Owner-occupied Duplex Landlord

[Justin Pumpr]

Hi all,

I'm about to close on my first ever property which is a duplex unit that I intend to live in half of and rent the other half of. 

What are some best practices/tips for landlords living in the same building as their tenants?

•  Do I let them know I am the landlord? If not, how do I collect rent from them without using a property management company?
•  Who do I get them to call when something goes wrong? I'll setup a google voice number, but then they will obviously know I am the landlord.
• Any tips for dealing with them on the day to day basis?
• Can I impose quiet hours?

These are just some questions. Any other advice you have would be great either for finding tenants, or once I have tenants. Thanks!

[Blair F.]

Justin Pumpr I only own one duplex and as it is my primary residence I have not done an LLC. I have quickbooks and track all receipts for repairs, improvements, and supplies. I run the quickbooks on the rental as a business. I split all joint bills (water, taxes, insurance, etc) in half and input the half related to the rental in quickbooks. Provide the quickbooks to your CPA for taxes and they will book depreciation on the rental portion of the duplex, and take care of schedule E, which for me helps offset my W-2 income. If you screen tenants well, the other items are not a huge issue with basic systems in place, no need to over think it. :)