How to Be a Long-Distance Landlord

Every landlord would wish to be in a position where they can frequently visit and inspect their properties. But this is not always the case. A scenario may arise forcing you to move hundreds of miles away.

It could be that you have been offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity or it could be that one of your family members needs care. What do you do in such a position? Are you ready to take care of the challenges that may arise from such a situation?

From our experience advising and helping landlords in the past, the team from Liberty Real Estate Services has put together this article helping you understand the basics of long-distance landlording!

The Quality of Your Tenants

During your tenure as a rental property owner, you have probably enjoyed the benefits of quality tenants on your premises. To increase the probability of renting to a quality tenant, you need to run a comprehensive tenant screening solution.

Since you will be a thousand miles away, you want to have the privilege of making frequent trips to the property. That’s where tenant screening comes in.

Once you have received interest from several potential tenants, you will run financial, rental history, and character checks on them. Conducting proper background and credit checks ensures that you have peace of mind throughout the leasing period.

Open Communication

As a remote landlord, it will be in your best interest to maintain open communication channels at all times. Typically, it is the tenants who wish for open communication channels to pass on queries and maintenance issues. In this case you want your tenants to be your eyes and ears on the property.

From a small leakage of the dining room faucet to missing shingles on the roof, you will be able to learn about these issues once they arise.

Upon signing the lease agreement, you should share your current contacts and possibly your email address as well. While your property might not have an issue, call and do a random check-in. The tenants will appreciate having such a caring landlord.

However, we must issue a disclaimer. You cannot call your tenant every other week to inquire about the property. They must enjoy their time on the property without your meddling. You will have to use some emotional intelligence to measure each tenant and their willingness to contribute information to you.

Regular Visits

Making the trip down to your property can be quite a challenge, especially from a financial perspective. However, you will be pleased to know that the IRS has set up the costs of such a visit to be tax-deductible.

When planning your trip, you can subtract the cost of travel, hotel stays, mileage, meals, and other affiliated costs from the taxable income of the property. You can use these benefits to visit your property often in a calendar year.

While this is the case, you must still remember the tenant’s right to quiet enjoyment of the premises. You can’t always make random and frequent visits to the property.

We recommend that you read up on the state’s laws on how frequently you can visit your premises as a landlord. You will also need to inform your tenant prior. Failure to comply with the law can be costly.

The Property Market

Moving several thousands of miles away means that you are a bit dissociated from the local property market. And as you know, the local competition is quite stiff. Every landlord is looking forward to attracting the best tenants. And this includes the tenants on your premises.

New properties in the market will be better aligned with tenants’ tastes and preferences. This is particularly true when it comes to fittings, fixtures, and amenities. Should your property lack such in the long term, you can be assured that your tenants will move upon the expiry of the lease.

There is also the concern of the local business environment. The government will be enacting new laws and regulations, demographic patterns will be shifting, and new players will be entering the market. You will need to stay abreast of all these changes in your local market.

As a prudent rental property owner, you will need to stay abreast of changes in the market. Read local reports from reputable property and economic players. Also, monitor local news as you plan on making the ideal adjustments in the future.

The Importance of Local Resources

There is always the possibility of impromptu maintenance requests on your rental property. Sometimes, it might be a dispute to be handled between tenants or the adjacent neighbor. You can’t rush thousands of miles to handle such issues.

You will need to connect with a reputable and reliable entity that can rush down to your property and handle the matter comprehensively.

In Conclusion

As you plan on making the switch to a long-distance landlord, this article will help you prepare adequately. Connecting with local resources, proper screening, and keeping communication channels open are some of the tips that will help your rental property investment run.

Remote property management can be a challenge and you can often feel that you are losing out on quality tenants. To properly run your rental property, you can rely on the services of the leading property management company, Liberty Real Estate Services.

We comprehensively serve landlords in Fleming, Ludowici, Glennville, Fort Stewart, and Richmond Hill among other areas. Give us a call today and receive a quote for our services.