3 Ways To Simplify Owning A Rental Property

While owning a rental property can be a great source of semi-passive income, it can also be a real headache when it comes to managing it. From finding tenants to maintenance and upkeep and understanding all the legalities, having a rental property could end up being much more complicated than you originally thought. Luckily, there are a few things you can do that will help to make this process go much smoother for you. So to help ensure that your investment of money doesn’t turn into a big drain on your time and patience as well, here are three ways you can simplify owning a rental property.

Know The Laws About Fair Housing:

One of the biggest things that are going to make your life easier as a rental property owner is having good tenants living in your properties. The only problem with this is that actually knowing who’s going to be a good tenant before you lease to them is hard to do. Not only can this be hard to find someone that you think will be a good tenant and will take care of your property, but you also have to be careful that you’re not breaking any laws regarding fair housing. According to Lindsey Schober, a contributor to Zillow.com, fair housing, and discrimination laws make it illegal for you to discriminate against anyone. This means that you have to give everyone an equal opportunity to live in your property. The better you understand these laws, the better you’ll be able to work within them when finding someone who will be a good tenant for you to rent your property to.

Use The Right Software:

When you’re managing your own rental properties and being the point of contact for each of your tenants, you’re going to need all the help you can get to keep things organized and make the most use of your time. To help with this, BiggerPockets.com suggests that you use online rental property management software. What this type of software can do is essentially streamline all the processes you go through each month as a landlord. You can communicate with your tenants, collect rent, address maintenance issues, and so much more. Just make sure that you find a software that’s going to have all the features you need and be easy for you to use if you’re hoping to have this software make your life as a landlord simpler.

Hire Help With Property Management:

If even with the above-mentioned advice you still feel like managing your own properties is just more than you want to take on, you might want to consider hiring on a property management company to take care of all of these tedious things for you. According to Michele Lerner, a contributor to Forbes.com, property management companies usually charge three to ten percent of your rental income, which could be very worth it to make your life a whole lot simpler.

If you own one or more rental properties, consider using the tips mentioned above to help simplify this area of your life.

Read Also:

• Things to Consider Before Investing in Property
• What are the Benefits of Using a Property Investment Firm?