Tips for Dealing With Troublesome Tenants

Whether it’s subletting, unreported repairs, pets that they don’t have permission for or late rent payments; problem tenants can transform those dreams of being successful on the rented property market into a continuous, expensive nightmare.

In the following post though we are going to show you how you can stop problems from getting out of hand even before they start with the following 6 tips.

The only way you can know what is happening behind closed doors is by visiting the property. These visits are crucial as they can help you to discover problems and fix them quickly. You should use these visits to spot any signs of adverse behaviour including pets they have no permission for, smoking, subletting or any deliberate damage. By arranging a quarterly visit, you have the opportunity to have a face to face meet up with your tenant and find out if there are any problems they want to address.

You need to make sure that any deterioration in your property doesn’t cause it to depreciate in value. When you carry out inspections, as outlined above, you should carry out a full maintenance check. Any repairs or deterioration you discover should be dealt with as soon as you can. Remember, maintenance issues that are unresolved, don’t disappear and actually can escalate and cause expensive and comprehensive damage to your rental property.

It is also useful to work on having good and productive communication between you and your tenant and that your tenant is fully away of what they need report to you between scheduled inspections.

Problems with payments can affect in a negative manner, the potential of your property to make a profit. To avoid payment delays, you should try to encourage tenants to arrange a standing order. By doing this, the money is transferred directly into your account at the same time every month and the tenant does not have to worry about payments and remembering to make them.

When payments are delayed, you need to act quickly to avoid it becoming a continual problem where a series of payments are missed. Once again, the key good communication. Often late or missed payments are genuine mistakes or a simple oversight; so speak to your tenant to find out why it happened and when it will be resolved.

Making sure a tenant is a good one before you enter a tenancy agreement with them will prevent issues arising further down the line. Therefore, it is imperative that you assess your tenant’s suitability before anything is signed. You obviously want to ensure that your investment will be taken care of and that the tenant can afford to keep the rent payments. There are a number of different processes you can put into place to ensure you make a fully informed assessment of this.

Credit checks are helpful, as they will reveal any bankruptcies, CCJs or anything that could raise red flags. Employer’s references are also important to make sure a tenant has the position they claim to and this also helps to ensure they can pay the rent.

Another good check to run is with their previous landlord. This is a great way to ensure that they are good at keeping regular payments and that they looked after their previous rental property properly.

As complaints don’t go away just because you ignore them, it is important to review them thoroughly and then react in a timely manner.

There will be issues that crop up, that tenants will complain about. It is best to deal with these as quickly as possible before they escalate. Always deal with grievances in an honest, open and proactive manner, listening carefully to what your tenant has to say, review the situation and then react appropriately. When you have a plan of action in mind, let your tenant know how you intent to resolve it with time-scales.

Issues can often be sorted immediately and on informal terms before they grow but never over-promise and transparent. However, it may be that their complaint is impossible to resolve or they are asking unrealistic demands, you need to take the time to explain clearly why you feel that they are.

If you work with Newington Estates to handle tenancies and finding suitable tenants, you will find the process much easier.