What advice do you have for a first time landlord in Oakland?

[Stephen G.]

Hi Team,

My wife and I just closed on a vacant duplex in Oakland. We're thrilled as we've been saving for 4 years! It was recently renovated by the long time owners and move-in ready. We've never been landlords before, so we're meeting with an Oakland landlord attorney tomorrow (Bornstein) for a final run through of gotchyas and edge cases to be prepared for.

What advice do you have for us, if any? Things like requiring renters insurance in case a tenants friend falls and breaks an arm or compounding late fees to encourage quick payment are all super valuable. Since Oakland is so tenant friendly and we could be paired with our tenants for a long time, we want to (try to) get it right the first time! Requiring all applications + background + tenant checks to be run through cozy.co which has been incredible.

Thanks!