Finding a Perfect Tenant

Posted: Sep 20, 2018
By: NatEvict
Comments: 0

Finding a Perfect Tenant

We are all looking for that neat and responsible tenant who will respect the property, keep it clean and pay bills in time. And it’s not always easy to judge reliability from a brief meeting and a pile of paperwork. At NationalEvictions.com, we’ve put together a few pointers that will help you find that perfect tenant and highlight the possibilities for a compromise if the search is taking too long.

Start with your property

The condition of your property will ultimately affect what kind of tenants it will attract. You can’t do anything about the location, but keeping the property clean, updated and well-maintained is in your hands. Outdated appliances, dirty walls and untidy bathroom may scare away your potential tenants, especially if the price is high.

Rethink the layout and possibly knock down a few walls to make a bigger bathroom or add a walk-in closet. Provide the top amenities your tenants want, and you’ll have plenty of candidates to choose from. If you don’t want to mess with the renovations, just keep the property clean: a fresh coat of paint, a scented candle and clean sunny windows can make a big difference. Remember, first impressions matter!

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Screen your tenants

As Property Managers Ourselves, we advice you not to let an unscreened tenant move into your rental, no matter how desperate you might be to close the deal. Even if the person was recommended by your friend, take the time to conduct at least minimal screening. Here are some things you might want to check:

Attitude and behavior. Take mental notes when you first meet a potential tenant. Did they make an effort to dress nicely? Are they kind and polite? What kind of car do they drive and is it clean? Of course, you can’t judge people by these characteristics alone, but they should help you paint a bigger picture.

References from previous landlords. Do verify the reference by calling the former landlord, as it’s easy to forge a reference letter or have a relative write it. It’s also a good idea to ask how much the tenant was paying in rent at his former place.

Employment status. Your tenant should be employed, preferably for some time. You can request recent pay stubs and even talk to the employer to get more insights.

Credit history. Request a credit report on your potential tenant. Look for any open collections, late payments, bankruptcy and overall credit score. The report itself might cost you, but it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Criminal and eviction records. Find out if your tenant has had problems with the law in the past or is currently a part of an investigation or a litigation. You probably might want to reject someone who’s been arrested for public disturbance multiple times.

Social life. With social networks playing an important role in many people’s lives, almost everyone has a digital footprint. Search an applicant’s name in the search engines and look over their social profiles and other publicly available information. This will give you a better idea about their personality and lifestyle. Google them, Check other Social Media for the names on the application. Do Your Homework as a Manager!

Besides conducting a thorough background check, also let your potential tenant tell their story. Find out why they are moving, what they do for fun, and see if everything they say matches the reports you’ve obtained.

Learn to compromise

It’s unlikely that you find a tenant that has everything you are looking for. Being picky is good, but don’t bluntly reject applicants based on certain things you uncover during the background check. Remember, every month your property stays unoccupied, you are not just failing to make profit, but possibly losing money as well.

Instead of focusing on separate accounts of “irresponsible behavior” on the part of your potential tenants, look at the bigger picture:

Everyone makes mistakes, and a criminal charge or an unpaid debt from back in the days doesn’t define a person. Focus on the past five years instead of considering someone’s entire history.
When screening couples, look at the combined income if low individual income is the only issue and everything else checks out.
Appreciate the honesty when someone tells you upfront about their bad credit or other issues. This means they understand the consequences of the bad decisions they made in the past and want to mend things.

A bad tenant can be a disaster to your rental property business. If you have multiple properties and consistently struggle to sort through dozens of undesirable applicants to find that perfect one, let us know and we’ll take that burden off of your shoulders.

Learn more about Tenants, Landlords and Property Management and Evictions on our website: https://NationalEvictions.com

Tags: Eviction Information, Landlord Information, Tenant Screening

How to Count the Days in a Notice

Posted: Aug 12, 2018
By: NatEvict
Comments: 0

How to Count the Days in a Notice

We have seen some Notices that were defective Landlords when giving the Tenant a Notice to Quit or Other Notices there are times set for each notice. Find Free Notice to Quit Forms in your State, Tenants can also find Free How to answer an Eviction Form and information.

Counting the number of days in a notice may seem obvious – counting is counting, right? How could you, dear reader, have gotten to this point in life, reading this sentence, without knowing the basics of counting? And yet, in tenant-landlord law, it is not so simple.

Today, we’re going to tackle the Rules.

The Rules Are:

Don’t ever include the day that the notice was served. This is not one of the days you count.
If you are counting the daysin a notice with 10 days or less, you don’t include Saturday or Sunday or holidays.
If you are counting the days in a notice with 11 days or more, you may include Saturdays and Sundays and holidays.
The last day of the notice cannot be a Sundays or a holiday, no matter the length.
“Holidays” here are those that are listed below.
When counting the days in non-renewal notices, the effective date must be the last day in the rental period. (Most rental periods are 1 month, and most rental periods have the rent due on the 1st of the month, which make the last day of the month the end of the rental period.)

