Managing my property

[Jeffrey Berry]

Hello BP membership,

I have been doing a lot of research on buying and building my portfolio in the last 6 months or so. I have got a good plan on where to go and where in am going to invest. My biggest hurdle right now is the property management in my town is fair at best, I have spoken to a few investors and renters regarding their experiences. My initial plan was to give it to a PM and let it ride, but getting the reviews I am more inclined to self manage. As I have yet to start that research and plan on starting the investment in the next few months, what are some of you best practices for automation and systems for screening and payments of tenants as well as managing once rented. I have a good idea of my requirements for approving applicants, which I was already going to give to a prospective PM. I am just looking for a good system screening as well as management for tenants. This will be my first self managed property(s) and screening process(es). Any advice is greatly appreciated. 

[Nathan Gesner]

There are probably hundreds of threads addressing how to screen applications. Use the search feature located in the upper right corner of your screen.

I also recommend getting a good book covering the general requirements of being a Landlord. My personal favorite is "Every Landlord's Legal Guide" by NOLO. It covers marketing, screening, lease agreements, terminating a lease, and much more. It's written by attorney's and they point you to your state statutes. They also provide a lot of sample forms you can use.

Another highly recommended book is "The Book On Managing Rental Properties" by Brandon Turner. I haven't read it but others speak highly of it.

The thing I stress the most? Be prepared. Don't wait until you find a tenant to figure out which lease to use. Don't wait until the tenant is 20 days late on rent before trying to figure out how to handle it. You should create a list of problems and then proactively figure out how you will handle them. Waiting until the problem has surfaced can crush you quickly.