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Well, good morning and welcome everyone.I am your host, James Orr, and this is another module in the Real Estate Investing Secrets course.Today, we're going to go over the secrets of property management. So first the acknowledgement.
So the original version of this presentation, or at least parts of it, I wouldn't say the whole thing, but at least significant parts of it were based on a presentation that Brian Williams gave.
And, uh, I've since purchased the rights to that particular presentation.So he was, uh, given the presentation to our local real estate investor classes.
And, uh, I've since modified a lot of the presentation, but I definitely want to acknowledge Brian has contributed a ton to it.So thanks very much to Brian for doing that.
So this is part of our kind of like mini series or kind of like mini group of classes on property management mastery.We've already covered in previous modules marketing defined tenants.We've got its detail on that.
We covered screening tenants in the last class.Now we're moving on to property management. We still have another class upcoming on all of the different tenant challenges.
What do you do when a tenant violates a lease or they don't pay on time or they're paying late or all of the things that can go wrong with particular tenants? We're going to cover that in a separate class that's upcoming.
And then we also have another class about hiring and managing your property manager.Uh, if you're going to not do it yourself, you're going to hire a professional property manager.
We've got a whole series on how they get paid, what to consider all the different kinds of considerations and hiring, and then all the different ways to manage and stay on top of the property manager, uh, while you are owning your properties and having someone else manage your property.
So that's coming up as well.And then the kind of final part in this series on property management mastery is how do you determine
rent comps, rent comps are really important when you're doing deal analysis, but they're also really important when you're about to renew a lease, you want to find out what the fair market rent is going to be.
And so we've got an entire class module coming up on rent comps as well.So those are sort of like the six different classes in this sort of property management subset of the entire real estate investing secrets course.So today.
We've already covered preparation and tenant screening in the previous class.We covered marketing for tenants in the class before that.We're now going into the property management part of this particular class.
So here's a top 10 list from MrLandlord.com about property management.So once you buy, the most important step is tenant selection.So screen well.
So Mr. Landlord believes that, you know, once you buy the property, you've done your deal analysis, you structured the financing, you've kind of got all that underway.
Really the next most important thing about owning a rental property is going to be this tenant selection and screening of the tenant.So make sure you do that super well.Make sure your property is mechanically sound before renting.
And I just noticed that there's a typo in here, but I don't think this is my stuff, so I'm reluctant to correct it.So make your properties mechanically sound before renting.
This is all about preparation, making sure you're giving your tenant a quality property that's all fixed and running.It sets the tone for the entire relationship.Inspect units every six months.
I think that you'll find today when we talk about our property management process, that you should be inspecting your property every six months and maybe even a little bit more frequently doing drive-bys and stuff. You get what you allow.
If you allow your tenants to pay late without consequence, they will take full advantage.I think that's absolutely true.This is the idea of being firm, but fair in how you manage your properties.It's sort of like a stern father figure.
You want them to be firm.You'll kind of like set boundaries and hold you to boundaries, but fair in how they kind of like guide you and how they direct you in that kind of process there.So that's how you want to be with tenants.
You want to be firm with them and fair.And what you allow is what you will get.So kind of just think about that. Document everything.Emphasis on protecting you and protecting the tenants by documenting everything that's going on.
Make sure every agreement is in writing.
Make sure you take photos and videos to kind of document what the condition of the property was before and after and any communication you have with the tenant, make sure you save all those things of that nature.
Don't take landlording advice from people who are not happy, wealthy landlords.So be careful who you listen to and whose advice you're following.
You know, if you're following advice from a disgruntled tenant, you know, your next door neighbor who happens to be renting a property there and you're kind of like adjusting your policies and procedures based on their feedback, that may not be the best advice to be taking.
Know the landlord tenant laws for your state and even some market, so Your state there has specific laws about landlording and property management and kind of like tenants relations.
However, I'm finding that more and more individual cities and counties are having their own rules put in place on how you need to treat tenants.
So be really, really careful to understand not only your state level laws, but also your local city laws and any other laws that may be covering your particular property. Plan ahead, cover all the what ifs you possibly can before they happen.
I think this has been one of my life philosophies, this idea of anticipating what could possibly go wrong and in a very imperfect way, thinking about how I would deal with that particular situation.
What are the things that I can and should do now to make the
the cost or the penalty or the consequences of what could happen later minimized, and then do whatever I can in order to minimize those possible consequences later for things that are likely to happen, very probable to happen when you kind of think of it that way.
And then when those things do happen, you know, go and look at my written out list of how I will deal with it when I am, you know, from when I was in a non-stressful, non, in the heat of the moment sort of state dealing with that.
I think that thinking these things through and kind of making a plan and then as you go through and you implement your plan, doing a postmortem when you're done and as you go through and say, OK, if I had to do this again, I would do this very differently.
Here's what I would do differently.And then you could tweak and improve your process over time so that you get better.It's you know, you should expect to make mistakes.You should expect things to happen to you that are.
you know, not in your favor that have teeth to them.But I think if you don't learn from those things, that's where the problems begin.You are going to find, you're going to put a bad tenant in eventually, right?
I mean, I think it's just inevitable that you're going to have a tenant that you're going to need to evict.I think that you're going to have a tenant that stops paying.It's just part of life.
The odds are in your favor that if you do this long enough and you have enough rental properties, you're going to run into issues. So let's plan for those.
And then as we go through those processes where those things happen, let's fix them and get better over time.And it doesn't have to be us.
We can learn from other people's mistakes and errors and how they think about things and how they run their businesses, but also make corrections based on your own too. All right, so continuing on, keep some reserves on hand.
I need to have an entire class on reserves.
It's not in the modules for the real estate investing secrets, but I'm sure I'm gonna do an entire class, maybe even a series on reserves, how to think about them, how we measure them, all the different ways we think about reserves.
So there'll be parts of the series where we talk about that, but there's not a whole class.There really should be a whole class in that.And then finally, join your local landlord association.
Join your local real estate investor club that focuses on buy and hold rental properties and network and understand
You know, from other local landlords, you know, what best practices are, what's working, what's not working, where are the local resources, what they should do in these certain situations.And I think that's critically important as well.
So I think this is a really good list for mrlandlord.com about some kind of like general property management tips.Okay.Let's go through the entire tenant process.This is part one of three.So step one is.
You bought a new rental, you're converting a Nomad property to a rental, you're turning over existing rental.You, in other words, have a property to rent.So that's kind of like the first step.
Then you need to advertise the property, which you've covered in marketing for tenants.Then you need to take the calls.You know, we've talked a little bit about that in marketing to tenants as well.
