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How To Manage Remote Rental Properties In 10 Steps.
The increasing rate of urbanisation & industrialisation in different parts of the country is making several areas attractive for real estate investment. While it might be easy to purchase or even construct a property in those remote areas, finding good tenants and managing those properties is a lot more challenging.
As challenging as it may be, by using the right tools and system, managing these remote rental properties can be like managing the rental property next to your home.
But before we dive into how to manage remote rental properties, let us first define what a remote rental property is, so we are all at the same understanding.
What is a remote rental property?
A remote rental property — also known as a long-distance property — is usually defined as a property that’s located in another town, city, district or country. In other words, a remote rental property is a property located in an owner’s “backyard.”
It can also be one that takes some time to travel to or one that an owner simply doesn’t have enough time to take care of in person.
For example, in a town or city with a lot of traffic congestion where it could take hours to travel just a few kilometres in rush-hour traffic. Or, the landlord or property manager may not have enough time to visit each property in person.
Today many investors invest in remote rental properties in smaller towns or communities with the increasing job and population growth and affordable rent prices.
Steps on how to manage a remote property effectively
Whether your property is next to your home or far away, it is important to ensure that your property and tenants are taken care of or else your cash flow could suffer due to high tenant turnover in turn affecting your expected rental income
With the right tools, planning and processes in place, owning and managing a remote rental property is something that almost anyone can do once they put their mind to it. Below are the steps to follow while managing a rental property remotely.
1. Build a trusted local team *
Property management is a team sport, having the right members on your local real estate team is what can make your work owning or managing properties remotely easy.
The local team may include property managers, handyperson, contractors for specialized work, pest control specialists, real estate attorneys and real estate birds to periodically drive by your property for visual inspection
2. Have a trusted local representative *
It is important that your tenants can put a name to a face. Having a local representative does not necessarily have to be in charge but tenant know is always around even if they never have to contact them for any issue.
These can be local property management companies or trusted individuals who can help handle tenant communications, perform periodic inspections, and coordinate maintenance & repairs to keep a rental property in good condition.
3. Have a digital gallery of your properties *
Video recording, Pictures, Floor plans, and virtual tours make it easier for a tenant to visualize their new home and see how their furniture and equipment will fit into each room.
So, in any case, you prospective tenant who is interested in your property, it would as simple as sharing a link to your digital gallery or the pictures, or video recordings for them to see if it is of their liking before they even have to move the place.
4. Have a tenant screening process *
It is said that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and this is very true when it comes to looking for a qualified tenant.
It’s important that your process is thorough enough for you to be able to determine whether the prospective tenant has a go payment history, is a legal resident, has a stable income source and is responsible enough to be able to make your rental payments in time.
Where possible, as a property manager or landlord, you should speak to the prospective tenant’s previous landlord, personal references or employer.
5. Use a property management system *
A property management system (PMS) is a tool that enables you to execute your essential daily tasks like managing and tracking tenant information, account and billing, receiving notices such as lease renewals, placing maintenance requests and posting vacant units online.
Having a PMS like Rentos in place would mean you spend less time managing your property because some of your essential daily tasks would be automated by the systems
6. Manage rent payments online *
Accepting rent payments online is not only easy and convenient — collecting rent online can improve cash flow and reduce tenant turnover because:-
- Most tenants under the age of 45 prefer to pay rent online.
- Tenants who use an autopay method are 5 times more likely to pay on time.
- Online rental payments are more transparent for everyone; Property managers, landlords and tenants, significantly reducing the chance of human error.
- Online rent payment is a much more secure payment option using cash and check payments.
7. Create easy lines of communication *
As in any relationship, having good communication with your tenants would you improve your relationship, makes decision-making easier and it is easier to anticipate problems.
Therefore, consider setting expectations with your tenants by explaining how to communicate, preferred channels and when they should expect to receive a response from you.
You may also consider having a dedicated phone number or email for your business.
8. Schedule property visits *
Even though you do have a trusted local team or representative as we discussed earlier, its be very important that you schedule visiting your properties once or twice a year.
As these in-person visits would help you:-
Determine if the local representatives are doing good as the reports.
Tenants are satisfied.
Determine what needs to be done to improve your rental property.
9. Hire security or Install security cameras *
There will be times when you have tenants who are destructive to your property due to the activities do at your property or are simply irresponsible.
Having security personnel or security cameras at your property may help deter vandalism or break-ins and provide a landlord with more peace of mind.
10. Enforce the rules *
Now and then, a tenant may take advantage of a landlord who is “out of sight, out of mind.” The rent might be paid late, or a tenant might have a secret roommate or unauthorized pet.
To reduce the risk of a tenant breaking a lease rule, it may be a good idea to go over the entire lease agreement with tenants before they move in. If a rule is broken, a landlord may wish to have a zero-tolerance policy to demonstrate that the terms and conditions of the lease will be enforced.