06.12.14 Book Review: The Landlord’s Survival Guide by Jeffrey Taylor

This book felt like a cross between Getting Everything You Can Out of All You’ve Got by Jay Abraham and Landlording on Autopilot by Mike Butler. While I think some of Mr. Landlord's methods are a bit slick for me, I do like that he also uses a point system for tenant screening, and I got a few concepts to implement.

Struggle with:

Putting up a sign that says "Future home of..." with applicants name. Seems over the top to me.

Using children as pawns - "If your parents like the home and decide to move in, you get to have this toy box." Really?!?

Upselling everything - appliances, improvements, payment methods, etc etc.

Agree with:

Success as a landlord is not property management but about successfully applying good people management skills.

Authors philosophy is to raise rents to market, even for long term tenants, and keep upgrading while they live there.

Most successful business have the most information - about knowledge of customers, competition, and products.

To ponder:

As applicants tour house, ask questions to help them visualize where their furniture and family members will go to help it feel more like their home.

Ask applicants if they have been late on rent int eh past three years. If they have, ask why, and listen for excuses rather than taking ownership.

Change wording on application from emergency contact to "who can be contacted for assistance if you can't pay rent?"

Adding non traditional rent due options, such as date other than first or Payday Plan (biweekly).

Sending tenants birthday cards.

Challenge to stop reading real estate books but not changing the way we run our business.

To implement:

Frame questions to residents about what their top concern is, and try to address it. This method avoids a laundry list of grievances that you can never adequately address timely.

For rental history on application, add check box for Own, Rent , or Occupy. Also add number of late payments and if full security deposit was returned for prior residences.

Improve co-signer agreement, pulling wording from Mr. Landlord's example.