And then you're talking about showings to the property, you know, being able to show the property and have your tenant go and see those.And then we talked a lot about screening applicants.
You know, the, the general rule that is first come first served, arguably the most important thing that you could do to protect your investment is the proper screening of prospective tenants.Then the kind of, this is the second part of this.
Once you process the application, that's another step there and you've approved the applicant, then you collect the reservation deposit, which we covered in the previous class. Then we talked about lease signing and review of the lease.
Then property is rent ready and ready to go to turn over to the new tenant.And then today, this is what we're planning on covering.So we're going to cover the document of documenting of the property condition itself.
We're going to talk about all the pre-occupancy reminders that we give to the tenant when you're managing the property.We're going to talk about them moving into the property.
We're talking about what happens in the first week that they're in the property, what happens in that first month that they're in the property.Then we're talking about periodic inspections on the property itself.Then,
Jump, jump forward to when the tenant is getting ready to turn the turnover preparation.What are we doing when we're tenants about to move out of a property or they're not renewing their lease?What do you do during the turnover itself?
And then what do you do post move out for the particular tenant?So that's what we're going to cover during this property management section of today.So let's first start with document property condition.
So with the property in rent ready condition, we're going to record a walkthrough video of the entire inside and outside of the property.This is your way to get a video version of documenting what the property looks like.
What are the issues that are currently existing on the property for you to get an eye on every inch of the outside, every inch of the inside of the property, and make sure that you understand the condition that you're about to give the property to the tenant.
This is also your chance if you see anything that needs to be fixed, if you haven't already found it, this is your chance to say, oh, I just noticed there's this issue with the property in the back.Let me go ahead and have that corrected.
Bring a handyman out or do it yourself if you're willing to do that and your asset protection plan allows you to do that, which in most cases it will not.You should have someone else do these.There's licensing insured.
But you go ahead and have the property kind of like inspected on the inside now and document that with a video that you're going to save a copy of to your property file folder, which we'll cover here at the end what's in the tenant file.
But you're going to want to make sure you have a copy of that video dated for this particular walkthrough.And then in addition to the video, take pictures of every room and area of the house.
This includes all the walls, all the ceilings, all the doors, the floor, all the insides of closets, et cetera.If you don't have a picture of it,
In the current condition and the tenant leaves that particular part of the property damaged, you risk not being able to prove that this was the condition before and then this is the condition after the tenant moves out.
So you want to have a what I would consider to be a ridiculous number of photos of the property documenting the exact condition of the property itself. The digital photos these days are cheap and it's cheap to store them.
If you buy a Dropbox account and you just store them in your kind of like file folder for this particular tenant served with a date on there, just put up there a couple hundred photos.It's not a big deal.
Just go crazy, document everything with good quality and make sure you have it there. Continue to not take pictures of the outside and the inside of appliances to show that it was clean.
It was in good working condition that all of the pieces were there.
I also encourage you to take a picture of the model and serial number if you don't have them already, because what happens if your tenant replaces your, you know, your, your really nice refrigerator with a old.
kind of beat up version, maybe even of the same one, same model, but it's a different serial number.
You want to be able to document that this was the condition of the property, the appliances when you gave it to them, and this was the particular model and serial number of the one you have.So I think it's important to do that.
Don't do it at your own. out of danger.Do it at your own discretion, but you're risking things if you don't do it.Take pictures of the toilets, of the showers, of the sinks, inside the cabinets and under sinks.
If you have any concern, this is one of the big ones.You have to make sure you protect your property from any type of water damage.
And so take the pictures of the toilets, showers and sinks inside the cabinets and under sinks to show that there are no active leaks.There's no damage there.
So that if there is damage later on, you could say, look, this is a picture of it beforehand.This is how I gave it to you and you gave it back to me in this condition.
Obviously, there's some damage you didn't tell me about where the sink was leaking and has been leaking for six months and you never said anything.So that's particularly problematic.
If you don't have a picture prior to move in, it'll be harder to defend upon move out if the tenant disputes it.So this is to protect you and also to protect the tenant.
You know, you don't want to go in and say, I'm charging you tenant for damaging to the property.And they're like, that's there that, you know, it's been there since before I moved in.And you can go back and look at the photo says you're right.It was.
So you're protecting the tenant too by doing this, but you're also protecting yourself to say, look, this was the condition I gave it to you.Um, it wasn't listed on your move in inspection report that this was an issue.It is an issue now.
And so it happened under your watch.And this is something that you're responsible for. and then save these in a dated Dropbox folder for this particular property.So that's the documenting the property condition.
Now let's talk about the pre-occupancy reminders that you give to tenants.All right, so email the tenant about a week prior to the move-in date.
And we have a standardized lease, but per section 18 of the lease, make sure your lease has something equivalent.If the premises was built prior to January 1st, 1978, they could test for lead-based fainting.
They could also test for asbestos anytime they want.It's not really date-specific. Um, but, but basically if it was born, if it was built before January 1st, 1978, there's a possibility that there was lead based paint in the property.
And as a health and safety concern, especially for small children, uh, they have the right to test for that.And so we want to let them know that they have the right to do that.Remind them the amount that they must pay to get keys.
So, they've given us the reservation deposit already.They're going to be paying the full first month's rent and the security deposit if they haven't done so.They're going to get up to that amount before they do it.
Remind them the amount they need to pay to get keys.Always collect at least a full month of rent regardless of the day that they move in. and then charge the prorated amount for the first month on the first of the second one.
So for example, this is this comes up a lot where somebody is going to move in in the middle of the month.So let's say someone is planning to move into a property on June 16th, right about the middle of the month.
And rent is just in this example, fifteen hundred dollars a month.So many landlords are going to collect fifteen hundred dollars for a deposit and then they're going to collect seven hundred and fifty dollars to get the keys on move in day.
This is a mistake.You're not charging them the full security deposit and a half month rent on the first move in.That's not what we recommend you do.
Instead, what you should do is collect $1,500 for the security deposit and a full $1,500 for the first full month of the property when they move in on the middle of the month on June 16th.So you're collecting $3,000.Then
The first of the month is going to come up and at the first of the month, you're going to collect the prorated amount.So on July 1st, you're going to collect $750 more.So in order to move in, they don't get to move in with just a security deposit.
And whatever the little amount is left in that month, they do the full security deposit and a full month's rent.And then they make up the prorated difference on the first of the next month.You know, what if they're moving in on the 29th of the month?
Are you going to charge them a security deposit and like two days rent? No.What you're going to do is you're going to charge them the security deposit and a full month's rent.
