How to locate a good tenant.

As an investor our goal is to profit from the housing boom, many are acquiring Townhomes and Condo`s that can be easily rented out.
I receive calls each day from investors who are looking to invest in a property. We explain to them that there are excellent investments throughout the State of Florida, but are they willing to become a Landlord?
We explain to our first time investors they need to examine such factors as the health of the local economy and the supply and demand for rental housing. Do they understand that the rent will probably offset the mortgage leaving very little profit.
Low interest rates have allowed many former renters to buy their own homes in recent years, removing some of the most reliable tenants from the mix. Finding a good tenant is not easy if you don`t understand what your looking for. In our first meetings with our clients I constantly ask the following question to our investors " Are you willing to cope with the hassles of dealing with tenants?"
Concessions must be made, after all this is your home and investment. Finding a good tenant can be done in many ways. You must have a game plan.
For those willing to put up with the ordeals of owning rental property, here are some tips that we use.
FIGURE OUT YOUR TOTAL COSTS. Unless you take into account all of your costs, you won't know whether you're making money.
"Most people underestimate their expenses dramatically. You must include insurance, maintenance and property taxes.
All of these costs can easily eat up half of expected rental income if your not careful. That's why we like to purchase pre-construction and condo conversions that have warranties on all appliances. Thereby, offsetting our costs to do any major repairs. In locating Condo Conversions for our clients we like to focus on buildings that are less than 3 years old.
SCREEN POTENTIAL TENANTS. Many landlords use a variety of Internet services to check on applicants' credit histories as well as any past evictions or criminal troubles. My theory is that if they don't pay Visa or Mastercard, they're not going to pay me.. Having a professional look at FICO or Beacon scores is very helpful in determining the credit history of a tenant. We never recommend to our clients to consider accepting a tenant who refuses to supply us with credit information. Beacon scores that run between 610-680 are very good, when screening a tenant. This gives us insight as to how they pay their bills.
UNDERSTAND THE FAIR HOUSING ACT. Among other things, this 1968 law prohibits discrimination in the renting of housing based on race, color, national origin, religion, gender, family status or disability.
That doesn't mean you have to rent to anyone who comes along. But you should strictly follow written policies about your criteria for selecting tenants so you can't be accused of bias. It is lawful, for instance, to refuse to rent to convicted criminals. But you could be vulnerable to complaints of discrimination if you applied that rule only to certain applicants. If you want to run criminal checks on some applicants, run them on all.
Never go with "GUT FEELINGS" as some of our clients tell us they`ve done in the past, in order to save paying a commission to a professional Realtor.
REACT QUICKLY WHEN TENANTS CAUSE TROUBLE OR DON'T PAY. There are a lot of people who have convincing stories about why they haven't paid the rent. But you have to stick to your standards. We`ve learned over time to be polite but firm and direct. After 30 days, we normally will start the eviction process. In some cases we`ll start sooner.
Many rely on the courts to evict deadbeat renters. 90% of the time we`re able to work out problems informally by visiting tenants often a five-day notice will encourage them to leave are cases in which we`ve refunded security deposits and pay the remaining rent if they leave as requested providing no damage has incurred.
INSPECT THE PROPERTY REGULARLY. Make sure to inspect each unit once every three months. During the inspection bring your camera to record any evidence that a tenant isn't fulfilling responsibilities.
BE READY FOR PROBLEMS. Landlords need strong stomachs. Expenses can come in big lumps. Always have a minimum of $5000 on the sidelines just in case.
MAKE SURE YOU ARE PROPERLY INSURED. Renters insurance is a great idea to have. Don`t think you`ll be one of the lucky one`s without proper insurance.
Please feel free to contact our office @954-275-0200 for any assistance. It`s our pleasure working with you .