New Orleans can be one of the best places to operate a rental property business. The city has a robust rental market, and the state has landlord-friendly laws. Even with it being an excellent place to invest, there can be pitfalls to property management in New Orleans.
Fortunately, most of the pitfalls are manageable. This post will cover some pitfalls New Orleans property managers should avoid.
You may feel like you need to wear many hats because property managers have so many responsibilities. Doing some of the work yourself can be a good idea. You can save money. However, it is often too much for one person to handle. You might also suffer from burnout if you don’t give yourself any breaks. Hiring help can make you more effective. It might also allow you to expand to more properties.
There are few things worse than having bad tenants. They can cause problems for your business and affect the experience of other tenants. Once they live on the property, removing them can be difficult. The best way to avoid this is to implement a thorough screening process. Beyond checking their finances, do background checks and follow up with their referrals.
Property managers should fix maintenance issues when they arise. However, that shouldn’t be all you do. You should have a comprehensive plan for routine maintenance. A little preventative work will help you maintain the property. Along with that, it can reduce overall repair costs. Do all the necessary routine maintenance on the property and perform regular inspections.
You should want to have a good relationship with your tenants. It is even good to have a friendly relationship with tenants. You need to recognize that there is a difference between being friendly and being friends. If you start viewing tenants as friends, it can be difficult to enforce the rules. Once you start letting small things slide, there won’t be long before there are many issues.
Being friends with a tenant might be a bad idea, but you don’t want to go to the other extreme. Part of being a professional property manager is understanding and respecting tenants’ rights. For example, you can’t enter the tenant’s home without providing notice. You also have to live up to your side of the lease. A property manager could have legal problems if they don’t respect tenants’ rights.
Do you need a reliable property manager in New Orleans? Click here to contact Redfish Property Management. Our team can help you get more from your rental properties in New Orleans.
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