The landlord wants to go on vacation....
Real Estate Agent · Charleston, SC · Member since 2012 · 56 posts · 7 votes
The landlord wants to go on vacation....
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Investor · Fox River Grove, IL · Member since 2011 · 28 posts · 10 votes
13yMichael,
I agree with Andrew - if you can afford a manager. What I did in the early days was to have a list of service providers I could count on before I left on vacation (handyman, heating/ac contractor, etc.). Heck, I once had a central furnace replaced in a 6-flat in Illinois (on the coldest day of the year) while I was in Florida watching the Bears get crushed in the Super Bowl - all over the phone. Build up your service provider network and you should have no problem leaving town for a week or so, as long as your tenants can contact you via phone or email.
DK
12 Replies
- Real Estate Investor · San Clemente, CA · Member since 2011 · 209 posts · 47 votes13y
Probably look at getting a property manager, one whom you perform strong due diligence on, so you know if they can perform without you being there. Fortunately with technology you are ultimately an email/phone call away in most parts of the world.
Andrew
- Investor · Fox River Grove, IL · Member since 2011 · 28 posts · 10 votes13y
Michael,
I agree with Andrew - if you can afford a manager. What I did in the early days was to have a list of service providers I could count on before I left on vacation (handyman, heating/ac contractor, etc.). Heck, I once had a central furnace replaced in a 6-flat in Illinois (on the coldest day of the year) while I was in Florida watching the Bears get crushed in the Super Bowl - all over the phone. Build up your service provider network and you should have no problem leaving town for a week or so, as long as your tenants can contact you via phone or email.
DK
- Lexington, KY · Member since 2009 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes13y
First welcome to BP Michael. What length vacations are you talking about? I know quite a few landlords who routinely go on 1-2 week vacations and are able to handle things just fine. If you do the work on the front end (tenant screening, having a great handyman on call, etc) you should have very few problems that can't be fixed with a quick phone call while you are off on vacation for a bit.
You could hire a property manager if you want, but it sounds like you will be managing the properties when you are there. You might just need someone you can trust to check on things while you are gone, but again, if you are not going to be gone for a substantial amount of time I do not see there being a big problem. How often do you plan on "looking after" the units when you are home?
- Real Estate Agent · Charleston, SC · Member since 2012 · 56 posts · 7 votes13y
Thanks so much for the advice!
- 13yGene HackerPro MemberFlipper/Rehabber · Lake Isabella, CA · Member since 2011 · 969 posts · 488 votes
I have self managed at least 16 units and I take several trips a year. I have a handyman that I trust which helps a lot. If I have phone access when I am gone, then things usually go very smooth. I have accounts set up at my local hardware store so my handyman can purchase what he needs.
I have also noticed that if you take vacation at time tenants expect it...it tends to be easier. Example, I was out of town from Christmas to New Years and I only got two calls from tenants and both were very apologetic to bothering me during the holidays. Other times of the year...they are a bit less understanding about delays.
One trip I did was a bit more difficult, I was invited to guide a raft on first decent of a river in Mexico, which would keep me out of communication for several weeks. To top it off I had three turnovers at the same time I was gone. All the properties were looking like they were going to be ready and I had deposits to hold in hand. I had all the contracts prefilled and signed so all my wife had to do was have them hand over the money and sign...everything went very smooth and the added burden to my wife's busy schedule was only a few hours.
The key is to have systems in place that work when you are not there (a good team is one is part of that).
Obviously a full time property manager would be the easiest way to free yourself up, and I am moving towards that, but where the market is right now I am in acquisition mode and I am trying to free up as much cash as possible.
- Portland, ME · Member since 2012 · 616 posts · 550 votes13y
I've found that it's important to do triage on calls when I'm away. For example, I had a tenant call to tell me the "shower is falling out of the wall". I immediately pictured water spraying everywhere and water damage in the unit below. However, after futher questioning I figured out that it was just the decorative wall plate that slipped down! My questioning saved me a stupid and expensive call to the plumber. Don't get me wrong, I want tenants to call me with legitimate issues, but some tenants are just lonely and like to call the landlord for entertainment. Once you realize this you won't feel like you have to jump every time a tenant calls you and you can enjoy your vacation. Just keep your phone on and your contractors' numbers progammed in your phone for true emergencies.
- Involved In Real Estate · Jacksonville, FL · Member since 2012 · 216 posts · 42 votes13y
I have a handy man that I can count on while I am gone and I travel quite a bit. I actually went to Thailand for three weeks this year, I purchased a Thai sim card and gave my guy the number but I never used it except to talk to family. We actually had a tropical storm that hit during this time and he was able to handle everything including some flooding in two units without getting me involved.
