describe your best tenant ever

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describe your best tenant ever

Dan C.
Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2013 · 384 posts · 109 votes

I'm curious to hear landlords describe they best tenant they ever had.

Here is the profile of my best tenant ever, who I've had for 7 years now:

1) she's extremely kind and courteous to me, the neighbors, everyone. Entirely reasonable on repairs and what she expects from me. Makes cookies for me and the neighbors at Christmas - just a very nice person.

2) she loves the place and treats it like a home. I used to live in her unit and she treats it as well or better than I did

3) based on her age and comments, I know she has no plans to leave. She could easily be there another 10-20 years

4) she is a household of one in a unit that can have up to 4 - so less wear and tear on the unit

5) to me here's the kicker - on top of all these awesome traits, she has a job where she is out of town 3 weeks per month. She has this schedule consistently, year-round - so that much less wear and tear.

I'm sure better tenants exist, but I feel it is unlikely I would ever find a better one.

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  • Dell J.
    Member since 2010 · 210 posts · 158 votes
    13y

    wow! Does she have any sisters?

    0Reply
  • Josh McCullough
    Investor · Jackson, GA · Member since 2011 · 228 posts · 126 votes
    13y

    My best tenant ever did not set the house on fire, or let his dog eat the kitchen floor.

    0Reply
  • Nick Miller
    Fort Wayne, IN · Member since 2013 · 66 posts · 12 votes
    13y

    Back in '05 I needed to raise a few thousand for a project so I offered one of my single family homes for rent at $850 a month or $7,500 for the year with a one time upfront payment. I had a lot of lookers but there was one engaged couple that seemed to stand out from the others.

    They paid the $7,500 and were mostly maintenance free until one day, roughly six months into the lease, the water heater went out. Josh (one of the tenants) helped me install the new water heater then took me out for wings afterward. Normally I don't socialize with my tenants but they were paid up for the next 6 months so I decided to take him up on it.

    We had such a good time we decided to make a weekly tradition of going out for wings and by the end of the lease we had become such good friends not only did we get wings weekly but they also invited me to go on vacation with them and they invited me to be a part of their wedding at an inclusive resort.

    They only rented from me for 14 months and they got a heck of a deal but they are now lifelong friends.

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  • Rob K.
    Investor · Southeast, MI · Member since 2012 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    13y

    I had tenants in one house for eight years and they were never late with the rent. In fact, the husband was very handy and never called me for anything until one day he called and I thought the house might be on fire. It turns out there was a plumbing leak under the sink that he wasn't able to take care of. They later bought the house across the street and still live there.

    I currently have a couple houses that were purchased in 2009 when the market was at the bottom. Both houses were rented after I purchased them and those tenants are still there today. Because the returns are so good, I have gotten all of my money back on both houses (purchase price, repairs, property taxes, insurance, etc.) plus $6,400 on one and $10,500 on the other. If I were to sell the houses today, the sale prices would be all profit. It would be nice to call them and say, "Thank you so much for buying me these houses", but that would be a Richard Cranium move.

    It's nice when you have good tenants. You don't hear much about them and most outsiders don't believe that they exist. My tenants seem to be either really good or really bad. Mostly really good though.

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  • Scott W.
    Real Estate Investor · chicago, IL · Member since 2012 · 1k+ posts · 231 votes
    13y

    I have found my best tenants to be former home owners. I have 2 married couples with a child in 2 of my rentals; they're former homeowners. The husbands are handy too. Nothing is perfect in life, however, I have found the former homeowners know better how to take better care of a home & are clean freaks.

    Actually, I have had awesome renters throughout the years with the exception of one couple. Part of it is luck part of it is screening the heck out of them.

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  • Carole G.
    Investor · Durango, CO · Member since 2008 · 163 posts · 59 votes
    13y

    Surprisingly, some of my best tenants were a group of students (upper level) who paid their rent in cash 4 months in advance at a time. They caused no trouble, and left the house spotless.

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  • Aaron Mazzrillo
    Investor · Riverside, CA · Member since 2011 · 2k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    13y

    Pretty easy to get in that box with me; pay the rent on time and leave the the heck alone.

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  • Adam Johnson
    Rental Property Investor · Holley, NY · Member since 2011 · 507 posts · 347 votes
    13y

    I would have to say my best tenant is one of my current tenants. I have NEVER worked so hard to get a tenant into an apartment and it was based almost entirely on a hunch. She is a Section 8 tenant, not that it matters a lot. She introduced me to her "girls", her 2 dogs without me asking at the time of application. She was kind of a drifter at the time, staying with various friends. In oreder to get her approved for the apartment, I had to drop the rent somewhat. I broke nearly every rule in my rule book for her. Part of the reason is the apartment she moved into had a very bad streak of 3 evictions, it was a tough one to rent due to size and location. Long story short, she is probably a lifer. The yard is spotless. Her apartment is spotless. The rent is paid on time, every month. We moved her in last Thanksgiving time and she is the ONLY tenant that has ever sent me a Christmas card. I am glad I trusted my hunch.