And then on the first of the month, you're going to charge them the really, really small amount.And if it's that close, you know, you can work something out where it's just like, you know, you're gonna pay the whole thing plus the two days.
But if it's like in the middle of the month, this is how we do it.Full month's rent, full security deposit, and then we do the prorated amount on the first. Remind them that the payment must be a cashier's check or a money order.
Subsequent payments can be personal check unless they give you two bad checks and then they go back onto the certified kind of like payment plan.But for the first one, they have to be in some type of certified funds.
We do not let people move into properties with personal checks. Ask me how I know this, okay?
Because I've had tenants that have bounced the first check, and then you're trying to evict them, and they haven't paid you any rent or any security deposit, and you've got to get them out of the property, and they've done damage to the property, and it's just a nightmare.
So always do certified funds for the first one. Send a list of the utilities with phone numbers that they need to switch to their name.So you want to tell them, look, um, the water is in my name and never goes out of my name.
If that's the case in your market, or this is the name of the water company.This is an electric company.This is the name of the, um, you know, natural gas company, whatever the, uh, the list of, of the actual services that they have to change over.
You want to send them a list of utilities with their phone numbers that they need to switch to their name.And you want to give that to them so that they know to switch them, remind them that this needs to be done before moving day.
and should be effective on move-in day.The move-in day belongs to the new tenant.It belongs to the buyer when we're buying properties.It belongs to the tenant when we're leasing properties.They own the day that they're moving in.
So that first day belongs to them.That's the date that it should be in their name and switched over to them.Remind them how they will gain access to the property on move-in day.Most tenants are going to want early access to start moving.
Deal with that however you wish, if you're willing to.Most of the time, we do not do that.
If the lease was signed a really long time before or several months, touch base with them each month with the tenant as well to remind them, hey, look, you're coming up here.Any questions about anything that's going on?
This is how it's going to work when we get closer to the date and kind of keep in touch to keep them, you know, let them know that you're going to be a good landlord and communicate with them so they can understand all that.
So that's how that all works. Okay, this is the pre-occupancy reminders for how they deal with that.So let's talk about move in.We've already talked about the other two.So you're gonna give the tenant access to the property.
You're gonna meet the tenant and collect the cashier's check and give them keys, or you're gonna have a lockbox and you're gonna text them the code late the night before or early in the morning.
One key in the lockbox and any other door keys, mail keys, access cards, garage door openers, the rest in a kitchen drawer inside.Don't forget to tell them about this.
You're only going to put one key in the box instead of having to try to stuff a garage door opener inside of a lockbox.
You're going to have everything inside the property locked up and then you have one key for them to get into the property in the lockbox outside and then tell them where the other keys and all the other stuff that they're going to need is located inside the house.
Brian prefers to text people 10 p.m.the night before so that they can confirm that they have received everything that they need, and that way you're not being woken up at 6 a.m.
because they're trying to move into the property really early, get a start of the day, and you're still sleeping in, and they're like, hey, my landlord's not responsive.He told me I'd be able to move in today.
So a lot of times you'll give it to them the night before in order for them to have access to the property on the day.Just tell them, honestly, if they want to move in at 10 p.m., that's probably fine with me.
But tell them, you know, your fix starts tomorrow.Here's everything you need to get in tomorrow in order to do the property. And then in a very important note, we're only doing this.
If we already have the certified funds for the security deposit, the full month's rent ahead of time, we're not going to text them the keys and then go pick up the checks later.We want to make sure that we have all the payment.
You can tell, look, if you want to, you can give me certified funds now.Um, you know, I'll go ahead and wait until today to cash it or whatever you're going to do, or just cash it.
And then if it doesn't matter to them and then tell them, I'm going to text you the access information the night before.So you'll have it and be ready to move, you know, anytime that day.
and then check in later that day with a text or phone call to see how things are going.If they had any problems, if they found any new issues with the property, remind them that they have to fill out the move-in form.
I'll talk to you all about that here in a second, and email it back to you within seven days showing any issues or conditions with the property that they want to document so that they're not responsible for at the end of the lease.
Should you do a walkthrough with your tenants to fill in a move-in form?It's really up to you.Most of the time, I am not encouraging you to walk through the property with the tenants to do the move-in form.Although,
There's probably some compelling reasons why you might want to do that just to kind of like, you know, build rapport, make sure that they understand like the condition and expectations.
So you can do that as part of your lease signing ceremony if you prefer.I don't think he needs it. And so you could, you could, uh, just give them the form and tell them that you decide it and bring it, send it back to you within seven days.
So you have a copy of it.All right.So let's talk about what the move in inspection form, um, looks like.So this is from the lease itself, I think this, so this is a section eight of the lease.
Um, and you should have something similar in your own lease that kind of covers this thing.
So condition of the premises, the resident has received an inspection form, quote, move in inspection form to notify management of any damage to the premises at the time of taking possession.
Resident acknowledges and agrees that the premises is in good and habitable condition and accepts premises in its present as is condition and acknowledges and accepts the responsibility to complete said form within seven days of taking possession and return a completed signed copy to management.
So this is in our lease.When they sign the lease, they're agreeing to fill in this move-in inspection form saying that the property is in great condition and that this is the condition of the property as they do it.
And they're going to give it back to us within seven days.I'll show you a copy of the move-in form.So continue on reading them.
Failure to do so shall be residence acknowledgement that the premises is in perfect condition in every particular and that any damages, including breakage, burns and wear or otherwise not shown on this inspection form shall be residence responsibility and expense."
We're putting them on notice saying, look, if you don't hand in a form showing us any issues that are currently with the property, we're assuming that the property is in perfect condition and anything we see when we get it back is going to be your responsibility.
Now, in a practical matter, We've taken a ton of photos, we've taken a ton of video in order to show the condition of the property.If they, we come back in and we say, look, you know, there are burns on the countertop.
Um, you know, we expect you to pay for that.If those existed before they move in, obviously we're not going to charge them for that because that was obviously damage that was there before because we have photos of it.
But if it's not, we don't have any photos of it.We're assuming that that happened on their watch.Okay.Continuing on here.Let's see, where was I?
The items shown on the moving inspection form are subject to verification by management and to the extent acceptable by management shall be conclusively deemed to be the only exceptions as to the residents obligation to maintain and surrender the premises in good condition.
So they're going to go list that a whole bunch of different things.They can't just make stuff up. If they put something on there and you're like, hey, I don't think that's right.