What it means:

Counting a 5 day notice:If a landlord is giving a 5-day notice to a tenant, the landlord cannot count the first day it was served, cannot count the weekend, and cannot count any holidays.
- For example: 5-day is served on June 30, 2014. June 30 does not count (it was the day served), July 4 does not count (it is a holiday), July 5&6 do not count (they are Saturday and Sunday). So the soonest it could end would be July 8. The notice would then be served June 30, and the notice could not end sooner than July 8.
Counting a 14 day notice:If the landlord is giving a 14-day notice to a tenant, the landlord cannot count the first day it was served, and cannot count the last day if the last day is a Sunday or holiday.
- For example: 14-day is served November 12, 2014. November 12 does not count (it was the day served). The soonest that the notice could end would be November 26, 2014.
- For example: 14-day is served November 13, 2014. November 13 does not count (it was the day served). The last day would be November 27, 2014, except that it is a holiday (Thanksgiving!). The notice could not end sooner than November 28, 2014.
Counting a 28 day notice:This kind of notice can be given either by the landlord or the tenant. If one party is giving a 28-day non-renewal notice to the other party (for terminating a month-to-month tenancy, say), then the first party cannot count the day that the notice is served, and must allow at least 28 days’ notice before the end of the rental period.
- For example: A month-to-month tenant gives a 28-day non-renewal notice to the landlord on October 9, 2014. Rent is always due on the 1st day of the month, as payment for 1 months’ rent, so the last day of the month is the end of the rental period. Here, October 9 would not count as one of the days (it was the day notice was served). 28 days is complete on November 6, but since that is not the end of a rental period, the soonest effective date would be November 30, 2014.
- For example: A landlord serves a 28 day non-renewal notice to the month-to-month tenant on August 11, 2014. Rent is always due on the 15th day of the month, as payment for 1 months’ rent, so the 14th of the month is the end of the rental period. Here, August 11 would not count as one of the days (it was the day notice was served). 28 days is complete on September 8, but since that is not the end of a rental period, the soonest effective date would be September 14, 2014.

Pro Tips for Landlords:

When is your office open?If you are asking the tenant to take some kind of action (pay your rent! kick out that guy!), and you give them an eviction notice, where they have to take some kind of action by some (thoroughly counted) date, make sure that you are available on that date. If you happen to be closed the entire month of December, then asking them to turn in their rent by the 15th or move out won’t be a great play. How can you know what happened if you weren’t even there?
What if you get an inaccurate date in a non-renewal notice?So, let’s say your tenant gives you a non-renewal notice, and it doesn’t have the correct end date (ie, it doesn’t end at the end of the rental period, or there aren’t 28 days between being served at the end of the tenancy). The notice is still valid. The dates are not. The law is pretty clear about this. What this means for you is that the notice is valid, but the dates are adjusted so that the end date is counted correctly. This is as long as you can hold the tenant responsible for the costs under the lease, but if they wish to break their lease and move out early, then you still have the obligation to mitigate
What if you give an inaccurate date in an eviction notice?Let’s say you give a 5-day notice, and you forget to take out weekends, and it possibly ends on a holiday, so you really need to give more than 5 calendar days. You don’t have to give a whole different notice, but you do need to write a letter stating that the original notice gave an inaccurate date. Give the corrected date in that letter, and you’re all set. If you and your tenant have agreed on a course of action (like a payment plan or a move out date, and it’s all in writing), then you don’t need to clarify your notice, since you have a kind of “mutual agreement.”
Date calculators:Sometimes it’s tricky to count dates. If you do an easy search, there are many date calculators out there. Here’s one. They can help count the dates, but make sure to double check against The Rules, above, to exclude the days that shouldn’t be counted.

Pro Tips for Tenants:

What if your notice is not counted correctly?When there are errors in notices, we recommend that you WRITE THINGS DOWN, for the love of all that is holy to you, letting the landlord know about the error, and explaining the course of action that you plan to take.
- Evictions:If an eviction notice is poorly counted, be careful. If you need that extra time in order to resolve the situation (or for stalling purposes), then write a letter and say when you believe the correct end date for the notice is. Cite the laws, and explain what you hope to have accomplished by that time. Later, this could help you dispute an eviction, if the landlord takes premature action on a notice where the timing is too short.
- Non-renewal: If you get a non-renewal notice, and the dates are not right (ie, it doesn’t end at the end of the rental period, or there aren’t 28 days between being served at the end of the tenancy), then the notice is still valid. The dates are not. The law is pretty clear about this. Figure out when the correct end date is, and write a letter and explain that you’ll treat this as a valid notice, but that the effective date will really be ____.
Date calculators:Sometimes it’s tricky to count dates. If you do an easy search, there are many date calculators out there. Here’s one. They can help count the dates, but make sure to double check against The Rules, above, to exclude the days that shouldn’t be counted.

