Whether you want to rent out your own property for going on transfers or for going on a holiday, there are some factors to be kept in mind regarding How to Rent Your House. Renting can fetch great income, but the owner should know the terms and agreements and have a thorough of the do’s and don’ts to avoid any discrepancies later on.
The first point is whether you intend renting your house by yourself by placing advertisements in newspapers or by doing it online at the various real estate property rentals with photographs of your home, the amenities and number of rooms, rent amount, the period of lease, contact info etc or whether you would like to work this out through a rental agent.
If you opt for the former, investing in property management software could be viable for staying organized. If you decide to do it on your own, posting online your property details may require a small fee, but caution should be exercised as to the amount of personal information you hand out and it is always safe to a credit check of your potential tenants before renting out to them.
Screen the tenants, their credit standing, their employment details and make an analysis of whether they can pay your rent comfortably with their salary, check out with the previous landlord regarding the tenant’s ability to pay the rent regularly etc.
Drawing up of a lease agreement is very vital for How to Rent Your House. Seeking the help of a real estate lawyer would be advisable for this. The lease could include details of the period of lease, possibility of increase of rent after a period, whether monthly rents are to be paid, the amount of rent and the date of payment, fines or penalties for late payments, if any, etc. Here, checking with the state rental properties can offer guidance on charging of penalty fees.
The lease agreement should also include details like furnished or unfurnished accommodation, whether pets are allowed or not, paying of bills pertaining to electric current, heat, water etc, parking spots available and snow plowing fees etc.
Getting a security deposit even if the tenant is the ideal one for your house is always beneficial in the long run. List down the security deposit in the lease agreement which will come in handy for covering unpaid rents or repairs work later on.
Specify certain other conditions like smoking or non smoking, the number of tenants allowed or guests permitted, what is the notice period requirement, maintenance and repair works, painting the rooms is allowed or not should all be put down in the lease agreement for safety reasons.
By and large, hiring a rental agent is always a better option as they would have had more exposure to the real estate market and can give you better guidance. A rental agent may require you to forward information like details of your house, design a listing and place ads for the rentals, scan and review the clients who are interested, including the details of their credit backgrounds and then present them for final approval from you.
The rental agent’s charges may range from half a month to full month fee which will be collected from you at the time of signing of the lease with your tenant. Here again, the agent may decide to collect the fee from the landlord or the tenant in full or split this fee in between both the parties, as convenient.
Aside the lease agreement, know the landlord and tenants agreement laws, especially the Federal Housing Act (FHA) which stands for the tenants and requires the landlord to making provisions for physically handicapped people or elderly citizens and cautions landlords against racial discriminations regarding age, race, religion, ethnic background, nationality etc.
It is always important that you be present when the tenant is moving in to know what are the existing damages and taking photographs can be helpful too! Do the same when the tenant is moving out as both these are valuable piece of evidence should any security deposit issues arise later on.
Informing your neighbours about your renting out the property can ensure safety and knowing the eviction laws is also very essential in case such a situation should arise.
Best of Luck with your renting!
