2. \u201cI know you said you don\u2019t allow pets, but would a small dog be OK?\u201d<\/h3>\n
The answer to this question should be easy; however, for some reason when people ask this question, it can be hard to be firm. Maybe it\u2019s because a lot of us are animal lovers at heart. If you really are uncomfortable with the idea of having pets in the property, a polite \u201cI\u2019m sorry, but this home is strictly a pet-free home\u201d should be sufficient. However, if after meeting your prospective tenant and finding out they have a pet you decide to allow it, at least require additional securities, such as a pet fee or an additional deposit, and add a Pet Addendum to your lease.<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
Related:<\/strong> The 4 Types of Horrible Tenants (& How to Deal With Their Shenanigans)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n The landlord should always collect all of the move-in funds in full prior to letting the tenant obtain occupancy. If they can\u2019t afford the security deposit,\u00a0they probably aren\u2019t very good at handling their money. This is a good indication you\u2019ll have trouble later. Early in our career, we used to allow tenants to do this until we realized that it never worked, not even once!<\/p>\n Unless you enjoy chasing down security deposit payments on your weekends and evenings, simply respond to this question with a firm, \u201cOur policy states the security deposit must be paid in full prior to getting the keys. Do you have any family or friends who would lend you the funds?\u201d Ending with a question of your own puts the ball in their court and allows you to move on to the next applicant. Amazingly, almost every time we have this conversation with a potential tenant, they come up with the money after all and were simply trying to prioritize their spending. In this case, you just made yourself the priority, setting a great precedent for the future of their tenancy.<\/p>\n This question is a little bit trickier than the others because it depends on your rental market. You need to ask yourself this question: \u201cHow will I maximize my income?\u201d For example, if our real estate market is soft and we have a reasonable expectation that the unit might sit vacant for another month or two, we might feel more inclined to hold the unit for the tenant. However, this is seldom the case due to our marketing machine and will likely be the same for you. It truly is a numbers game. If we feel we can make more in the long term by holding it, we\u2019ll do that; if not, we won\u2019t. Sometimes you won\u2019t be sure, and you\u2019ll have to trust your instinct.<\/p>\n Keep in mind, the tenant\u2019s move-in date is a point of negotiation. For example, the tenant may ask us if they can move in four weeks from the time they applied. If we really like the tenant and we think it\u2019s in our financial best interest, we will try to split the difference and reply, \u201cWe can only hold the unit for up to two weeks; however, we would require a deposit to hold the unit. Does that sound reasonable?\u201d Nine times out of ten, the tenant will agree to this compromise.<\/p>\n \u201cNo.\u201d Trust us on this one. It might be fine on your first unit or two, but as you gain experience and build your portfolio, you will quickly regret your decision to allow your tenants to have different due dates. Having the rent due on the first is standard in the rental industry. Again, this question may indicate they are not good at handling their money. It\u2019s not necessarily a\u00a0deal-killer, but it\u2019s definitely a sign that they live paycheck to paycheck (as many tenants do).<\/p>\n There are many assistance programs that are available to low-income tenants to help them with their rent. Personally, we\u2019ve had issues accepting tenants on programs with the understanding that it was guaranteed income, only to discover how quickly and easily a tenant can lose the funding. This leaves the landlord holding the bag with a tenant who clearly cannot qualify on their own.<\/p>\n Of course, there may be excellent programs out there that we are not aware of, so we would recommend asking around to local landlords for advice. If you simply don\u2019t want to deal with these programs, your best response to this question may simply be, \u201cOur policy states your income must equal three times or more the monthly rent.\u201d Keep in mind that Section 8 is a protected class in some areas, so do your due diligence and make sure you\u2019re not violating Fair Housing Laws before making any decisions.