I also trust him to show apartments and get applications. If I need to I will fill out the lease and have him get it signed. He seems to have a knack for selling people to boot. All in all I really recommend finding someone you can trust that knows what they are doing, they are worth their weight in gold. It also costs much less to have this guy when needed but not have to pay a management company. It's the best of both worlds.
The one time I try not to be away is right after the first of the month as I like to make sure I get all my rent on time and post notices if I don't. I have been able to manage that while away also. I think being a landlord provides more freedom to do what you want then almost any other small business. I used to manage restaurants and that was much more of a pain to handle while traveling and any long trips would be out of the question.
It's the same deal though if you have good trust worthy people your business will run itself most times. If you have bad people you'll be pulling out your hair 80 hours a week and still won't have it run properly.
- Investor · Riverside, CA · Member since 2011 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes13y
I travel in excess of 30 days every year and the majority of it is outside the country. As long as I have email access (pretty much every where I've ever been including multiple long stays in India) I can deal with any issues. It is all about systems and paranoia. If you believe you will have problems, you'll have problems. If you know that there isn't much that can go wrong which you need to be local to deal with, well, I've been doing it that way for 10 years and nothing has been an issue yet including an overflowed septic tank and a tenant who tried to reheat a pizza in the oven... while it was still in the box. Create systems to do the work for you.
When you decide to be a landlord, you can choose to create a job for yourself or run a business. With a job, you don't get paid unless you stay there and push buttons. With a business, you should be able to leave for extended periods and come back to find you are making more money.
In a nutshell:
My tenants email me any issues, I forward the email onto my reliable handyman, he fixes the issues, emails me an invoice, I log onto online bill pay with my bank and have them send him a check, then I go back to the beach. Life is good.All tenant turn overs including move outs, vacancies, evictions, property showings, lease ups, and all maintenance issues can be handled from any where you are without being in town. Don't think like your dad's or your grandpa's landlord friends. We have the luxury of the internet.
- Real Estate Agent · Virginia Beach, VA · Member since 2012 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes13y
Michael, my husband and I travel quite a bit, and over the years it has always amazed me that my rentals seem to wait for our vacations to develop major issues. Not sure why, but vacations usually mean repair decisions. Even with property management, I set up our contract where I get called if the situation is over $200 to repair, so it just seems being disrupted on vacation is part of the territory. The only times it's been a real problem is when we are truly out of range, no phones or internet for a few days. Even when I call the one unit I still handle myself without management, ask if there are any issues and get a "Nothing that I know of" answer before we leave, something goes wrong during the vacation. This past year, two 5-day vacations, one dead hot water heater on the first and one dishwasher that had to be replaced in another unit on the second. Just make sure you stay in touch, e-mail or phone, and it's manageable. More expensive than you being there, but manageable.
- Investor · Member since 2009 · 132 posts · 30 votes13y
My approach is very similar to what was mentioned above. I give my handyman a heads up that I am leaving but thats about it. I also have a solid list of more specialized contractors that I reach out to if needed. I can usually handle routine maintenance via phone. I collect all rents electronically or tenants post to our account. I leave somebody I trust pay or quit notices to post if I am going to be out of town on the 6th in the event that i need it. My tenantts have a "maintenace line" that goes to a google voice acct and also emails me the vmail as well as my maintenace contractor so I can handle most everything from my iphone.
- 13yChris ClothierBusiness MemberRental Property Investor · memphis, TN · Member since 2009 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes
Originally posted by Michael Limina:
I was hoping someone has dealt with this before and is willing to share some information.Michael - There are some great tips on here especially the very practical use of easy and free technology like the info that Brad Zerhusen shared. A lot of the other pieces of advice are excellent so I challenge you to not let that fear of being away or needing to change your life style to be an investor stand in your way of getting started. I think all of us had fears as investors including the one you mentioned and you simply find a way to surround yourself with the people you need to be successful including allowing yourself to keep living the lifestyle of travel that you want.
Best of luck - Chris
- Lender · Tyngsboro, MA · Member since 2009 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes13y
For me, the key is to have a network of pro's and handyman types that you can count on. It takes a while to build that up.
But paying people promptly and thanking them for their responsiveness will gradually build up your network of good reliable contractors and go-to people.
It's harder to turn over a unit when you're not there, if you screen and lease up yourself. Sometimes I get it all done before I leave, sometimes I explain to the prospect that I won't be back until...., and sometimes I bite the bullet and don't advertise it until I know I'm back to show it. Usually my contractors would be working on it until I'm gone.
Most of my arrangements are done by phone and email, except for showing apartments and screening tenants in person. So it's doable. Don't let travel stop you, you'll find a way.
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