A Tip for Property Owners/Managers

Order periodic police reports on your property:

Imagine this: you get a call from the neighborhood police officer telling you that there have been two disturbances reported from one unit in a small apartment building that you own. They tell you which unit and who they arrested. You contact the tenant to question them about the incident and they tell you that none of it is true. You let them know that the police informed you about the incident and they still insist none of it is true. What do you do?

Answer: request the police records. You may find that not only the tenant in question had the two incidents, but you learn that other incidents occurred in the building as well. Sometimes the report will redact the tenants name and actual unit number, but when your read the report, you can usually read between the lines bases on enough context clues. Back to tenant with the two incidents…you learn that four officers gave their version on the incident, just like Matthew, Mark, Luke and John! Moral of the story, take the time to request police records to learn about what is happening around the property. Request records twice a year. Having the information can help you decide who to renew! 

A Tip for Tenants: Just the facts, ma’am…just the facts!

Tenant says, “My landlord gave me a bad reference”:

As a tenant, it is important to do the following to gain the pleasing outcome for a “good” reference:

1. Have a respectful relationship with the owner/manager. Are you the type of person who yells at the owner/manager when things do not go quite right, even when management is wrong? You may want to learn to hit the pause button because typically no owner/manager wishes to maintain a relationship with a tenant who hurls insults and shows hostility.

2. Keep a clean home. If you do not like to clean, hire a friend who likes to clean. If you cannot afford to pay them money, make a trade with them. Report any presence of infestations, immediately (rodents, bedbugs, etc.)

3. Follow the rules – especially paying your rent on time; resist moving in people who are not on the lease; and refrain from being a nuisance (causing disturbances or inviting guests to your home that cause disturbances).

4. Give proper notice when you decide to move. Basically, if you pay your rent on the 1st of the month, most leases require a month to two-months notice. If you have 30-Day requirement, it doesn’t mean you tell the owner February 15 that you want to vacate 30 days later by March 15. In this scenario, if you had to give AT LEAST a 30-Day Notice, and you notified the owner on February 15, then you vacate by the end of the FOLLOWING month, March 31. It is officially a 28-Day Notice because February is the shortest month, having 28 Days. 

If a tenant says we gave them a bad reference, our response is we reported the facts. Do you want us to report that you were not late on your rent when your record shows you were late one time or 10 times? That is your record. If you invite guests into your home and the police was called–do we state no police disturbances were on your record. That is your record. If you left the unit with damages and failed to clean and/or get rid of your personal belongings, costing you $3,000–do you want us to report that you returned it the way you received it and received all of your security deposit? That is your record. 

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