What is the most difficult aspect of managing your own property? We at Trinity Team believe it’s the landlord/tenant relationship. As a landlord we want to start the relationship off on the right foot and we have pride in our rental property. Generally speaking, new landlords are overly trusting when meeting potential renters. They want to see the best in them, believe in them and go the extra mile for them. The truth is the landlord/tenant relationship is the most challenging, yet most critical aspect of successful property management.
It’s crucial to follow Colorado state laws and legalities and well as Fair Housing and HUD https://www.hud.gov/states/colorado/offices guidelines. The best way to reduce risk when finding a tenant is to be choosy, but do it legally. Business decisions must be based on facts and not on instinct alone. You may feel connected to an applicant if they were referred to you and skip the verification process all together. You may take their word about credit, income verification, past rental experience, current employment and criminal past. This is a big mistake, objective rental criteria must be developed and applied to everyone equally, regardless of how you feel about them personally.
Understandably, it’s faster and more convenient to skip this process and take the tenant at their word. Why do landlords fall into this pit of deception? They simply don’t have the tools, time or training. When the landlord is inundated with applications all at the same time they feel a simple conversation is sufficient to move forward in the process. Failing to follow fair and legal rental criteria is a potential liability.
Trinity Team has been managing commercial and residential properties since 2008 and we take the screening of potential tenants very seriously. We do have the time, tools and experience to avoid the red flags you may not recognize. If you’re ready to find a management company who can properly screen your tenants, give us a call!