Rental questions for soon to be landlord.

[Anthony Warren]

Hello all, 

I am rather optimistic about closing on my first investment property within the next 10 days. I am not counting any chickens before the eggs hatch but I believe everything is coming together. With that being said I will be house hacking a duplex. So far this has been a very educational experience with some small hurdles along the way. I have a few questions about book keeping and management. I know not everyone is an attorney or an accountant and I take all information into consideration through my own due diligence. 

My first question is this. I will be self managing this as my first investment to gain experience. I am inheriting tenants and their lease is coming up in July. I plan on putting them through a new application so that I have the experience and also all my i's dotted and my t's crossed. One of the biggest questions I am already asking is about book keeping. I have had a few different ideas as for how I may handle taking rent and holding money such as deposits etc. I really feel like one option is for me to open up a new checking and savings account in my name and handle all money through this account. My real fork in the road comes to an idea I had about sarting my now property management LLC. I would use the LLC to open the bank accounts and have that LLC to have all money pass through. Is this something anyone else has done? What would be the pros and cons for handling it in this manner? Would there be any tax advantages or disadvantages for doing things this way? Should I hire a CPA to get an idea of what to expect for when I file taxes next year?

Next I have come to a point where I am looking at raising the rent for the current tenants when I renew their lease in July. At this moment I will not cover the complete mortgage with the tenant's rent. I still plan on taking out a percentage for repairs, capex, vacancy, and management. This money will go into a savings account for future needs and I will come out of pocket around $500 a month for the remainder of the mortgage. At this point I am looking at this as an investment through equity growth. Eventually after I move to my next deal or property I will cash flow although rents will have to increase. Ive read the book on managing rental properties by @Brandon Turner and have listened to countless podcasts that talk about training your tenants. The one thing I notice with some landlords is that they keep their rates stagnate. I want to get into a system where I train the tenants to understand that increases are apart of the equation. With that being said what are other landlords seeing as a general rule of thumb for rent increases? Are these increases annually or every other year? I know this is probably dictated by many factors and local economics, I would just like to have an idea of what others may practice. 

Aside from those few questions I would absolutely love any advice or bits of knowledge before I officially become a landlord. I am so thankful for this forum and BP. This is such a great wealth of knowledge. My biggest hope is that someday I can help the next guy in line. 

Thanks, 

Anthony Warren