The 3-Unit Mistakes That Nearly Burned Me Out (And What Finally Worked)

[Parris Taylor]

When I bought my first 3-unit, I thought landlording would be simple: collect rent, fix a toilet now and then, let the cashflow roll in.

Six months later:

- A tenant called me at 11:47 PM about a leaking toilet while I was out (on a date).

- A lease agreement was “in the mail” for the third time.

- My lease folder looked like a crime scene of PDFs and photos.

I wasn’t making enough to hire a property manager, but I was already drowning. Out of desperation, I cobbled together my own way of staying on top of tenants, leases, and repairs. It wasn’t fancy, but it forced me to get organized.

The change was real:

- Rent started showing up on time

- Repairs got handled faster without me being the midnight middleman

- Lease info was easy to pull when tenants asked

- Vendors got lined up with less scrambling

Now I touch the property way less, and tenants think I got more responsive overnight. Really, I just stopped juggling everything out of texts and emails.

Funny thing is, tenants noticed the difference immediately. They assumed I was “on top of things,” when really I’d just stopped drowning in disorganization.

What’s the one change you’ve made that tenants noticed right away? Did it improve retention, or did they not care as much as you expected?

[Michael Smythe]

@Parris Taylor if you don't have a plan to succeed, you automatically default to a plan to fail:(