Are you having a hard time keeping up with the exterior maintenance of your rental property? In this case, you can do one of three things: 1. continue to overwork yourself and do things on your own. 2. Let things go and hope they do not get too bad. 3. Hire outside help. Which one of these options will work best for you? Most rental property owners agree that number two is out of the equation. And if you just don?t have enough time, you will want to look into hiring help.

What do you need help with? This is the next question you have to address. Some only need help with basic tasks such as cutting grass. Others need to find a crew that can do much more, such as keep an eye out for unsafe maintenance related issues. While you don?t want to totally disappear from your rental property, you do need to pass off some power to those you hire. Ultimately, you need to make the final decision on what is and is not done.

If you are falling behind and the exterior maintenance of your rental property is suffering, now is the time to hire outside help. Once you put together a good team you will have a much easier time getting along.

photo credit:?usefulguy

Most people buy a rental property because they are looking to make money. Even if things start out this way, you never know how your life and vision is going to change in the future. There may come a time when you want to sell a rental property because it is becoming too much for you to handle.

Here are three times when selling a rental property makes sense:

1. You no longer have the time. Keeping up with a rental property is a lot of work. You have to keep tenants happy, maintain the property, and collect rent payments. Do you have the time for all of this and much more?

2. The money you are making is not more than what you are spending. In other words, you are not making a profit. Not every rental property is going to be profitable. And even if your property is making money right now, this can change in the future. Positive cash flow is a must in the rental property industry.

3. You don?t have the patience. One of the greatest skills you need as a landlord/property manager is patience. Are you willing to deal with tenants that don?t care? How will you deal with late payments? If you are ?burnt out? on the rental property game it is time to get out.

photo credit: lemonjenny

When buying a rental property you are sure to be thinking about all the money you can earn. But what happens if your rental property turns into a money pit? Unfortunately, this happens way too often. If you find yourself in this situation you need to consider all your options.

What can you do to stop the bleeding? Are there any major problems that need to be addressed? It is very important to know what you are up against. You may think that the repairs will cost a lot, but until you tally them up you never know for sure. If you are lucky you may be able to fix your rental property once and for all so it can eventually make you the money you were dreaming of.

What about selling? This is an idea, but you may lose money if you do so too soon. Remember, all of the problems you are having will be seen by potential buyers. This may scare them away, or cause them to throw ?low ball? offers your way. There is nothing wrong with selling, but you need to think long and hard about doing so if you are going to take a big loss.

A rental property money pit can sour you on this industry forever. Be careful about what you buy. A smart investor can avoid properties that are going to suck them dry. If you do get stuck with this type of property you should consider all your options including making the necessary repairs and selling.

photo credit: Living in Monrovia

photo credit: MinnaertOne of the best ways to protect your rental property and tenants is through regular maintenance. This is something that many rental property owners neglect because they are too lazy or busy to do so. While you may be able to get away with this for a while, you never know when a small problem that could be prevented through regular maintenance will turn into something much more serious. (more…)

More and more tenants are deciding to negotiate with their landlord due to increased competition within the rental market. Is this something you are facing? Are you expecting this to come up in the near future? If so, you need to know what you are doing.

Tenants who want to negotiate are trying to do one thing: get you to lower the price of your rent. This is something to be aware of at all times. Even though it is the tenants right to ask for a lower rent, it is also your right to tell them no. Remember, you own the property and as long as you are consistent you have nothing to worry about. Of course, there may be times when you want to negotiate with a tenant to keep them around.

If a tenant asks to negotiate their rent you should listen to him. No, you don?t want to lose any money, but if it means losing the tenant altogether you may be better off negotiating a bit. There is no denying that taking less money from a well established tenant is often times better than venturing out and hoping to find another quality person to rent your property.

When tenants want to negotiate you should listen. Just make sure you know where you stand, and that you stick to your guns during this process. There is nothing wrong with lowering your price if this is based on market data, as well as your own personal wellbeing.

Do you want to add value to your home? Maybe you are doing so because you are going to put it on the market soon enough. No matter your reason, you should know that there are several easy interior replacements that are right up your alley. And in most cases you do not even need to obtain professional help. (more…)

To increase the value of your home you should consider making a few repairs here and there. And to start, you should look at the exterior of your home. After all, this is what you see when you pull up to your property as well as what others see when they drive by. Fortunately, there are many easy exterior repairs that will add value to your home.

To start, if you have siding you will want to make sure that it is in very good condition. Are there any pieces that are sticking out? Are there any marks that can be removed? Even if your siding is old you can still repair it to look better as opposed to spending a lot of money to get it replaced.

Moving on, don?t overlook your front door, screen, lighting, and mailbox. In most cases these are things that will standout. Unfortunately, they can also become damaged and ?old looking? soon enough. In most cases, you can easily repair any of these areas. For instance, if your front door is peeling a new coat of paint is all you need in order to fix this problem and in turn add value.

As you can see, there are many exterior home repairs that you can make. Consider those that you can easily complete on your own, and in the long run you will find the value of your home sky rocketing.