For better or worse, preparing units for tenant turnover is part of every property manager’s job. There’s good news, though. Just a few simple strategies can go a long way toward making the turnover process more efficient and cost-effective....

Your vacancy rate is low and you have great long-time tenants. Sure, comparable units are renting for more, but why raise rents when things are going so well? Because, just like any other market, the rental market is cyclical. As...

A line from John Belushi’s character in the 1978 movie Animal House sums up the concerns many landlords have when it comes to renting to college students: “Food fight!” While it’s true students can be hard on rental...

Security deposits—and how they’re handled—may be one of the most misunderstood topics for landlords and property managers alike. Part of this confusion stems from the fact that security deposit laws vary from state-to-state. For example, many states have...

I don’t know about you, but I hate filling vacant units. Maybe hate is a strong word, but searching for tenants, screening tenants, and doing showings just to fill a single vacant unit is a major pain. So...

Chances are, at some point in your property management career, you’ll have to evict a tenant. Whether it’s because he hasn’t paid his rent, threw one too many late-night parties, or violated any other term of the lease...

Not only do we all want our tenants to feel safe, but we also want them to actually be safe. The last thing any property manager wants is for a tenant to fall victim to injury, theft, or...

Wouldn’t it be great if all tenants stayed in their units for multiple years, agreeing to regular rent increases, obeying all the rules, and paying their rent on time? Since the reality is that tenants come and go...