Should You Be a Landlord?

Maybe you have a property that you’re considering renting, or you’re thinking about moving into a new home but aren’t sure if you want to sell or rent, or maybe you want to buy a property to rent out. In either case, you may want to explore the option of becoming a landlord. McGraw Realtors ®, Property Management & Leasing Departments can help you to decide if being a landlord is right for you. Our qualified team can also prepare you for the responsibility of being a landlord to ensure this is a sound financial move for you and your family. Becoming a good landlord also means keeping potential tenants in mind, and thinking about what they would want out of a good rental.

Here are some things to think about.

Consider the Rental Market

Before you decide whether or not you’d like to become a landlord, think about the rental market in your area. The team at McGraw Realtors ® can help you decide whether being a landlord is a wise financial move for you, based on how many people or families are renting in your city or county. You also want to make sure you buy a rental property in a good area where people actually want to rent in. Popular areas would include a low crime rate, easy access to a bus or train route, nearby grocery stores, parks, malls and schools.

Landlord Responsibilities

Getting rental income is always fun until the furnace dies, or the roof starts leaking. When you’re a landlord, all the costs of maintaining the rental is your responsibility. The tenant can call you in the middle of the night because a pipe bursts and you’ll have to either go fix it yourself if you’re handy or have a plumber fix it at your cost. Since you likely want to attract good tenants for the long term, it would be in your best interest to fix things immediately to avoid the tenant from leaving when the lease renews.

Prepare For the Unexpected

Since you never know when something will break, it’s always wise to be prepared by having an emergency fund in place for the unexpected. Besides things breaking, which will happen over time due to wear and tear, tenants will eventually leave, and sometimes without warning. Then you have the odd tenant who just decides they don’t want to pay their rent for 2 months. If you have a mortgage on your rental property, you will still have to pay your mortgage regardless of what your tenant issues are. So save your rental income for the unexpected.