Managing your own rental property is not impossible. Many property owners do it successfully. However, it’s not without difficulties. You’ll face challenges that won’t otherwise be a problem with employees or professional property management. Discovering which struggles you might face as a self-managing landlord can help you get ahead by equipping you with the skills and knowledge to overcome them.
Key Highlights:
- Self-managing a rental property is achievable but comes with unique challenges that require strong organization, time management, and knowledge of landlord responsibilities.
- Tenant selection and screening are critical, as poor marketing or inadequate vetting can lead to problematic tenants and financial losses.
- Rent collection, maintenance coordination, and lease enforcement demand consistent follow-through to prevent recurring issues and protect the property.
- Evictions and legal compliance can be stressful and time-consuming, especially for landlords unfamiliar with local and state landlord-tenant laws.
- Using management tools, conducting regular maintenance, setting clear lease terms, and seeking professional help can reduce burnout and improve rental operations.
Tenant Selection
Finding tenants won’t be easy, even if there’s high rental demand in your area. You have to market your rental listing effectively to increase visibility and reach your target market, but even then, they might not choose your listing.
Research which rental listing and social media platforms would suit your property type, and learn the effective keywords that renters tend to use. Once applicants line up, conducting thorough tenant screening is just as important to avoid getting bad tenants, who might not take care of your property or pay rent on time.
Rent Collection
It’s not the collection of payment that makes it difficult, but the potential issues you may face, such as late or non-payment of rent. You will then have to enforce the lease and issue late fees, but it won’t guarantee that your tenants will not repeat this behavior.
One way to encourage timely rent payments is to offer multiple payment channels, such as tenant portals, cash apps, online banks, and other convenient payment methods. If your tenant generally has a good tenancy record, you can be more lenient and offer options, like payment plans or rent discounts.
Maintenance
Property upkeep keeps your rental in good condition, so routine inspections and regular maintenance are necessary. Neglecting to do so can lead to bigger problems, which means more expensive fixes.
It won’t be limited to your regular rental responsibilities. Tenant will also send maintenance requests your way, such as appliance repair or fixing leaks. Part of your job is to coordinate maintenance requests and prioritize the more urgent issues, ensuring tenant safety and comfort.
Lease Enforcement
Lease rules are established so that all parties involved, as well as your investment property, remain protected. If a tenant violates lease rules, it’s important to enforce them and issue the appropriate consequences.
If you don’t, the tenant might repeat these offenses, believing there will be no punishment. This could potentially escalate to bigger problems, making them harder to deal with. Eventually, it could lead to an eviction, which comes with a whole new set of difficulties.
Eviction
Evictions are the most stressful aspect of property management. There are local and state laws requiring you to follow steps and timelines to ensure a good outcome for your rental business, and court costs you’ll have to cover.
Furthermore, evictions can be tedious, as they sometimes take weeks or months to finalize. You have to attend court hearings, submit paperwork, and deal with the aftermath of losing a tenant. This can all be overwhelming for a self-managing landlord, more so if you’re unfamiliar with the involved landlord-tenant laws.
Burnout
There’s only so much one person can handle before it becomes too heavy. The usual landlord duties can be manageable, but add unexpected matters like emergency repairs, piling maintenance tasks, tenant conflict, and excessive property damage, and it’s enough to get burnt out.
Daily operations can already be a full-time job as it is. If you take on more than you can handle, your tenants won’t get the service they need, and your property could end up neglected. A common solution would be to hire employees to help with your tasks, or a property manager to handle every aspect of rental operations.
How To Overcome Landlord Challenges?
- Use available management tools. There are free apps and software you can use to streamline operations. Depending on the product, you can automate tasks like rent collection, lease renewal, maintenance coordination, and more.
- Screen your tenants thoroughly. You already have your hands full with daily rental property operations, so you can minimize your tasks by ensuring that your renters follow your lease rules.
- Conduct regular maintenance. When you find and solve problems at their early stages, costs will be lower, fixes will be faster, and downtime will be minimal.
- Create a clear lease agreement. Your lease should outline what your tenant’s responsibilities and limitations are, along with the consequences of violating lease rules.
- Hire a property manager. Many landlords hire property managers to handle daily operations, especially if they have more than one property. Expert management allows your rental property to grow, as well as bring time back on your hands to explore other investment opportunities.
Rental Property Self-Management FAQs
Should I manage my own rental property?
- That depends on whether you can handle the workload or not. Without time management, you will end up neglecting some of your landlord duties, and your property will suffer in the process.
Who should I consult to improve as a landlord?
- There are plenty of experts who can help you learn more about the rental industry and property management, such as marketing experts, legal professionals, real estate agents, property managers, and more. Determine which aspect of property management you’re lacking in and find a professional in the respective field.
When should I consider hiring a property manager?
- Many factors matter in this decision, such as your capacity to handle daily operations, the extent of your knowledge in property management, and whether you simply want to earn passive income. Even if you can handle your rental business by yourself, hiring professional property management services can maximize your rental income.
Who Can You Hire for Property Management?
If you do decide to hire a professional property manager, you need to be just as selective as you are with your renters. The profitability of your rental business significantly relies on whether the service is reliable, so due diligence is necessary.
For your Houston, Texas properties, there’s no need to look for long. Here at Area Texas Realty and Management, we can maximize and protect your investment with our extensive resources and experience-backed expertise.
Learn more about our services. Contact us!