I looked at the property before I gave it to you and that damage wasn't there.So we're going to go look at it with them and say, look, here's a photo from right before I gave you the property and here's the big hole in the wall by the front door.
That's from you moving in.That's not from us.So then we'll have to go talk to you about that and kind of agree that the things that they listed are actually true. Management has no obligation to correct or repair any such items.
So this is not like a repair list.We're acknowledging that there's some damage.And if they do point out something that is legitimately broken and that you should have in working order, then that is a sign to go repair it.
But it's not an obligation for them to say, you know, there's a whole bunch of little things here.We're going to go back through and touch up pay and things of that nature.That's not what we're talking about.
We're trying to document the condition to prevent them from having to pay for things that didn't happen while they were living in the property.That's really what this is all about.
Management has no obligation to correct or repair any such items, and the sole purpose of such writing is to establish the condition of the premises upon occupation by the resident.So this is like something from our lease.
You should have something like this in your lease to make sure that you're protecting yourself and then have a move-in inspection form.So here is the move-in inspection form.Now, I have one that I used.I purchased it, of course, a long time ago.
But Brian came up with his own kind of Frankenstein version where he took things from different places all over the place.And I'm going to show you his version in the presentation. copy of it, let me know.
I'll probably post it online if you need a copy.It is good enough as is.So you don't need to have something magical here.It's a practical, functional form is really what it's all about.
The tenant can even just use a regular piece of paper to document condition.But here's Brian's version.So this is it.Let's move into the inspection report.
just the residency and the inspection date and then it just lists a whole bunch of different items in the house and then it is a working order yes no or na and it kind of just gives them an opportunity to go through all the different bedrooms living room dining room family room general kitchen kind of do that this is the first page still i'll continue on bathrooms kind of list all those out any miscellaneous things going on
the sprinkler information there.
And then on the back here, it shows the keys that were received by tenant, how many for the front door, how many for the mailbox, how many for the back door, the garage door keys, the garage door opener, and the other keys.
This is the documents, what you've given them so that when you get the property back and you're like, you never gave us mailbox keys, you're like, I gave you two.It shows right here, and you've signed this form saying that you received it.
And then they can make any other notes about property condition.So it just shows you all that.And then on the bottom of it says,
Resident accepts the responsibility to complete this form within seven days of taking possession and to return a completed signed copy to management.
Failure to do so shall be resident's acknowledgement that property is in perfect condition in every particular.
Resident agrees that this represents an accurate description of the current condition and assumes responsibility for the property as of, and then a date on here, signatures for the residents, and then received by management date.
Have everybody over 18 sign this thing, okay?So you're doing that.So let's talk about week one now. So in week one, that the tenant is living in a property, per the lease, the move-in inspection form is due within seven days.
So if the move-in inspection form is not turned in after the first five days, remind them again that you are serious about this, it's firm but fair, and that you want a copy of it.They have two days left to turn it in.
When the move-in form is turned in, thank them and ask them if there are urgent or important issues that they've found.
If there's an active leak or something is really wrong with the property, you want to know and you want to address those things right away.
So you're going to ask them, hey, is there anything on here that was particularly gnarly or urgent or anything important on here that needs to be addressed?And this opens up your communication channel with your tenant.
Some people care about things you won't.And if you don't fix it, they will remain quietly unhappy and fester until they have a bigger issue.And then it's all going to blow up on you.So if they're really concerned about
the screen door squeaking or the fact that the, you know, the screen on the screen door is kind of peeling away in one of the corners.And that's going to be an issue for them.
You probably should fix it because all it's going to do is cause you a lot of problems later on for something that's a really minor fix that you can just address right away. And not everybody is as handy as you.
And you should not expect your tenants to be as handy as you and to fix things.
You should expect to provide a property working order and maintain the property in the order that they do, because you're going to expect them to maintain the property and to pay their rent on time and follow all the other rules.
Firm but fair, both sides, right? So handle any move-in inspection form issues as needed.Communicate frequently with the tenant, build trust, and show you are a responsive landlord.
Important note, this does not mean fix everything, but if there's certain things that are gonna be a nuisance or that are important to the tenant, I would address those.I think you wanna make sure you have a happy tenant.
Happy tenants stay longer, they pay on time, they have less complaints, they're gonna treat you fairly, they're gonna do the things that they're supposed to do, and they expect you to do the same. Okay.All right.
So this is an example of one that's filled out.I'm not going to go through in detail, but you could see the tenant just marked off, you know, is it working condition?And then they put like no in certain spots here, you know, whether it's N.A.
because there's not one there.They kind of like do all this documentation to show you how it all works.Then they kind of continue on with the form, showing you all the stuff, you know, cover must be slammed to work.
They're kind of making a note about the washer in this case, the number of keys.So we thought we gave them three.Apparently they only gave two.And so it shows you all the information there. and then see the attached sheet.
So this particular tenant made a list on paper showing you all the issues and made some additional notes.Some tenants will do this, some tenants will not.It's really a crapshoot as to kind of like all the different ways.
This is a pretty good tenant showing you all the different conditions and what's going on and all the issues that they found on the property.
You're just gonna kind of document this, put it in the file and have a copy of it, make sure they have a copy so that everyone's on the same page. So continue that with week one.
So per section 14 G of the lease, we have a notice of pest problems due within seven days.
We don't typically do separate reminders on this, but if they move in and for some reason there are bedbugs in the property or something else going on, you know, like massive cockroaches or termites or whatever's going on with the property that we were not aware of because we didn't see evidence of it, or we didn't notice it when we did our walkthroughs of the property, they have seven days to tell us.
And we assume that if it happened within the first seven days, it's from the previous tenant and that we will address it, give them the property in good condition when we do that.
So we go over this when we cover the lease and they need to tell us within seven days that confirms the premises is pass free.If they tell us after seven days, that probably means it's from them. Not always, but that's a really good general rule.
If it was there in the first seven days when they took possession of the property, it's probably the previous tenant.If it's after seven days, it's probably them.
If you have not already received a copy of the renter's insurance, because we require all of our tenants, according to our lease, to have renter's insurance that protects us in case there's issues with the property.
It also protects all their personal stuff.If there's a fire in the property, The insurance that we have as a landlord covers the existing structure of the property and the things that we own if there's a fire and things are damaged.
What it does not cover, what it excludes is all of the tenant's personal property.So if they've got a TV and clothing and shoes and books and, you know, like furniture and all that stuff, and that's burned down in a fire,
they're going to be pretty upset if the property burns down and they realize that they do not have insurance to cover them for that particular damage.