As with any notice the number of days of a notice to Quit must be followed. If the Landlord does not give the proper time of the said notice, That Landlord can be in violation of a notwithstanding notice to the Tenant. Read your states Laws and Learn how to protect yourself and your home, Apt and Condo in the event of an Eviction.

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Tags: Eviction Information, Landlord Information

PROFESSIONAL TENANTS AND HOW TO AVOID THEM

Posted: May 06, 2018
By: NatEvict
Comments: 0

PROFESSIONAL TENANTS AND HOW TO AVOID THEM

Professional tenants are a landlord’s worst nightmare, the ones you read about in the newspaper. These individuals are notorious for cheating the system and using loopholes, leaving landlord’s with lost rental income, a damaged property, and a huge headache. They will complain about the smallest of messes and become the largest hassles.

In order to get away with such actions, professional tenants have created some pretty elaborate strategies. Here are the top 5 tactics from professional tenants. If you find your tenant is doing any of the below, then you may have a professional tenant.

#1: PAYING PARTIAL RENT

Often times, professional tenants will pay only a portion of the rent each month. When a landlord has accepted partial rent one month, then State laws will not allow an eviction for that month. This provides the tenant with more time in the property with overdue rent, and most often, they’ll continue to delay each month. Before the landlord realizes it, the tenant is close to lease expiration with an exorbitant number of past due payments. Don’t accept partial payments and require full amounts on exact dates to avoid these schemes. If a tenant is late, be prepared to start the eviction process right away. Also, never accept partial rent.

#2: PAYING RENT BEFORE THE LATE FEE

Professional tenants understand a landlord is more likely to take legal action for $1,000 of past due rent than for a $50 late fee. These tenants will pay rent before the late fee, claiming the late fee will be paid soon. Guess what? By accepting the rent before the late fee, the landlord is most likely never going to receive the late fee. The landlord becomes emotionally drained as a debt collector and just writes off the late fee.

The lease contract is written to align incentives between the tenant and landlord. A late fee is listed in the contract to set the precedent that rent should not be paid past a certain date. Tenants should not take advantage of the payment terms in the contract. By waiving this fee, a landlord signals that the legally binding contract is “flexible,” and it provides professional tenants with the signal that they may be able to bend other terms in the contract. Don’t become drained emotionally and only accept rent after outstanding late fees are paid.

#3: PAYING IN CASH

Cash is impossible to track, making it the preferred medium for professional tenant payments. These tenants will lie about making cash payments or even go as far as faking rent receipts. As a landlord, avoid taking cash payments that foster these types of actions. When a landlord is in the courtroom, they want to show a track record of traceable payments followed by no payments. Keep in mind that in some states, landlords are not allowed to refuse cash. If a tenant insist on paying cash, you must create and BOTH sign a receipt at the time the cash is accepted.

#4: ASKING FOR TIME

Some tenants will approach their landlord and plead for more time to pay rent. This tactic is usually accompanied by a heart-tugging story of the hardships they are currently battling that prevents them from paying. Unfortunately, it is difficult for a landlord to know the legitimacy of these stories and a tough decision must be made. Allowing for a longer payment period will only make things worse. While it might be emotionally difficult to draw a line, a landlord is not a bank that provides loans. When a tenant is late on rent, they should go to their friends, family, bank, or another source for a personal loan. The relationship between tenants and landlords should be strictly professional and real estate related. If a tenant still cannot pay the rent when it is past due, then the next step is an eviction notice. A landlord may want to consider suggesting to the tenant that if they are late on rent, then they will release the tenant from their lease so the tenant can find a more affordable unit. It may be easier for a landlord in the long run to let a tenant who can’t afford rent to leave then to constantly chase the tenant for rent.

#5: CLAIMING THE RENTAL IS UNINHABITABLE

Professional tenants may try to claim the rental is uninhabitable as a scheme to not pay rent. Typically, their process is submitting a maintenance request and claiming it was never addressed. They will withhold rent or break the lease and reference the clause on maintenance and habitability of the property. Every maintenance request should be tracked in a system, providing evidence that the request has been acknowledged and updates have been provided in a timely manner. This type of documentation will save a landlord in the courtroom. While landlords have no power over the judge, maintaining records and photos of your properties can protect yourself from these situations.

When a tenant makes a claim that the property is unfit to live in, landlords must refile with proof of a habitable environment. Tenants will then proceed to trash the property in an attempt to justify their claim. Keeping a running log of property conditions and pictures help prove your case, do not forget that tenant damage, beyond normal wear and tear, can be charged back to the tenant. If they are intentionally causing damage to create an “uninhabitable claim,” documentation will help to bring justice in the case.

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