New Tips From Mr. Landlord - great info!

Morning Friends,

I recieved some more great tips from my friend, Jeffery Taylor - aka Mr. Landlord. He is the nations foemost expert on landlording and offers great weeky tips. I'll post a few here and there...

CONTINUALLY LEARN FROM OTHER LANDLORDS
Study other successful landlords to find the good traits and practices they use. This is one of the best benefits of joining a local landlord association. In addition, always look for ways to improve various aspects of your rental operation by discussing various topics with other landlords including: rental criteria for selecting residents, rental application questions, maintenance tricks of the trades and favorite lease clauses.

STAY ABREAST OF THE POLITICAL WINDS
Be aware that the city, the state department of health, and other agencies all can begin to target communities where your rental properties are, and this can be true for even well-maintained properties in good condition. Especially for aging communities and properties, areas where you have rentals, may soon become a target if it they have not already in the current political/socio-climate of the day. I think it would pay all landlords to stay abreast of coming changes, political winds (lead, mold, etc.) and not grow complacent that your cities and communities will not be affected. This is another big reason to stay actively involved in a local association, where landlords can show their strength in numbers and stay informed of what's happening with any potential changes with legislation, zoning, housing enforcement and otherwise in your area. You can do all you can to maintain your properties in a professional manner but still get caught if you aren't aware of how the future is going for your investment property. Be it mold, lead, asbestos, or even off-gassing of chemicals from NEW construction. Stay abreast!

GO TO COURT BEFORE YOU HAVE TO
This advice is especially important if you will soon have to take a tenant to court and have never had to take a tenant to court before. Before your actual scheduled court date, go and simply sit in on landlord/tenant court cases (stay a few hours if necessary) so that you have a good grasp of how the judge operates and what they are looking for from the landlord to prove their case. In my area, eviction cases happen once a week. In larger cities, it might be every day, However it works, you need to see not only how the Judge operates, but what makes him mad, how do successful people speak to him, and how do they present. The Judge does not care about your story, he wants to make a good decision, get you out of his face, and move to the next case so he can go home. Also, very important, you want to see what defenses are presented by tenants or their attorneys and which defenses cause the judge to rule in favor of the tenant or give the tenant more time. Watching all this is very valuable education for any landlord.

ADVANTAGE OF REQUIRING RENTER'S INSURANCE
I require tenants to have renter's coverage. It's up to them to continue coverage that is as agreed in the lease. For myself, I have an umbrella policy with adequate coverage. I had one occasion where there was flooding in the basement of a house where they had things stored. When they asked me if I had insurance to cover their things, I said of course not! Just file on the renters insurance you're required to have as part of the rental agreement. There were no more questions on their part.

LOVING YOUR FAMILY
I got a wonderful piece of advice a few months ago about creating an "I love you" drawer. The advice was to have in this drawer a collection of all important documents (insurance policies, mortgage papers, bank accounts, will and testament, etc) that you compile for your heirs and family members in case "the worst" should happen. A grieving loved one should not have to hassle with trying to find papers at a time of tragedy. We show how we love them by how we care for them before tragedy strikes. Though this is a subject many rental owners don't stop to think about, because landlords have such a wide range of documents connected to potentially valuable assets, it is important not to let a lot of what you have worked so hard for become a burden and not a blessing for the next generation.

These tips are from tips shared on MrLandlord.com website and in the Mr. Landlord newsletter. To receive a free sample of the newsletter visit Jeffery's website at MrLandlord.com and register to win a free landlording book.

Hope you all have a great day. We are back in Iowa working on our new training center...we are so excited to have training classes here. I can't wait for you to see what we have in store for you...

Have a Blessed Day,

Dwan
www.theieu.com