All Forum Posts by: Lora H.

Thanks for everyone's comments. I like all the perspectives.

I want to defend myself a little here . . . I believe I'm a very honest person and I think most of the people that know me would agree. My intention here is to not deceive anyone or gain anything by this that would be a detriment to a prospective tenant. I have read other posts on here such as, "Are you the owner or property manager?" as well as various podcasts and I have heard several people recommend to say you are the property manager vs the owner and for their reasons, it seems like a good idea. Note for 13.5 of the 14 yrs I've owned this I have always introduced myself as the owner. I take very good care of my tenants and very good care of my property however, I like the idea of the additional layer such as thinking over an odd request because you need to run it by the owner or the policies come from the owner . . . "sorry, can't change the policy . . .", or even reference to a business partner, etc.

I do like your perspectives and I always think it is better to be truthful. I do think that one that owns and manages their own properties wears many hats and as such introducing yourself as the property manager isn't a lie - that IS what I do. If someone specifically asks if I'm the owner then I have no problem claiming that as well. But I don't see why it is important whether you're the owner or property manager as long as tenants/home are well-cared for. My goal is to keep it rented and keep them happy.

Thanks,

lora

Hey there, this is my first post so thanks in advance for any advice.

I have one rental which I've split into 2 units. I used to announce myself as the owner however I have read throughout this site that this is not recommended and I tend to agree. So recently started saying I'm the property manager; here's my dilemma. 1) I used to live in one of the units for the first 12 yrs so it takes alot of energy for me to remember not to give anything away that would infer I'm the owner. I've only been in my new place for 2 yrs. 2) Anyone could look this up on county records and find out I own the house - pretty easy to do these days. 3) I recently had a prospective tenant seem a bit suspicious about my "property manager" status - he was asking me alot of questions about my company, etc. I fended him off decently but I hate lying like that, one lie to cover the next. One thing to note, I am looking into forming an LLC which I believe will help in this situation but yet again, anyone could look this up and find out, guess who, it's me (as I waive my hand), I'm the owner! I suppose you all are going to say the chances of this happening are minimal, etc. Perhaps this is true but out of the first 5 people through the door, it has already happened. Has anyone else run into this predicament?

I'm also asking myself the same question about one of my rentals. But does a furnished rental have to be short-term (under 3 mo)? What about a market for 6-12 mo for a furnished place such as someone from EU coming over to work for a year then go back or someone who just moved here, doesn't know the area, doesn't want to lock into a long lease and thus, in transition, etc. Is there a market for this? The location is hot as far as REI goes - close to light rail, 2 parks, very cool shops and restaurants within walking distance, etc. (Platt Park in Denver, CO). I work full time, don't want to have too much to manage but I could handle 6 mo + terms if my vacancy was low. Thoughts?