All Forum Posts by: Rob B.

Hi Allen, another great alternative, if things don't work out with your PM, is a landlord platform that offers you the tools to bring a little bit of automation to managing your own rental (ie. publish 1 listing that syndicates to 10+ core listing partner sites, comprehensive tenant screening, digital lease creation, online rent collection and maintenance request management and tracking). I know this post comes in a little late (seeing as though you posted this a few months back but if you still need help with making that decision or finding the right resources for your rental business, more than happy to help! @Allen Lopez

My apologies, because I know how frustrating it is when someone answers a question with a question; is there any way the prior company that held the space can be held accountable for costs of the environmental cleanup/remediation of the property? I know in some neighborhoods here in Chicago where past meatpacking plants, gas stations or spaces where major companies used to conduct their product assembly -- some of these business entities have been taken to court by local IPOs and community organizers and lost; they were ordered to not only cover the cost of the cleanup but the testing thereafter. This was in an effort to hold them accountable for the spaces they left behind in neighborhoods (spaces which have since become dilapidated and run down but unable to be used due to not meeting EPA standards). 

I'm not sure what the stipulations are or what Minnesota law dictates, but might be worth digging into! I'll defer to others' to provide other recommendations, but just a thought.@Jason J.

Good advice coming in from the above posts; I'm of a similar mindset as Jennifer in that clear communication around this helps to set the expectations. Sure, it may be disappointing that they'll need to start scoping out a new place, but again, you've put in the time and effort to be in a place where you own a rental. It's your rental to do as you'd please, and they sound like nice enough tenants so I'm hopeful they'll be understanding of the situation. Best of luck with it! @Brent Rieman

Hi @Esteban, I'm also just a pro-level member on a monthly plan, so I can't necessarily speak to the differences in BiggerPockets leases but I will say there are some options out there which allow for further customization and are up to date (ie. when a lease is created, the appropriate clauses are auto-imported based on the property address/location -- this way your lease has you covered and is in compliance with local regulations). Happy to share some suggestions/more information via DM! 

A lot of great recommendations already mentioned above. I might note that in addition to suggesting a possible slot of open house times, there are some software options out there which allow you to schedule showings immediately after you've listed the unit, and it allows you the ability to also auto-request applications (keeps everything easy and in one place - so listing, tenant screening applications, leases and other tools like rent collection and maintenance tracking just to keep the process seamless); would be happy to share more info. 

All of that said, open houses are a great way to get group buy-in as mentioned above (can be a sign to potential renters of just how competitive your rental unit is). @Cody F.

Texting actually isn't a bad way to go (I'd almost rather a tenant overcommunicate on things than not communicate at all, which can lead to a small problem becoming a much larger problem). Having said that, for others who would rather use a different method, there are some great tools out there which can help to bring a certain level of automation to this process (you can use the same platform to list your property, conduct full tenant screening, create + sign digital leases, collect rent online, and manage maintenance requests/tracking on maintenance issues; and you can message your tenants directly via the lease console or the maintenance console). 

I know I'm a bit late to this but definitely have some recommendations for you, @Megan Davis - there are tools out there that allow for easy rent collection online along with all of the other tools you'd need to make managing your own rental property super easy. Would be more than happy to answer any questions you might have!

Hi Kevin, definitely here to answer any questions you might have; would be happy to discuss further via DM!

Happy to help as best as I can! Screening is the best way to mitigate your risks of renting to a bad tenant, and you're already asking a lot of the right questions. 

There are some tools out there, one in particular I can think of, that help to automate this process for you (online application which includes full spectrum of reporting - ie. credit report, background check, eviction history check, etc - and automatically sends reference requests off to prior landlords for them to complete; and if you need to deny an application, it allows you to use a standard decline application message for those applicants whose applications you won't be proceeding with). You even have the ability to add your own custom questions to the application and make them automated/standard across all application requests. More than happy to share my recommendation for a landlord solution via DM! 

@Charlie Moore Great question, Charlie— and a lot of great recommendations already. It might be worth looking into a landlord software that offers this as part of their full suite of tools (ie. messaging tenants directly via your landlord account on the platform, so you can easily keep everything in one place; listing details, applications, digital leases, online rent collection and maintenance tracking with tenant communications via the lease portal; also offers the ability to automate some of the messaging too). If you need a recommendation, happy to help! 😉