<\/p>\n Related:<\/strong> How to Conduct an Inspection When Your Tenant Moves Out<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n This question also isn\u2019t as easy as it sounds, and it is completely up to you as to how you will answer it. Generally potential tenants aren\u2019t asking if you\u2019re the owner simply because they are curious, but because they see the owner as the ultimate authority and the person who can grant them special privileges or exceptions to the rules in regard to the rental. If you\u2019re a non-confrontational type of person, you may be tempted to make an exception (that you will quickly regret) to your rules or policies simply to avoid an awkward conversation. For this reason, you may want to consider adopting the name \u201cproperty manager,\u201d rather than \u201cowner\u201d for your tenants.<\/p>\n If you are \u201conly the property manager,\u201d tenants seem to have a much easier time understanding why you can\u2019t accommodate certain requests. We first heard of this strategy when we were new, 21-year-old landlords from Mike Butler\u2019s book Landlording on Autopilot, and it has helped us on many different occasions transform ourselves from the guy who can bend the rules to the guy who\u2019s simply doing his or her job in managing the property. So, if you\u2019d rather not disclose that you\u2019re the owner, don\u2019t. When faced with the question \u201care you the owner,\u201d you may simply want to respond with, \u201cI am\u00a0the property manager for this home\u201d and leave it at that. It\u2019s not a lie, simply an omission of all the facts, which they have no business knowing.<\/p>\n Turnovers and vacancies can be two of the most expensive processes the landlord goes through, not to mention the time that goes into filling a vacancy, so most landlords look for long term tenants, and many refuse to do anything shorter than a year lease. However, if the rental market is slow and you can compensate for the fact that the lease would be short term by charging more for rent for that privilege, it\u2019s not necessarily a bad idea.<\/p>\n Before making that decision, though, you will want to consider the time of year and the month the lease would be expiring. The last thing you want is to agree to a short term lease, only to have it expire in the dead of winter, which also happens to be the worst time to fill a vacancy. If we are not accommodating short term rentals and are faced with that request, we simply state: \u201cOur lease is a minimum of one year, though we are always looking for tenants who plan to stay much longer.\u201d<\/p>\n This question is a giant red flag and should always be met with extreme caution. There really are no good reasons for someone needing to be in that much of a hurry to move. A response along the lines of \u201cYou are certainly welcome to fill out our application, and after it has been properly processed to ensure you meet all of our qualification standards, we would be happy to discuss your move-in date in a couple days\u201d should be sufficient to send them on their merry way.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s start this paragraph off with a scenario. Say this tenant moves in as the only person on the lease, and you agree to allow her boyfriend\/mom\/sister\/whoever to move in with her without being on the lease. What happens if your tenant on the lease leaves and her roommates stay? You are left with a legal tenant(s) with whom you have no contract. Besides that, there are usually legitimate reasons the tenant doesn\u2019t want the roommate on the lease with them, and none of those reasons bode well for the landlord. In this situation, it\u2019s best to respond with, \u201cAnyone over the age of 18 living in the\u00a0home must fill out an application, meet our screening requirements, and be on the lease. I\u2019m sorry, but we cannot make an exception to this policy.\u201d<\/p>\n When prospective tenants ask this question, it\u2019s usually because they know they do not. Some issues, such as a lack of rental history, aren\u2019t necessarily a deal killer and can be compensated by requiring additional securities or a co-signer. In this situation, it\u2019s wise to get some more information from the tenant.<\/p>\n Whenever you are unsure of your response to a question from a prospective tenant, especially if it has to do with special requests or alterations to your policies, don\u2019t feel bad about not answering right away; it is perfectly acceptable to let them know you will have to get back to them. This allows you to separate yourself from the immediate situation and go home and think on it. Ask yourself, \u201cIs this decision the best one for my business?\u201d<\/p>\n3. \u201cCan I pay my deposit in installments?\u201d<\/h3>\n
4. \u201cCan I take possession in two months?\u201d<\/h3>\n
5. \u201cCan my due date be the 15th?\u201d<\/h3>\n
6. \u201cDo you accept the ____ Program?\u201d<\/h3>\n
7. \u201cAre you the owner?\u201d<\/h3>\n
8. \u201cWill you consider a short-term lease?\u201d<\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\n9. \u201cI\u2019m in a hurry. Can I pay the rent and move in today?\u201d<\/h3>\n
10. \u201cMy boyfriend\/mom\/sister wants to live with me, but I don\u2019t want them on the lease. Is that OK?\u201d<\/h3>\n
11. \u201cWhat if I don\u2019t meet all of your criteria?\u201d<\/h3>\n
What if You Don\u2019t Know the Answer?<\/h2>\n