If you are new to the commercial property industry you should learn about certain policies that landlords usually set and the reasons behind those rules.

Unless you work with a property manager to guide you through the rental property operating systems, it’s best to think about what rules you need to set for your tenants in advance. By setting these policies you will be able to avoid business failure and troublesome disputes with the renters.

You can set the rules and the policies by including them in the lease. You must remember that different states have certain property laws that might restrain you from getting some policies. Therefore, you must get familiar with the legal system in your region beforehand.

Landlords’ priority is always protecting their main asset and the source of income – the property (or properties).  Setting the following rules will give you the upper hand to take legal action if necessary and set accurate expectations for your tenants. Moreover, this action will allow you to maintain the perfect conditions of your rental property and make a big profit with little to no issues.

1. Always Pay Rent On Time

If you ask any experienced property investor what their biggest concern with the business is, they will say it’s rent payments. There may be times when your tenant is having a hard time financially and it’s understandable. You might allow them to pay the rent late once or twice, however, often tenants tend to get used to paying rent late or not at all.

As a landlord and a businessperson, you must be prepared to face this loss. Although it’s most likely that your state law protects your right to receive payment in exchange for allowance on your property, it’s best to include the rent payment terms in your lease.

Put down the important details such as the due date of rent payments and the allowed extension of that time frame.

2. Maintenance

Negligence is one of the most prominent issues that property owners face. Bad tenants might cause many avoidable damages to your property. You must remember that the law obliges you to fix most of the maintenance issues that arise on the rental.

To restrain your tenants from causing avoidable maintenance issues, you should include “maintaining the conditions of the property” in the lease. This rule is essential to keep the perfect shape of the exterior if you have a lawn that needs to be cared for, as well as an interior that should be kept clean.

3. Ownership of the Assets

Remember to keep the entitlement of the furniture and other assets of the property. In case you rent fully furnished property to the tenants, you should protect the ownership over the items. You must put this term in the lease if you don’t want these possessions to be sold one day without your consent.

Although this is unlikely to happen, the risk is still there. Moreover, in some instances, the tenants tend to take some of the valuable items with them when they move out.

4. Sub-Letting Rental Units

One of the common issues that property owners face is their tenants renting out the property to guests daily or weekly. You might consent to such actions, however, if you don’t it’s best to keep the restriction in the lease.

Depending on your area, it’s most likely that the law forbids the tenants to sublet rented units, but you can never be too safe. As a landlord, you might end up in a situation where the renter rents out the property without your knowledge and you end up making less profit than them.

Moreover, renting the property to guests daily and in secret might cause many misunderstandings and problems. Daily guests could damage the property in many ways and the tenant might be unable to hold them responsible for their actions due to the violation of rules on their part. Therefore, remember to strictly forbid subletting your rental property.

5. A Landlord’s Right To Entry

The property is lawfully yours, but it doesn’t mean that you can enter whenever you want to when you rent it out to the tenants. Many states require the property owner to give the renters a 24-hour notice before entering the property.

However, there are instances of emergency situations. You might also be working with a regional property manager who might often take your place for check-ups and in cases of emergencies. Therefore, it would be wise to set the rule where you state that you or your property manager are allowed to enter the property without notice in case of emergency.

If you have a property manager, include their rights and responsibilities in the lease agreement as well to avoid misunderstandings.

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Final Thoughts

Setting rules and policies might seem unnecessary as the law protects your rights in most aspects of landlord-tenant relationships. However, it’s better to be safe than sorry. In some instances, the law doesn’t cover every area or is very unclear. Therefore, you need to set distinctions and specifications.