landlord

Building a Positive Relationship With Your Landlord

By dubayns on 1/21/09 6:04pm
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<!--[if gte mso 9]&gt; Normal 0 &lt;![endif]-->There are few things in this world that can be more frustrating than a grouchy, demanding, or vindictive landlord. Not having a good relationship with yours can cause undue stress and anxiety, especially around the time that rent checks are due. Being friendly and proactive can help to diffuse any landlord anxiety before it even begins.

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Laying the Foundation

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The first step in a good landlord-tenant relationship should occur on the day of move-in. Let your landlord know who you are and a little about yourself by introducing him or her to your family or roommate. This will help them put a face to a name and helps to humanize your room mate which will help your landlord connect to you as not only a customer, but as a person. All mature, professional business relationships begin with an introduction and a firm handshake.

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Customizing your rented space . . .

By macallister on 1/5/09 7:19pm
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I've been renting apartments and homes for over twenty years. And because I love the freedom to pick up and move whenever wanderlust strikes, I anticipate renting for a good many more.

Renting doesn't mean that we have no attachment to our physical surroundings, though. Our living-space is important to both health and mental well-being, so it deserves a little consideration, and occasionally some extra work.

One of the beauties of renting, of course, is that you're not ultimately responsible for the maintenance of a house. In the meantime, however, you can often make arrangements with the landlord to customize your living space with small and fairly inexpensive improvements like paint, updated cabinetry, flooring, or carpet. Usually, in fact, the owner/landlord will deduct part or even all of the cost of those improvements from your rent.

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The Difference Between a Good Landlord and Slum Lord

By Michael Jon Lazar on 12/15/08 1:41am
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There are so many horror stories out there about renters who had the worst experience possible when renting a home. And not surprisingly, many of the bad stories tend to relate to horrible landlords, better know by most as slum lords. These are folks that will take your money, not maintain the property and evict you if you fail to pay or pay late. Nice people huh? So if you find yourself wondering if you have a good landlord or a bad landlord, there are some things that you can do to figure this out. The below paragraphs should help you determine what kind of rental situation that you are in.

A Good Landlord
A good landlord always makes sure that the home is maintained. The property looks great and if you have a problem you call them and they send somebody out to fix it. A good landlord makes sure that they take care of their renters. They assure that your experience while in their home is the best that it possibly can be. A good landlord will compensate you for problems by reducing your rents.

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Does Your Landlord’s Home Owner Insurance Policy Cover you as a Renter?

By Michael Jon Lazar on 12/15/08 1:36am
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If you think that your personal possessions are protected by your landlord’s home owner insurance policy think again! The only thing that the home owner insurance policy of your landlord will protect is the property itself. If the sewage backs up, then maybe your possessions are covered, if the landlord sees fit to pay you out. However, in most cases, and in most states, a rental home does not offer coverages in the home owner insurance policy that protect you, the renter.

What Does your Landlord’s Home Owner Insurance Policy Cover?
The policy is like most other home owner insurance policies, but it has been modified as a rental. Basically the home, the structure and the property are covered, as well as others in the event of the landlord’s liability, not yours. So if anything goes wrong, like a friend breaks their leg on your stairwell, you are liable, not the landlord. Sounds kind of crumby doesn’t it?

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The Landlord Checks Your Credit, How do you Know They are Kosher?

By Michael Jon Lazar on 12/15/08 1:26am
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For those of you who are looking for a home rental, the state of the current real estate market should be something that you take into consideration. Why you might ask? Simple! Because there are currently many landlords out there who may not be paying the bills on their rental homes, and if they are not, they could very well be nearing the foreclosure process. Some renters have even been duped into renting a home that is already in the foreclosure process, and there is not much they can do about it but move, as the law does not protect you from this sort of anomaly.

How to Prevent Rental Nightmares
Just as your landlord or prospective landlord may request a credit report from you and proof of your current income, the same is true from you. You can find out if the home is entering foreclosure or if the landlord is on the up and up. A good rule of thumb is to check out the county recorder office in your area – found at the city or government website for your location.

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