How to Approve Tenants Without Meeting Them

approved-29149_1280-PDI screen hundreds of renters every year for an apartment complex.

I see lots of background checks.  I am going to show you how to approve tenants without ever meeting them.  I have approved hundreds of renters without ever seeing them.  Are you still stuck on seeing and meeting renters?  Give it up, it is not necessary.  I cleaned up a 120 unit apartment complex by creating criteria that keeps most bad tenants out, without ever even seeing a tenant.

Continue reading “How to Approve Tenants Without Meeting Them”

How to Get Higher Rents, the Hard Way!

climbing-380172_1280-PDIf you are like most landlords or property managers, you are always looking for the highest rents, after all, no one I know shoots for the lowest rents.

But there comes an amount where the rent exceeds the value of the property.  Once that happens, you would think that you would not be able to find a renter.  This is not the case.

Continue reading “How to Get Higher Rents, the Hard Way!”

How to Collect Rent On Time

invoice-153413_1280-PDThis is a post about how to collect rent on time.  It is a secret recipe that I am going to share.  The rents for June have all been collected.  23 of 25 are in the bank as of June 3, 2014.  Of course, that means I had them all in hand by yesterday, June 2.    The other two are in hand, as of June 3, but not in the bank, yet.  I challenge any other landlord to beat me on that record.  Here is how I do it.

Continue reading “How to Collect Rent On Time”

How to Fill Apartments Quickly

for-rent-148891_1280-PDThe rental market has been very, very good to me…  My properties have performed well over the past month (and years); getting 100% rent collected (25 for 25) by May 2, once again.  One person, who paid on the second, apologized to me for being late.  Try that with low credit score renters, who generally always pay late.  But since I have a vacancy coming up, this is how I fill apartments quickly. Continue reading “How to Fill Apartments Quickly”

Evictions and Terminating Tenancies (in Minnesota)

hand-65688_1280-PDIf you have a tenant that you want to get rid of, there are many ways to go about it.  In Minnesota, here are the main ways and reasons to evict.  Minnesota is the host cost eviction in the Nation, so make sure you are prepared.  In 2013 the costs were as follows: $320 court costs, $100 to serve the summons, $55 for the writ.  $125 to serve the writ.  Plus vacancy, repairs, lost rent, and aggravation. Continue reading “Evictions and Terminating Tenancies (in Minnesota)”

Lowering the Rent vs. Lowering the Deposit to Attract Quality Tenants

control-571145_1280-PDSometimes, we think we have to attract quality tenants in unconventional ways.  Many people have no money.  After showing your unit many times, you do not think anyone has any money.  Some people have lower income levels.  Some people lack the ability to save, and a landlord wants to “get them in”, so they lower the tenant’s entry hurdle or security deposit.  This is a mistake that will almost always come back to haunt you.  You have a hard time renting your unit, and you finally have a tenant willing to move in.  The only issue is, they do not have enough money to move in.  They probably do not have a high credit score either. Continue reading “Lowering the Rent vs. Lowering the Deposit to Attract Quality Tenants”

Low Rents Attract Trash

garbage-402295_1280-PDLow rents.  The fact of the matter is, the lower your rent is, the more affordable it is to sub-par renters, or trash.  You will attract them in droves at a low price.  But the flip side to that is you also attract more good renters.  Good renters are always looking for a bargain; good renters that know their financial limits, good renters do not want to live paycheck to paycheck just paying rent.  Good renters know what they want, and will not pay a penny more.  Good renters may even want to negotiate a bit, just to make sure they are getting the best price. Continue reading “Low Rents Attract Trash”