We’ve all heard the stories. All a property owner wanted was some steady income on the side to tap into to send their kid to college or fund their retirement, and then it took two months to evict a delinquent resident who trashed the place in revenge.

Luckily, stories like those are usually outliers. Most of the time, being a DIY property manager is fairly smooth, especially if you know how to prepare so that you are proactive about fending off potential problems.

If you have a full-time job and manage properties on the side, you want everything to be smooth and easy. You spend enough free time and energy just doing the everyday things you need to do such as collecting rents, maintaining properties, screening residents, dealing with difficult people, and handling evictions, among many other things. You don’t need any surprises added to the mix. That’s why we’d like to help by sharing the three hidden issues we’ve found most DIY property managers don’t anticipate.

1. The Difficulty of Proper Due Diligence 

Every property manager knows that you have to screen potential residents, but most think that means doing a background check and making sure that the applicant’s credit is good.

It’s more complicated than that. Finding great residents is about more than timely rent payments. A thorough background verification is key, and that means conducting extensive screenings. Applicants may look great on paper, but it’s important to confirm and verify their income and rental history. To do a proper screening, you’ll need to devote a good chunk of time to getting on the phone with employers and landlords, both current and former, which you’ll find is worth it when you’re not spending all your spare time dealing with issues.

Here are just a few of the questions we at Haven Homes ask about prospective residents:

• How long has the applicant been making their current income?
• How long have they lived at their current residence?
• What was the condition of the property at move-out?
• Did they have any violations at a prior home if they lived in an HOA community?
• Was their rent paid on time?

Taking the time upfront to do a more extensive screening can pay off in many ways in the long run.

2. The Importance of Upkeep and Inspections

As we’ve mentioned before, getting a competitive rental rate for your property is important, but it’s only one component of many. When you’re doing the initial screening, one of the most crucial things to research is how well applicants maintained prior properties. After all, you want residents who will take care of your property. Otherwise, when they move out you’ll have to invest time and money, sometimes a sizable amount, to get your property updated and rented. You also don’t want to have to keep your property vacant for longer than you need to while you patch holes and replace carpet

At Haven Homes, we make sure we inspect every property on a bi-annual basis at a minimum, and we’d recommend that you do the same. Sure, it’s not easy but we find that it saves a lot of time, effort and costs in the long run.

That way, if you see an issue, you can make sure it’s taken care of in a timely fashion, instead of getting a surprise reveal during the move-out inspection.

3. Knowledge of the Fair Housing Act

While it shouldn’t surprise anyone that Fair Housing laws exist, this is an area where it pays to be knowledgeable. Simply put, this can create a great deal of exposure for a landlord.  Since fair housing is governed by federal law, the ramifications of a mistake can be much larger. Local laws must also be considered and some areas have additional protected classes beyond the universal “Federal Seven,” so you must be sure you’re up to speed about the laws where you own.

What sort of things do you need to know about? Well, you might not guess that hoarding is considered a medical disorder, so hoarders are protected under the Fair Housing Act. Service animals are another hot topic. (We assume you heard about the service peacock that someone tried to take on a plane, which is evidence that this subject can get…complicated.)

It wouldn’t seem as though something like a maintenance request could fall under the Fair Housing Act, but that just goes to show how far-reaching the law can be. It’s actually fairly common for enforcement agencies to receive complaints that one protected class’s maintenance requests are being taken care of more quickly than another’s, so it’s important to be sure you are documenting all requests and responses in an orderly fashion. (This is obviously important for other reasons, too!) That way, if someone complains, you’ll have proof that no one is being discriminated against.

As you can see, there are a myriad of ways to be surprised as a DIY property manager. But take heart, careful preparation can usually prevent many issues. Plus, if you have questions, we’d be happy to jump on a phone call.

Be sure to download our The Comprehensive Guide to Effective Property Management Checklist that will tell you more issues to be aware of.

If you’d like to know more about our neighborhood research and our unique approach to property management, feel free to contact us!