Being a landlord means you can sometimes find yourself dealing with challenging tenancy issues.
Knowing the best ways of resolving those issues can save huge amounts of time, effort, and cash.
In the latest edition of the LandlordZONE Podcast, Suzy Hershman, Resolution Department Lead at mydeposits and Property Redress, gives her five top tips for a successful tenancy.
She is interviewed by podcast hosts Nigel Lewis and Paul Shamplina.
She said: “In an ideal world, every tenant would have the home that they want, wherever they want it and at an affordable rent for them.
“And every landlord would have the perfect tenant, who looks after the property and pays their rent.”
However, tenancies can far too often end up in a dispute and Hershman’s first top tip for a successful tenancy highlights the importance of establishing a good working relationship with the tenant.
She says that this relationship needs to be open, transparent and approachable.
Second, she said it is about setting expectations for both the tenant and landlord.
She said: “So setting expectations right from the start and it's not just for the tenant, landlords need to manage their own expectations.”
She explained that this can be particularly important when it comes to issues of wear and tear.
Third, she says landlords must protect their property from the beginning.
“You need to be giving all of those instructions right at the beginning to make sure that your property is being looked after in the way that you want it to be looked after. And the tenant is aware of that,” she explained.
This translates in practice to having a robust inventory that is done at the start of the relationship.
Hershman said: “It's about the quality of the inventory and the detail that you put into it because even a professional company can provide a poor inventory.
On this note, she says the biggest tip is to make sure landlords do regular inspections, every three or four months.
“The longer the tenancy goes on, the longer the property is going to deteriorate due to wear and tear,” she added.
Fourth, she says landlords need to maintain the relationships and be approachable.
“Maintain your relationships with that tenant during the tenancy. If they're having a problem, make sure you’re approachable, and be willing to have a conversation with them,” she urged.
Finally, she says it is important to handle issues proactively.
“Whenever something crops up, whenever your tenant lets you know there's a problem or your agent has done an inspection for you and seen something that maybe needs attention, that you deal with it at the time. If at all possible.
“It avoids things compounding, issues growing as tenancies go on.”
“We want landlords to stay in the market as long as possible,” she concluded.
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