New Owner Letter to tenants

[Justus Bantz]

I am closing on my first multifamily in a few days and want to send a letter to my tenants letting them know the property has changed hands and that there will be a new property manager. At the end of the letter I thought it would be good to have a questionnaire so that I can get to know a little about the tenants and the property from their perspective. 

My question is what do you guys think I should ask in this questionnaire?

Thank you in advance 

Justus

[Corey Arnemann]

Hi Justus,

Great question! I think I can help with this.

For the last 7 years I have taken well over 100 rental properties, with all different situations and tenants.

Upon acquiring a new property to manage, what I have found to be the best way to get to know tenants is to formally introduce yourself in person.

Instead of giving the tenants a questionnaire form to fill out and give back to you, why not use the form as a questionnaire during a personal visit to the property? This will give you a much better idea of who the people are. Below are my guidelines on how to approach the situation of acquiring new tenants:

Start with a phone call, and schedule a meet and greet. Wear your best clothes, (typically I prefer to wear a suit with no tie) do your hair, and show up looking like a professional. This will set the tone of how the tenants perceive you as a person.

Next is to ask the tenants to show you around the house. See how they walk you through. Are they trying to show you how well they are taking care of the property, or are they vaguely skipping over every room hoping you won't look in that storage closet. :)

Right down all their maintenance concerns and let them know you will be addressing these in a timely manner.

Once this is out of the way, time to talk money. Discuss with the tenants how and when they will pay you, and when you expect payment and how you deal with late rent.

Before I go, I typically like to give them a form with all my contact info at this point, and as I walk out the door, I reassure them I will take care of the maintenance issues discussed.

When the next month rolls around, you have shown them the can rely on you to take care of business, and 99.9% of the time, they will feel inclined to pay you on time.

Hope this helps!