Middle River, MD · Member since 2015 · 19 posts · 1 vote
Good Afternoon BP members,
I am in the process in closing for a new rental buy and hold investment in Dundalk Maryland. It is a two unit and they are both currently occupied. Are there any per cautions that I should take coming in as a new landlord. Any advice on how to make this transition.
In terms of lead safe inspections, rental license, and rental inspections: how often do they need to be renewed. (3 years) ? Would the original inspection I did before I purchased the house satisfy the rental inspection or would I need a separate one done for rentals?
I'd start with a "New Landlord Welcome Letter". You can do a google search to get some ideas. Here is a pretty decent one that you can edit: Intro Letter
Do you have a copy of the old lease? Is it still in effect? If the current lease is very basic and doesn't cover all your bases, you might want to consider having them sign a new rock-solid lease to protect yourself.
I'm not sure what rental license and inspections you're referring to though. That may be a local thing and someone from your area may have to chime in on that!
I'd start with a "New Landlord Welcome Letter". You can do a google search to get some ideas. Here is a pretty decent one that you can edit: Intro Letter
Do you have a copy of the old lease? Is it still in effect? If the current lease is very basic and doesn't cover all your bases, you might want to consider having them sign a new rock-solid lease to protect yourself.
I'm not sure what rental license and inspections you're referring to though. That may be a local thing and someone from your area may have to chime in on that!
Llead has to be tested at each tenant turnover. If tenants are staying and previous owner had the lead inspection done prior to their occupancy, you should be good to go. You can call or email MDE and explain your situation, they are pretty good about getting back to you and letting you know what needs to be done.
Baltimore county has inspection standards (initial, and they every 2 or 3 years I think). If you google "Baltimore county landlord" or something similar, it should direct you to the county site where they have all of the forms in PDF. It's not a big deal, PM me if you need leads on inspectors, I can get you a few names and forms.
Best advise I can give, get a good screening done on prospective tenants. Take your time, find qualified tenants with good references. I use www.clearscreening.com to run credit checks. Check out their "smartscreen" service, it's worked well for me.
Lead limited lead inspection- you need a new inspection for every new tenant
Lead Free Inspection- once you have a lead free cert. you dont need anymore lead inspections.
Failure to Pay and Eviction Process- get your system and plan for how to handle that down right away.
Find services by companies that can help you so you dont have to do everything yourself such as; rent court services, handyman, rent payment collection, etc.
Thanks for asking the question ... I now find myself in the same position and am reading thru older forums to get answers instead of re-asking. I LOVE BP! Thanks for all of the great information.