That's why we insist that they get renter's insurance that covers their stuff in case there's an accident or some issue in the property itself.
And then there's additional things that the renter's insurance also covers for us, some liability protection there, but that's what we want them to have. and that they are required to have it as part of our lease.
And so you may want to follow up if you have not received proof of that to get proof of renter's insurance per section 17 of the lease. All right, so that was week one.Let's talk now about month one, what's happening there for property management.
So in month one, sending a courtesy rent reminder on about 10 days before the rent is due.Now, I personally have mixed feelings on this.
I don't want to get in the habit, me personally, and I think this is probably wrong, but I'll tell you where my problem personally comes from.I don't think I want to be the guy constantly reminding tenants to pay rent on time.
However, contacting them as a gentle reminder that rent is due in 10 days is going to increase their compliance.It's going to increase and remind them what's going on.Our lease does not require that you give them notice or that you demand rent.
It is, they're just supposed to pay on their own.So if rent is due on the first, you might send out the notice on the 20th and you might tell them how much is owed and how they can pay.You know, rent is due.
If you're, if they bounce some checks, you know, it's required in certified funds or, you know, regular personal check if it's, if they still have that privilege to do it.
And I'll show you a sample courtesy email on the next slide about what's going on there.Important note, some landlords will want to do reminders on the 20th of every month, not just the first month.
I prefer to push for automatic payments and forego manual reminders, but that's my own personal philosophy. Some landlords also use this as an opportunity to remind tenants about maintenance items like changing the furnace filter.
So they may say, you know, every three months, hey, rent is due on the first, just a general reminder.And by the way, you know, once a quarter, you're supposed to change the furnace filter.
Please go ahead and do that right now to make sure that the furnace, you don't damage the furnace to be charged for that.
So, you know, you'll give them these gentle reminders to do those types of things on a regular basis at whatever the interval you're supposed to do.Not every month, but when you're supposed to do that.Sample courtesy.
Here's like an example of an email says, hi, there's a courtesy reminder that rent of the rent amount is due on the was due by the first of the month.Please make payment to whatever your company name is.
You can either deposit directly into the following accounts at bank location.So some landlords will give them access to be to be able to make a deposit into the local bank account for that particular property.
If you have a property in LLC, they just give them the deposit information for that account. So they can go into any of the bank branches and make a deposit into that account if you want to do it.
And then they'll give them the bank account name and the last four digits of the bank account number, or mail the check to the following address.Feel free to mail the check as early as you want.
It will not get cashed until the first of the month, and then give them your name and your address for being able to do that.So a tenant could mail you a check on the 15th,
And you would just hold that check until very close to the first and then deposit the check on the first to do that.So that way they avoid late fees.
They can mail it early without you having to deposit it when they may be waiting for their final paycheck to hit on the 25th before that the rent is clear for the first.So realize that if you tell them that, make sure you do that.
You honor your agreement that you won't cash it until the first of the month.And they can put a date on the check for the date that they expect you to deposit.And you can do it that way.
But they can get it to you early, avoid late fees, and you could actually have it in hand and then deposit everything on the first.And they put thank you and your name and telephone number to kind of do that.OK, so that's what happens on month one.
Now let's talk about periodic inspections. So periodic inspections.Before any drive-by inspection, at least once a month.I think it's important that you drive by your properties and make sure that everything looks okay.
You know, is the yard maintained?Is the trash put away?Is the snow shoveled if you had a snow day?Are there any cars on the lawn or people not on the application that are living, that's really clear that they're living there, that shouldn't be?
I think this is your chance to just periodically, once a month or so, just drive by and make sure that everything looks copacetic.
If an issue is a first time issue, notify the tenant of the issue and give a deadline to correct and recheck after the deadline.
We're going to talk about this in the solving tenant challenges class, but this is your chance to see things that might come up on the property.Firm, but fair.
They agreed that it was only going to be them living on the property, that they weren't going to leave, you know, non-running automobiles in the driveway or on the lawn or whatever.
And so you're just asking them to abide by the issues that, you know, abide by the agreement that they had with you.
And so if you notice something, you'll reach out to say, listen, I just happened to notice I was driving through the neighbor and happened to notice that you haven't shoveled.We're going to get citations from the city.
If you continue to do that, please be sure to shovel.Here's the deadline to correct that and then recheck after the deadline to make sure that's done as just an example.We'll talk about this in solving tenant challenges, but that's the idea.
If an issue is a repeat offense, consider posting notice that they're in violation of their lease and continue to do that.So if it's a first time issue, sort of like a general, hey, by the way, this is why we do this.Please take care of this.
It's part of the lease agreement that you signed.And then if it's a repeating issue, if it's ongoing, then consider posting notice that they're in violation of lease.
And depending on the issue, the lease may allow you to have the issue corrected and charge the tenant. You know, examples are yard care that's just massively overgrown or snow removal, things of that nature.
You could actually just have that thing addressed if they're if they continuously, repeatedly, repeatedly like violate that particular part of your agreement, then you could just have it done and then send them a bill.
If the condition is not acceptable, notify tenant and schedule full inspection.
So if you're driving by and something really looks amiss, you'd say, look, you know, we'd love to come by and just do an inspection, make sure everything's going pretty good.And that's in our lease that we can do that.
Perform a walkthrough inspection every three to six months.So you're ideally going and walking through the property, regardless if you see anything wrong. At least every six months going through the property, it's a more thorough inspection.
You're checking to make sure everything is working and making sure there's no, you know, damage going on, water damage going on, anything that's happening there.It's a really good way for you to get in the property and verify the condition.
Everything's going smoothly.Give the tenant ample notice.Don't just surprise them and say, Hey, we're going to inspect your property in 30 minutes.This is a chance for them to like be prepared.
Tell me a week ahead of time, you know, we're coming and we're doing this. During the inspection, look for leaks, water damage issues, any grout issues that need to be addressed, that you should fix, any caulking issues, any drips.
Ask the tenant if they're having any issues and listen really carefully.They'll tell you their pain points.
You know, kind of ask them some questions, go back and forth, make sure you understand what's happening and find out what's important to them and make sure you take care of it.
Inspect the carpet, the walls, the appliances, the cleanliness and the care.Check the furnace filter to make sure that they're changing that to prevent damage to your filter for your furnace and get some extra life out of it.
They're supposed to be changing that monthly. Some people change it quarterly, depending on the furnace, but a lot of them are changing it monthly with our lease.Notify tenant of anything that's not acceptable.Ask them to correct it.
If it's not corrected, have it corrected and bill them if applicable as part of your lease.
