by Michael Barnes

Created on: October 28, 2009   Last Updated: November 05, 2009

Are you a landlord? Do you want to be? Do you or are you planning on buying residential property to use as rentals?

Well if you answered yes to any of the above, this article is for you.

First let me start out with the cold hard truth, being a landlord does not mean just collecting a rent check once a month and spending the rest of your time on the golf course. Being a landlord can be frustrating and can take a lot of effort.

The other truth though, is that if done right, being a landlord can be fun and rewarding, both personally rewarding and financially rewarding.

The key is to know what you are doing and take your job seriously.

Here are 5 tips that I have picked up through the years dealing with my portfolio of rental properties.

1 - HAVE A WRITTEN LEASE

A written lease is CRITICAL; I can not stress this enough. A written lease protects you and your tenants and prevents potential mis-understandings from become nightmares. There are tons of places online where you can get sample leases for your state. Do not skimp or take a shortcut on this. It will only take one time for your lease to save you and it will have more than made the time you spent putting it together worthwhile.

2 - KNOW THE LAW

While it is always good to have a competent attorney available to you, it still does not eliminate the need for you to know the laws in your state regarding residential tenancies. For example, in Florida, Chapter 83 of the Florida State Statutes covers landlord/tenant law. Take the time and read and understand the laws as they pertain to you. Just as with the lease, all it takes is one time where your knowledge of the law kept you out of trouble, and your investment of time and research will pay off handsomely.

3 - BE FRIENDLY, FAIR & FIRM

One of the things that I have learned is a key part of my success is how I treat my customers (tenants). I have tenants from all walks of life, all economic situations, all races, colors, religious, you name it. One thing that they all will say is regardless of what may make them different, I treat everyone the same. This is not only because there are laws against certain types of discrimination, but because it builds a stronger relationship with my customer. Along those same lines though, I am also firm. I am clear from the beginning about how I handle late fees, and other expectations. I do not waiver from this.

4 - BE VISIBLE

This one can be hard if you are a part time landlord, or have properties spread out over a large area.

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