All Forum Posts by: Thomas Hayworth

Personally, I wouldn't let tenants use it. The liability would be too much for me to sleep well at night.

@Ray Harrell

Check out Tellus (tellusapp.com) It's a free app that has all the features you're looking for. I like it because it automates a lot of things I used to do manually. My tenants have set up AutoPay, but before they did that, I could enforce automatic late fees whenever I wanted. If you're collecting rent through the app, it tracks your rental income automatically. And expenses you can track just by taking a picture of a receipt with your phone.

I usually stick at around $50/pet per month on my own properties.

To go on what everyone else here is saying-- never have a tenant be the main source of the property maintenance! If they get hurt doing repairs or something like that? Huge, potential legal mess! And like others have mentioned, if they start doing repairs, then maybe they think they can start managing the property, adjusting or renovating rooms, etc.

Don't let them shift the power dynamic. You want to be the provider, not a backseat driver.

It really depends on the kind of property you're looking to rent. I would say if you want something 100% ironclad and tuned to your situation, get a lawyer. Otherwise, there are plenty of websites and services that offer templates and mock-ups. Just make sure they're registered/apply to your state! Would be kind of silly to have one of my Arizona tenants wondering why there was Oregon Civil Code or something like that.

I used to use Excel sheets and my own dead reckoning. I manage three properties (five units total). Tellus is good-- it lets you claim all your buildings/units, puts you in contact with your tenants via a chat thing, and is really good on keeping your income/expenses straight.

I have Wells Fargo, so I used to use Zelle for about eight or nine months, but it didn't really agree with me since they link a lot of stuff to and from your bank account and I ended up getting lost when I tried to use it. For most of my renting life, I've used simple direct deposit (I just would give my routing/account number, and they would transfer money in) or paper check. A few months ago I wanted something a little more convenient/better on tracking rental income and expenses, but I also wanted something online/mobile, so a landlord friend of mine recommended I use Tellus. It's pretty decent if you manage properties (you'll be managing three units, right?), since you can message tenants through the app or set up auto-pay rent. For a free/mobile solution? Pretty good, I think.

Honestly, with how easy it is to rekey your home these days, I honestly would say it's almost a necessity. I once heard from a friend of mine that another tenant walked into his apartment after his landlord failed to rekey. Came in and the guy was just getting ready to rifle through his belongings-- luckily his tenant was HUGE, so that guy got outta there fast.