OK, so that's part of the periodic inspections on the property, you know, every six months, at least sometimes more frequently and then kind of driving by as needed or once a month, whatever kind of like schedule works for you.
All right, let's talk about turning over the property and preparing for that.So turnover preparation, this is like 90 to 120 days out.Do a property inspection during this period, so you know the current condition.
So you're you're either going to renew the lease with the tenant or the tenant's going to not renew the lease and we're going to start marketing the property for the next tenant.
So you're going to want to inspect the property to see if there's anything that needs to be done so that the property is prepared.So when you start showing it, it looks great to future tenants.
and because you're supposed to be maintaining the property for the current tenant anyway.So do a property inspection during this period so you know the current condition.
Handle as many items prior to the tenant's lease end that aren't likely to be damaged again.So don't go and replace the carpet when the tenant's going to be moving out.
Don't go do stuff like that, but make sure you fix all the little things that are going to be fixed that's not going to be damaged again while the current tenant's in there.This again builds trust and shows you a follow through.
And if they move out, then you have less to do during the turnover period, thus reducing vacancy. So we're trying to get ahead of ourselves, make sure that everything that can be done is done so that we have less to do when we're busy with turns.
And decide if you're willing to offer lease extension to that particular tenant.
If you're going to allow them to continue to stay, you can offer them an extension on their current lease, which really in my mind means filling out a new lease, but there is a lease extension, which I'll talk about here in a second.
If not notify the tenant that there will be no lease extension offered and that they're expected to move out by their move out date.Then research your rent comparables.We're going to have an entire class on doing that.
determine the lease renewal rates and market rent rate.So you have two different numbers.Like let's say you have a property, a tenant's been there five years.
The rent you're getting for a tenant that's been in the property five years is probably going to be below what the current fair market rent for that property is because you're usually not increasing rent every year by whatever the fair market rent is.
In most cases, you're going to give them more of like a You know, a very small increase to what their rent is over what it is so that it's not the same amount that it was five years ago, but it's not, it's not like.
Massively under market rent, but it's usually going to be under market rent from where they are now.
If the, if you decide to get a brand new tenant, you're going to use the new higher current fair market rent, the high rents for what you can get for that particular property, because that's what you're going to get.If you put a new tenant in there.
But if they're going to renew, it might just be a small increase over what they had last year.
You know, depending on the amount of the lease about, it could be $25, $50, $100, whatever it is, but it's going to be a small amount that may not be the full fair market rent that they're going to do there.
So that's why there's a difference between renewal rent rate and the market rent rate. Per the lease, already agreeing rent increases by 5% with extension or 10% if month to month.So our lease a lot of times has a default in there.
Sometimes it is that, sometimes it's negotiated, but we usually don't go above that.We don't always raise rent by that amount automatically.
taking into consideration turnover costs if they leave, is it better to raise the rent by $25 and not spend $4,000 or $10,000 turning the property and having to replace carpet right away versus raising the rent by $100 and spending $4,000 to replace and fix everything that needs to be done if there's going to be a complete turn on the property.
So would you rather like delay pay for brand new carpet another year or two or three by only raising rent a little bit then you get them out of the property, you have to spend $4,000.Now you're only getting $100 more or $1,200 a year in rent.
It'll take you three and a half years just to break even on the amount that you spend.And then by then, your carpet's probably mostly worn out anyway.
You know, raising rent a little bit might actually be a better economic decision for you than trying to get the maximum rent and having someone move out when you could have just kept them there and not had to replace the carpet because they're the ones in the carpet from when it was brand new when they moved in five years ago.
If market rents are going up, increase the rent, even if it's a small amount, builds the habit that rent will go up each year, it becomes an expectation.It's much easier to raise the rent $50 each year versus $200 after four years.
So we do usually raise the rent a little bit.If rents are going up, sometimes rents are not going up and we keep the rent the same.
But in most cases, we're raising the rent a little bit just to kind of keep pace, keep closer to what the fair market rent will be. Contact tenants and SF they're planning to renew and tell them the new rental rate.
Remind them per the lease, they need to decide 60 days prior to the lease ends.So that is like our deadline.We're definitely starting to market the property if it doesn't happen by 60 days.In some cases we're doing a little bit earlier.
Send a copy of the lease extension or a new lease to them to sign initial scan and email back.
I personally prefer to have completely new leases every time we redo a property in case there's a slight change to the lease or we found something that, you know, we had some liability for or laws change or whatever it is.
So I prefer to have leases every single time in case something has changed and then remind them that it's going to be a full agreement, but remind them of the full agreement.
But Brian actually prefers to do these lease extensions, which I'll show you an example here in a second.And and that's acceptable, too.I don't prefer to do it that way. So here's a turnover preparation for 60 to 90 days left.
Some people can't or won't decide prior to 60 days.For some reason, they'll be like waiting.They're waiting to get back at a job.They're not sure if they really want to move.They're not sure if they could find cheaper rent somewhere else.
You know, they're maybe getting divorced.They may be getting married.All these different situations come up.Use your best judgment and work with them.Examples.One roommate is moving out and the other two want to stay.
Not sure if a job transfer or moving out of state.So we talked about some of those examples.For encouragement, to help them make a decision, let them know that at 60 days you will start advertising.
And if an applicant is approved, the renewal offer will not be available anymore.So if you approve a tenant, they're not going to get the renewal.
A for rent sign in the front yard can be a great motivator to remind them to make a decision and that this is happening whether they decide or not.
This is not like a, they can wait until the lease is about to expire and then tell us, yeah, we decided we're moving out or we decided we want to renew.
If the tenants decide to stay, get a signed lease extension or new lease 60 days prior before the end of the lease.Update your courtesy rent reminder email to the new rent when it begins.
So here's an example of a extension of a standard real estate lease.I'm going to leave this up here so somebody who's watching the video can pause it and read through it to see how a lease extension might work.I don't really use these.
Even when I do contracts to buy and sell, I prefer to actually write a full new contract than to do counter proposals back and forth.I just prefer to have the whole agreement in one clean piece of document, one document at all at the same time.
So that's what I prefer.So this is page one of the extension of the standard rental lease agreement.This is page two.As an example, you can kind of see what it looks like.
Pause so that if you want to pause the screen, you can kind of read through it there.And then here's the kind of part for signing and all that other stuff on there for the residence signatures and for management signature.
Anyone who's over 18 should sign.And that's it.Okay.So find the next tenant.Important note. If the current tenant is not renewing, immediately start looking for the next tenant.We want to start really far in advance.
