The Surprising Benefits Of Living Next Door To Your Tenants

Many landlords start out by living alongside their tenants. Whether you purchased a duplex and reside next-door or you are renting out the basement apartment in your home, being a next-door landlord comes with its own unique set of benefits and drawbacks.

Do you know how to be a successful next-door landlord? Check out these tips for those who live right next to their tenants and find out what pros and cons next-door landlords face.

The Pros Of Living Next Door

Before we dive into the problems you might face as a next-door landlord, let's take a look at the surprising number of benefits derived from being right next to your tenants. 

• Handle Issues Right Away: When you live next door to your tenants, you can take care of any issues that arise immediately.  While you will want to set up boundaries (more on that below), you can take care of simple day-to-day problems without eating up much of your time.
• Your Tenants Will Know You're Watching: Not to sound creepy, but one of the benefits of living by your tenants is the awareness that you will know if they are breaking rules of the lease. Tenants who have landlords next door are less likely to break occupancy rules, throw raging parties, or let property upkeep go.
• You Will Be The First To Know: If the benefit above doesn't hold true and you have irresponsible tenants who break your rules, you will be the first to know. Usually, landlords are informed by neighbors or the cops when something has gone awry. Othertimes landlords aren't aware until move-out or a walk-through of how bad their tenants were. When you live next-door, you'll know right away when something strange occurs. 
• You Have The Chance To Build A Great Relationship: When you live next door, you will interact with your tenants on a regular basis. This gives you a chance to build a solid relationship with good tenants. This can lead to a long-term lease and fewer vacancies for you. Bottom-line, if you are a good landlord, living next door can allow you to create a fantastic landlord-tenant relationship with clear communication. 

The Drawbacks Of Living Next Door

While there is a good side to living next door, there are also some unique difficulties you can face when you live so close to your tenants. The following are things to watch out for and how to mitigate these negatives.

1. 1 .  A Professional Relationship Must Be There From The Start

One issue new landlords, in particular, may face is the fine balance between being a neighbor and being a landlord. While you want to be friendly and neighborly, you also need to be building a professional relationship from the get-go. You cannot allow tenants to walk all over you simply because you live next door. Many new landlords fear being the "bad guy" or worry about upsetting a tenant who lives so close. However, while you don't need to be unnecessarily harsh, you do need to maintain your professional boundaries. For example, if your lease states late fees incur after three days of missed rent, you need to stick to that policy, even if you find facing your tenant daily makes that awkward. You should also clearly communicate how tenants should contact you about things. Do you want them knocking on your door every time they need you? If no, you need to communicate that with them from the start.

The Bottomline: While you want to be a fair landlord, you cannot become too friendly with tenants. They need to know that at the end of the day, you are ultimately their landlord, not best bud.

1. 2. You Are Not Just A Landlord But A Neighbor As Well

While the first tip revolves around not allowing tenants to walk all over you, the second tip is also a reminder that you will not just be a landlord, you will be a neighbor as well. This means that in order to build a strong relationship with your tenants, you need to be a respectful neighbor. Don't take advantage of the fact that you are their landlord, treat them with the same respect you would any neighbor. Your tenants will take their cues from you. If you don't take care of your side of the property, they will take that as a license to do the same. If you drop in on them all the time unannounced, they will follow suit. 

As a neighbor, it is important you build a mutually respectful relationship.

1. 3. You Need To Maintain Fair Screening Policies

When it comes to living next-door to your tenants, screening thoroughly will be of the utmost importance. Not only will a problem tenant be a headache to deal with, they will directly impact your daily life. Make sure you maintain the same fair screening processes as you always would. Just because someone is your neighbor doesn't mean you can throw the rule book out the window. Stick to the guidelines the Fair Housing Act outlines.

The Takeaway

While living next door to your tenants can sound like an overwhelming venture, the reality is that if you create a professional and fair relationship with your tenants, it can be a fruitful endeavor. It all begins with how you communicate and how much respect you build between you and your tenants.