Google voice or second phone?

[Michael King]

Hello BPers,

I have a company supplied phone by my employer, and I do not want to give the number to tenants. I will not do it. So thinking about google voice to use on the same phone, or should I just get a $30 a month sim card from Cricket and use an old phone that's laying around? I've made a call or two to people with GV and I get the feeling that it's just a shady thing. Why I feel that way, maybe just a man's intuition. haha. TIA for any thoughts.

[Matthew Olszak]

I have my personal "true" cell phone #, a GV # I list as my cell phone to business contacts, and 3 other numbers through Grasshopper.

I love Google Voice, especially because I can text on my laptop and it transcribes and emails me my voicemails. A quick settings change on your cell phone will allow you to select if you want to use gv or your real # for each call you make, assuming you'd use both enough for that to be of benefit. On my Grasshopper #s, I also schedule them so that my phone isn't ringing at 4am with a nonsense "how many bedrooms does this apartment have?" type call. 

Definitely get a 2nd number to give to tenants, and if you have enough rentals, another number to put on listings. GV is the cheapest way, and nobody will know the difference.