This is part to maximize the rent we could possibly get.You look at fair market rent, maybe bump it up the tiniest bit, see if you can get a little bit higher than what the number is saying, or at least the top of the range of what you can get there.
And then we are marketing the property and minimizing vacancy by doing this.So during this time, you're looking for the next great tenant.Advertise, see the marketing for tenants kind of class on how to do that.
Do the showings, screen the tenants, sign reservation deposit agreement and collect the reservation deposit. Have a lease signing with the new tenant and communicate with everybody to let them know what is going on.
Let the old tenants know that there's a new tenant.They're planning on moving into the property.They're not going to be able to renew anymore.You've got a new tenant lined up.
Make sure you communicate with the new tenant, letting them know all the process and everything we just covered.So all that stuff is happening.All right, now let's talk about turning over the property.
So if the tenants are not renewing their lease, we're gonna start advertising as soon as you know, 60 days or more in advance is preferred.
Plan for any turnover work, any carpet or paint or anything else that has to happen to the property once the old tenant is out, the current tenant is out of the property.
So do that and that's also gonna help us minimize vacancy because you're gonna be scheduling these things far in advance to make sure that everything is lined up and ready to go for that day and you're not competing with the
700 other landlords that also happen to be turning their properties on May 1st or June 1st or whatever it is.You want to make sure you get on the calendar early.Email the move out inspection form and cleaning instructions.
You're going to give them a copy, which looks very, very similar to the move in inspection form.
It's just document the condition of the property when they're moving out and any cleaning instructions like your expectations for how they should clean the property during move out.
And some landlords are going to choose to put in the dollar amount of what it costs if they choose not to do that particular cleaning item. So if you don't clean behind the stove, it's going to cost you $47.
Whatever it is that you're, you're cleaning, people will charge you to go do that work.Move out inspection form, ask for their forwarding mailing address.
Make sure you get this so that we can forward their security deposit back to them or whatever's remaining of their security deposit.Remind them you will hire carpet cleaners after they move out.That's what our lease says.
So if your lease doesn't say that, don't remind them that, you know, remind them what your lease actually says about carpet cleaners and how that will work out with your particular process.
Remind them that they can clean, but if it's not left clean or they don't want to clean, you will hire cleaners to do it and you will be billing them, charging them for their security deposit.
And if it goes above that, additional stuff where things are not left clean.You may always want to just do this.If they leave it perfectly clean, you can cancel the cleaners or have them do a quick check and it will still be cheaper for the tenant.
So remind them to be out no later than noon on the last day.So their lease runs through noon on the last day, according to the lease.That's when they need to be out of the property.
Make sure your lease says that and documents the time that they need to be out of the property, and then enforce that.Firm but fair.As they move out, as the move-out date approaches, ask them when they plan to be out.
Sometimes they're saying, hey, look, you know, I don't need till this day.I'm going to be out, you know, three days earlier or whatever.And so, you know, let them find out from them and find out what's going on and make sure you adjust for that.
So go ahead and do that.And then here's the example of the cleaning list, the move out checklist for their convenience.We appreciate your cooperation.Look forward to a pleasant move out.
So here's I'm just going to read through this so you get an idea of like what one might look like.Yours may be different.
When item number one, clean and wash inside and outside of cabinets, including kitchen sink and fixtures, removing all dirt and grease.
Number two, clean all appliances inside now, including behind and beside the stove, refrigerator, washer and dryer.Clean all bathroom fixtures, including toilets, bathtubs, showers, sinks, cabinets inside now, walls and floor.
Clean all windows and screens. Clean storage areas, decks, patios, sweep out garages, et cetera.Clean ceiling fans and other light fixtures.Wash down all baseboards, woodwork, and windowsills.
Clean, mop, and sweep all non-carpet flooring, such as tile, laminate, vinyl, et cetera.Vacuum all the carpets.
Per your rental agreement, management will have the carpet cleaned after you move out, after your move out date and deduct this from your security deposit.All walls must be clean and painted the same color as before tenancy began.
unless resident has been given prior written permission from management.Remove all of your personal possessions and belongings.No trash shall be left behind.Do not leave garbage at the curb.
Number 13, if applicable, all exterior areas shall be cleaned of debris and left clean.If applicable, exterior lawn and landscaping shall be presentable.Number 15, leave all kitchen appliances, window treatments, phone jacks, et cetera.
Your rental agreement states residents shall not make or allowed to be made any alterations, installations, repairs or redecoration of any kind to the property without prior written permission of management.
Provided, however, that notwithstanding such consent, resident agrees that all alterations, including without limitation, any items affixed to the property shall become the property of management upon the termination of this agreement.
This includes, but it's not limited to, ceiling fans, mini blinds, carpeting, fencing, light fixtures, shrubs, flowers.Number 16, return all keys to management.Number 17, all light fixtures are to work properly with working light bulbs.
Number 18, all electric is to work properly Number 19, all plumbing is to be free of any leaks or blockages.Number 20, all heating and AC is to be working properly.21, all smoke alarms and carbon monoxides alarms shall be working properly.
Number 22, leave all utilities on and in your name through the last day of your lease.23, please contact us when the above items have been completed and you are ready to turn in your keys.
And then there's a paragraph here and a spot for them to sign.All of the aforementioned items need to be completed by your move out date so that you can receive your full security deposit back.
Any and all repairs, repainting, trash removal, cleaning, and or any other expenses that are attributed to restoring your home to its condition prior to your tenancy will be deducted from your security deposit.
If additional money is needed to restore the home, management will send resident a bill. Your security deposit will be mailed within 30 days of the end of your lease or your move out date, whichever is later to the address you provided management.
If no new address is given, any remaining security deposit will be mailed to current mailing address and the post office will be responsible for forwarding any or all mail to your new listed address.And this 30 days is a law for our area.
Check your local area and see if it's different for yours.But I think that's prudent to do that. Please remember to deliver your home in the same condition it was in prior to your tenancy.This will ensure you receive the most money possible.
Good luck with your move, as spots for the tenants assigned and their forwarding address for them to do that.And then here's the move out inspection report.You'll notice it looks really, really similar to the move in inspection report.
It's basically the same. And then it gives you another page to kind of do that in page one.And then the keys received by resident shows that in there and then other notes on property condition.
The resident states this represents an accurate description of the condition of the property on the move out date of and has a date spots for this resident to sign and the management to sign.
So this gives you an idea of like what is happening with the property on the time of their move out. All right, so we covered move out, part of the turnover.Let's talk about post move out, what happens after they move out of the property.
