new owner's and with said exchange of information. They are almost refusing to give their work schedules or just a general idea so we can work around to accommodate them. There is some maintenance that needs to be done and i need access to the inside. We were not supplied keys to the property so only the tenants have keys. I know to give adequate notice before entry and would like the tenants to be there at the same time. But should I get copies of the keys or replace all the locks? I don't want them to feel like im invading their space. But things need repaired and replaced. How should I go around this. Any ideas would help thanks!        Also its work they asked for and was something that was a very big complaint when we did a walk through before we bought the property and we are following through with it so i don't understand the resistance.

[Kevin Sobilo]

@Lexie R., a few thoughts.

1. You are only 48 hours into this. You will find tenants MANY times are not the most communicative or helpful sort. If they managed their lives like you wish they would, most would be owners not renters. Also, there are legit reasons many times for their reticence. I'm sure many find it unpleasant to have people come in even if its to fix things.

I would give them more time and make more attempts to contact them. Tenants can be frustrating to deal with especially with communication and coordination.

2. Being new, I would have recommended that before closing you should have forced the seller to get keys and to turn them over at closing.

3. Difficult tenant situations can be an opportunity. If you were able to identify that during the buying process it can be a way to negotiate a better deal. Obviously we are past that point now.

4. On a practical note, I find dealing with locks and keys as an annoyance. Replacing locks every time a tenant leaves is a pain. So, several years ago I switched to a basic electronic deadbolt paired with a plain doorknob (with no lock). So, the only lock is the deadbolt. No more changing locks, only reprogramming new PINs which takes literal seconds and no tools.

This is what I use. It is a knock-off of a comparable Gatehouse brand lock basically:

https://a.co/d/5ceMVR0

5. If the tenants are completely uncooperative, I would just give them notice that I will be entering to do work and I would have a locksmith get you in and have the locks replaced at that time. The benefit with an electronic lock is that if the tenant isn't present you can simply txt them their new PIN so they can enter when they return.