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  • Matthew Paul
    Severna Park, MD · Member since 2013 · 7k+ posts · 7k+ votes
    13y

    I have tenants in a house I bought in 83 and lived there for 10 years , these tenants have been there 16 years so far THEY have raised the rent every year 40 dollars per month , he has paved the gravel driveway ($ 6000) , put an addition on the house (with a permit) $11,000, they never missed a payment , This year he re roofed the house with 30 year shingles , All improvements were paid by him . With a letter that they were all paid for and I owe him nothing . he does pay about 15% less than market rent for the area , I am more than fine with the arrangement . The funny thing is I am a contractor , but he hires a friend of mine thats a contractor , he tells me nobody likes to work on their own house .....he is right

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  • David Krulac
    Mechanicsburg, PA · Member since 2013 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    12y

    @Dan C.

    I like tenants who stay a long time.

    Had 2 tenants stay 7 years, both would have stayed longer took advantage of $8,000 first time home buyer credit.

    Had tenants who stayed 21 years, then I sold them a house.

    Currently have a tenant who moved in in 1998 and several others working on a decade, but the longest current tenured tenant moved in in 1984, longer than anybody who is less than 30 years old has been alive!

    Does anybody here at BP have a current tenant longer than 30 years?

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  • Jon K.
    Member since 2011 · 798 posts · 216 votes
    12y

    Lived there a year as a roommate, only heard/saw this tenant maybe 5 times in a whole year.

    Tenant/roommate was absolutely delightful and friendly as could be when I saw them, pleasant conversation, interesting, great personality.

    Quiet as a mouse. I seriously didn't know when this tenant was even home... and we lived in the same house. I only knew tenant was home if their car was out front. I literally never heard a peep. I didn't hear them move in or out. So quiet.

    Clean. No trace that tenant was even living with me, other than a few items in the fridge. No trace of dirt anywhere. Cleanest roommate and tenant EVER.

    Rarely ever home... only noticed them coming to pay rent on time every time. Often the tenant paid early too. Never complained even once.. about anything.

    Tenant often stayed with their significant other, so they weren't home much. Still, this was my favorite roommate/tenant ever. I was so sad when they permanently moved in with the significant other and moved out of my home.

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  • David Krulac
    Mechanicsburg, PA · Member since 2013 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    12y

    Oh! got another tenant story.

    I had a place for rent and posted an ad for rent. First day of ad somebody called, told them the particulars, and the address, and told them to show it to themselves that the door was unlocked. By noon of the first day of the ad, the renter came to my location with money in hand and signed the lease. they rented the place for the next 17 years, I never saw them again in those 17 years and maybe talked to them on the phone 5 or 6 times in the 17 years. They moved when I sold the property and the new owner wanted the place for themselves.

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  • Marc RamsayPro Member
    Investor · Ojochal, Costa Rica · Member since 2013 · 287 posts · 164 votes
    12y

    I have an old retired guy that has been in the building I bought just over a year ago for upwards of 30 years. Every time I come to town to check up on the property I bring him a bottle of Beringer White Zinfandel, and he lets me know everything that has been going on in the complex while I was away, and gives me a little more history on the buildings. He's never moving out.. :)

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  • Bill BockwoldtPro Member
    Investor · Petaluma, CA · Member since 2013 · 58 posts · 33 votes
    12y

    With the exception of one property (bought 4 months ago), every other property we own has had tenants who call us to ask if they can do things to the property (at their own time/expense). These include:

    -Painting the garage

    -Removing some dead trees and cleaning up the yard

    -Installing flower boxes in the front and under the windows

    -Repairing all driveway/garage floor cracks

    -Painting the inside of the house

    -Repairing appliances

    -Fixing a leaking roof and damaged gutter

    -Installing new SOD and landscaping

    Not quite as good as the addition and new garage cited above but all of these things reduce maintenance costs and improve the value of the properties. We love our tenants!

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  • Paul C.
    Rental Property Investor · Henderson, NV · Member since 2013 · 96 posts · 33 votes
    12y

    Some great stories here. I've only been doing this for just under 2 years, but my best tenant is a lady who WANTED to pay the full year's rent in advance and didn't ask for anything in return.

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