So as if the tenant is out and you have all the keys back, then you do a final walkthrough.It could be done with or without the tenant present, it really doesn't matter.
Let them know that you will return their damage deposit less than any damages as described in detail in section six on their damage deposit in the lease.Use whatever reference you have for your lease to make sure you understand what that is.
This is your chance at this point before you do any work on the property for you to take pictures and do a very extensive video of the entire property inside and outside all the rooms inside the closets under the sinks.
This is like your chance to get those massive amount of pictures so that you have. before pictures that we took at the very beginning of this class.
And then we have all the pictures now after the tenant has moved out and we can compare them side by side and say, this was how it was beforehand.This is what you gave back.So this is not the same.There's damage done.We need you to take care of that.
So take pictures, video of the entire property, document the condition of the tenant, left it in prior to any work or cleaning that you do on the property.
Schedule any maintenance you don't know of already, whether it's tenant damage or take more pictures of it if it is.Get the property rent ready as quickly as possible.Schedule cleaners and carpet cleaner for the afternoon of the move out.
So make sure that you're there taking pictures right away and then get your cleaners in as soon as possible.Schedule flooring or carpeting and other large items prior to cleaning.Most turnovers can be done in one day or less.
Move out time is noon, have it ready by the next morning.That's your kind of target, if you think about that.Repeat move-in process with the next tenant, and then per the lease, the damage deposit must be returned within 30 days.
If not returned in time, you could owe the tenant three times the damage deposit.Treble damages if you don't get them their security deposit, or remains of their security deposit and accounting of it, back to them in time.
So make sure you follow these rules and understand what the local laws are for you.Check that all utilities have been paid in full,
because you don't want to give them their security deposit back if they have like a $500 utility bill that they haven't been paying for the last couple of months.So you want to take care of that.
If not, you can pay and deduct from the damage deposit.Send them a final statement that details the charges.I'll show you an example of that here in a second.
Include actual invoices from the cleaners, the carpet cleaners and others that you use to document this. Charging for your own time likely won't hold up if challenged.
So it is not recommended that you try to say, well, I personally went in and I cleaned the property for seven hours.And so my time is worth $50 an hour, $100 an hour, $200 an hour.
So we're going to charge you $1,400 for the cleaning that I personally did.No, you should charge.You should hire someone who's a professional, get a receipt from them showing that it was done.First of all, you should not be doing a period.
But you should not be doing it because you're not going to be able to justify that the time you spent on the property is going to be an actual valid expense that will hold up in court if the tenants come back and challenge it and say, you know, you did this cleanup, you didn't hire a professional to do it, and so I'm not paying for you.
If no invoice is sent, you could also owe three times the damages.So make sure you show all the documentation for that.Mail the final statement and refund check to their forwarding address.
If they owe money, give them a due date and then you're in the collection business. Note that if not, if not paid, it will be sent to collections and may be reported to credit agencies.
Tell them that they must respond in writing before anything will be discussed so that they can document in writing that happened.
You want to, you want to like protect yourself and protect the tenants by documenting everything, taking photos, taking video, documenting all communications, saving copies of all communications, including text conversations, you know, take a screenshot, put it in your tenant folder.
So you have documentation of all this stuff that happened and all the conversations you had via email, via text.
Uh, if you're going to do phone calls, you know, make notes about the phone calls and be meticulous with your note taking about when they called, what you, what was discussed, what the resolution was, what you're supposed to do, what they're supposed to do, and make sure you document that and follow up with an email.
It's best practice.If you had a phone call with somebody say, look, just want to document that we talked on the phone.We discussed these five things.We agreed that I'm going to do this.We also agree that you're going to do this.
If there's any difference in what was discussed that from your memory, please let me know.Otherwise this will just document what our phone call was about and what was discussed.That is the best practice.
Here's an example of a move out deposit return invoice, just listing the amount that they had, all the different expenses being subtracted, and how much was given back to them, and the check.
Thank you for renting, give them contact information if they have any questions. All right, gotta wrap up.I think we had this in the last lesson, landlord-tenant relationship.So I'm gonna run through it really quickly.
Set expectations and hold to them, both for you and for the tenant.Document, video, photo, everything.Go over the top, it's cheap to do.
Especially with the technology we have these days, it's super easy to do, and it's going to protect you, save you a ton of headaches and protect the tenant as well.Build trust and rapport.Regularly over communicate.
I mean, communicate with them and make sure that you understand what's going on.You understand what's going on.I think that's just really important.Respond quickly.
They should not have to wait a week for you to hear back about something or repair that they've requested.That's just unacceptable. Handle reasonable requests.Be firm but fair.Remain calm, even and especially if they aren't calm.
And if you can't do these things, hire a property manager.We're going to go through detail on how to hire and how to manage a property manager.Screening tests play such a huge role in your success.So it's really important to do this well.
And if you're not going to do it well, hire someone who will do it well for you.And I think that's important. All right, just a really quick final slide here.This is just a general idea of what might be in your tenant file.
You may have additional things, you may have less things, but this is a really good just trigger reminder.
So you should have a copy of their rental application, the rental criteria and evaluation form to see if you're going to approve them, the reservation deposit agreement, any EPA lead based paint pamphlets or disclosures you have them sign, especially if it's required by your local area.
or any lead-based paints, combo disclosures, like a lead-based paint, asbestos, mold, radon disclosure, which is required in some cities, any move-in and move-out inspection report forms, the move-out cleaning checklist that they've signed, their damage deposit return statement, and your city may have other required recommended forms, like, for example, in my city, we have an occupancy limits disclosure, letting them know that they are not allowed to have more than you plus two additional people living in the property that's not a family.
And so there are restrictions on that and there are fines to the tenants if they violate that from the city.And so the city wants a copy of a disclosure signed by them.It's a requirement for the landlord to get that from the tenant.
And so that's another thing they might have in that file.Your city may have something similar or additional or different forms to do, but that's an idea of like what might be kept in there.
In addition to all the photos and the videos and everything else that you might have in there. All right.So that's all I got for you.
This has been James Orr with the Property Management Secrets, Secrets of Property Management, part of the Real Estate Investing Secrets course.I think this is module five.I believe that there are 46 modules in total.
So we're just kind of working through them in order and we'll continue on with these until we get through them.I expect to be done probably by about July 1st is my guess.It's late March right now, March 29th.
And so we'll get through these by, let's see, April, May, June.Yeah, so in three months, we should be able to get through the rest of the modules is my best guess right now.I do have some travel scheduled, so that's what's going on.
So I hope you enjoyed the class.This has been James Soarer.Have a great day, everybody.
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