When I decided to move out of my condo to move to a new city, I knew that I wanted to rent it out and become a landlord in Denver, and that I’d need professional property management. I work for a property management company, so one might think that of all people, I’d be able to manage my own property but frankly, I don’t want to. I would rather focus on what matters most to me. Tenant drama, silly maintenance requests or late night maintenance calls are not something I want to deal with.
I reached out to my team about them managing my property for me and we started the on-boarding process.
On-boarding:
I received emails from my teammates about how to set up my owner portal and I filled out the on-boarding forms. When I called my insurance to change my policy from a homeowner’s policy to a landlord policy, it took about 10 minutes and the cost of my policy only increased by $3.
I finished some touch-up work at my condo, like touch-up paint and new electrical outlets (I used a licensed electrician for that– I didn’t want any liability from accidentally doing it incorrectly).
Listing:
Once the work at the condo was completed, I scheduled marketing photos with my team. Some properties show better vacant and some show better occupied. We decided my unit would show well while occupied, so that’s how we took the marketing photos. I cleaned the best that I could that day, tidied everything and put away more personal items, like photos and bills, etc. Then, I left for a few hours to grab a coffee and when I came back, the photography was completed!
The next day, my team had received the photos and began finalizing my property’s listing– this included finalizing the rental rate. I had done my own research as well. The leasing team recommended a price slightly below what I had in mind, but I trusted their expertise and agreed to that price. We received a LOT of interest and lots of showings. I left the property during the showings, after turning on all the lights and opening window coverings– to ensure it showed well.
Unfortunately the only negative feedback we received was that my cat was unhappy about people coming in and out of the home. I didn’t anticipate that, as she’s normally a relaxed cat. If I could have done things differently, I would have– I wanted all potential residents to feel welcomed and comfortable in my unit.
We received multiple applications, which was awesome because that means that my leasing team was able to approve the highest qualified. We even offered the applicants the opportunity to bid on the property and because of that, I’m now receiving a higher rental rate than the property was listed for.
The first few weeks:
While I already knew this to be true, I got to experience it first-hand: Renters will live differently in your property. They may not use the dishwasher, they may take longer showers, they may use the oven more. We simply all live differently. What worked for me in the condo didn’t necessarily work for the resident.
Maintenance
My new resident submitted maintenance requests for the clothes dryer and the dishwasher. At first, this was a shock, as I had been using those items regularly and I thought they worked well for me. However, the resident was having troubles with them. The vendor that went to the property found some minor repairs that needed to be completed. Since the washer/ dryer and the dishwasher were the only older appliances in the unit, I honestly thought about just replacing them. It would be costly, but I wouldn’t have to worry about those items again for a while and it would add value to my unit.
My maintenance coordinator ended up recommending the repair over replacement, since the cost was way lower. We went forward with that, the resident is happy and I saved some money for the time being. Now I’m aware that these items could need to be replaced in the future, so I’m saving up and planning for that.
Since that initial maintenance, there have been no other issues. My resident has paid on time, no maintenance has been reported and it’s true– no news is good news. When property managers tell you that the first few months are the hardest, it’s true. In the first few months, I had to have the leasing fee deducted, so I had a smaller disbursement and then because of the maintenance, I had smaller disbursements again. After those initial smaller landlord disbursements, I’m now receiving my full owner payment and it’s awesome!
Now I have a resident taking care of the property and essentially paying off the mortgage while the property continues to increase in value. I can even talk with my lender about doing a cash-out refinance so that I can buy another property– being a hands-off landlord is allowing me to reach all my goals!
Renee Root and her entire team has been incredible! They are beyond accommodating, responsive and helpful. I’m so glad I found them to help with my rental needs! – Gina J”
We know there are probably multiple different factors that contributed to you becoming a landlord. Whether it was a “quick fix” for a fast move out of state or something you intentionally planned out for months or even years, you’ve likely realized a whole host of awesome benefits to being a landlord already, including:
- Tax advantages
- Inflation protection
- Monthly income
- Long term appreciation of property
- Mortgage pay-down
- Providing safe and desirable housing to those who cannot or choose not to buy a home
- Having stable investments
- A retirement plan
- Potential to grow– utilize your rental property equity to purchase additional properties and watch the benefits grow exponentially!
No matter why you started, there are likely several reasons that you want to keep investing in real estate– if we missed one of yours, let us know! Additionally, if you or anyone you know is looking to add to their portfolio, we’re pleased to offer you a multiple-property discount as well as a referral bonus for anyone you refer who signs on with us as well.
Here are some more videos with information for landlords
If you’d like to sit down together on a Zoom meeting to review your rental property goals (i.e. adding another property to your Colorado Realty and Property Management portfolio, purchasing a new Colorado property, etc.), please schedule a Property Management Review.
Happy Landlording!
