Self Help

Every city always has its share of first-time landlords who bend over backward to cater to the whims of their tenants. They accept late rents and provide unreasonable services - all in the desire to prove that they are truly generous and to make their tenants feel equal. Along the way they stop renting aggressively and usually end up paying for it financially.

The truth is that the landlord is in a much more financially demanding position than the tenant. As the landlord you own the property. You stand to reap all the profits if values go up and to lose a significant amount of money if they go down. You also have all the responsibilities of paying taxes, insurance, and mortgage interest, as well as paying for repairs. The tenant has none of those responsibilities. He or she only has to get the rent in on time and keep the place reasonably clean and tidy.

Because of the different responsibilities, you can never be on the same level as the tenant. The property is always going to mean more to you than the tenant. And you are always going to have to be in the position of holding tenants to the terms of tenancy they agreed to. In short, renting property is not democracy in action. It’s a business. You’re more like a CEO, and the tenant is more like an employee.

While this analogy is helpful, it’s important not to stretch it too far. To counter tyrannical and unfair treatment by some landlords, the courts over the years have strengthened tenants’ rights to the point where today many landlords feel the tenants have the upper hand. In most states the landlord is so restricted in what he or she can or can’t do that some people say it just isn’t worth renting out property any more.

But do not subscribe to that opinion. You will find that (as a good landlord) it is not true. Look at it this way, the courts and the legislatures have simply given tenants protections from unscrupulous landlords that they needed. If you’re not unscrupulous, you should have little to worry about. The whole point of this discussion is to note the importance of striking the right tone in your relationship with a tenant. You can’t be arbitrary or dictatorial. Yet you can’t be a wimp either.

You have to be in charge. It’s your property, and how you handle the tenant will largely determine what happens to it. Get your head straight. The tenant is not doing you a favor by renting from you. He or she needs shelter and has to rent from someone. On the other hand, you’re not doing the tenant a favor. There are lots of other rentals. Remember, it’s a business and should be run as such. You’re the boss and, within the law, you set up the rules and see that they are followed. Keep to that thinking and you should do well.

Final Tip: Pick up a list of landlord/tenant laws appropriate to your state, and study it before you begin renting. While the rules may differ from state to state, in almost all cases they are quite clear, and you don’t want to break them. A tenant lawsuit is no fun for anyone.