Are you a reluctant landlord candidate?

So exactly what is a reluctant landlord? Maybe its you!

So you have tried to sell the house, hired an agent, completed all the repairs you needed, even buried the statue in the yard! Yet after all that no one has wanted to pay you what you need for the home to recover your costs and pay off your loan. So now what?

Well, what about renting out your home? Hmmm.....maybe someone will make the house payment for me while I wait for the market to "recover"? My agent tells me that the recovery is about 2 years away and then maybe the home will go up in value. Sounds like a good idea, but how willl I find a tenant? Make repairs? Collect rent? What if they don't pay?

Maybe I should hire a professional manager? But don't they cost a bunch of money, and then I will still not have enough to cover the payment? How much do they cost?

To answer that question and concern first understand what a property manager will do. They will perform any tasks you want them to help with, from just repairs or tenant screening all the way up to full service where they handle everything for you! And the cost? A fulll service manager on a residential single family home in most markets will charge you based on the rent collected, normally in the 8-10% of the rent paid range. To find a tenant they normally will charge 50 to 100% of the first months rent to find, show, and screen a tenant including preparing the lease document and holding the security deposit. So on a home that will rent for $1000 per month, the fees will range from $500 to $1,000 to find the tenant initially and then $80 to $100 per month to mangae the monthly activity. Not too bad?

And if something breaks? Normally the manager will have it repaired for you faster and less costly than if you have to find your own repair person as they have either an in-house maintenance team or repair professionals on speed-dial. They can normally get better prices than you with in-house maintenance charging by the hour or a contract repairperson that they have a relationship with, and many charge a small maintenance supervision fee to watch the work but it is still less than you could find on your own, and hassle-free!

Remember that all property management fees are negotiable, most states require managers to have a license (so make sure you ask), and check references. But isn't this better than letting your house sit vacant while you make the payment, or denying you the chance to purchase your dream home because you can't sell your current home? 

Maybe its time you think of taking down the "For Sale" sign and installing the "For Rent" sign?