A residential property is one of the most valuable assets you can own. Many people buy properties to make money through capital appreciation, while others lease them for rental income. Purchasing a rental property can be a highly lucrative revenue stream, but just how lucrative depends on the quality of your tenants. If your tenants pay all their bills on time and treat your property with respect, you will have no problems at all. But every landlord has experienced problem customers who refuse to pay their rent, damage the property, get complaints from neighbors, and in the worst cases, take unjust legal action against you.
Evicting such troublesome tenants can be a long and painful process, particularly if they refuse to go quietly. The best course of action is to implement a strict screening process from the start to ensure you find the most respectable tenants and weed out any potential troublemakers. Here are some tips to help you find the perfect tenants for your rental property.
Ask for recommendations
You will usually find the highest volume of applicants come from online listings, but the safest way of finding a respectable tenant is to ask your family and friends. A prospective renter who comes with a recommendation from someone you trust is much more likely to be well-behaved and respectful of the property than a complete stranger. Chat to people at work, post on your social media profiles, and call your loved ones to see if they know anyone looking for a new place to live.
Do background checks
It is usually standard practice to conduct a background check on a prospective tenant, but not all landlords do this sufficiently. If a tenant is not properly vetted, not only may they cause problems, but your negligence could result in your landlord insurance becoming invalid. Financial and identity checks can be easily applied for online. They will tell you whether a tenant is reliable and trustworthy enough to keep on top of rental payments, as well as flagging up anyone with a criminal record. Always ask for references from an employer or previous landlord to get a better sense of their character.
Conduct an interview
You may not get to spend a lot of time with someone before they move into your property, so it is imperative that you ask them the right questions and try to get a sense of who they are. Usually, a short chat is enough to get a feel for someone. Trust your instincts. Even if a prospective tenant looks great on paper, if you don’t feel good about them, don’t be afraid to accept another tenant instead.
Although it is impossible to know for sure whether a tenant will cause trouble, following these steps carefully will minimize the risk. Once they have moved in, you should check in with them on how they are getting on with the property. For peace of mind, consider installing a smart home sensor such as Minut, which can alert you if tenants throw noisy parties or leave the heating on. Always have a legal professional check over your tenant contracts to ensure it will be easy to evict a problem tenant if needed.
Having a strong online presence is crucial for success and can make or break you, no matter your business, whether big or small. After all, even if you have the best product in the world, if you don’t have an online presence, your customers will never be able to find you.
Online presence helps to form a significant part of your online identity and influences how your target audience and clients interact with you. If you are not actively engaging and targeting potential customers online, then your business will be missing out on a massive chunk of potential revenue.
Here are some tips to boost your online presence to avoid your business becoming obsolete on the web.
With the unlimited number of businesses and users popping up all over the place, if you don’t make a noise, no one will notice you in the background. Engage with your customers and clients and respond to queries and feedback to build relationships and a rapport. If there are any negative reviews or suggestions on how you could improve things, show that you are there and willing to actively listen and help with their problems. Being active online will show your customers that you care about their needs, and boost your reputation at the same time.
Use Social Media
What was once used primarily to connect family and friends, has now been adopted by nearly every successful business in the market. Social media offers businesses unlimited potential interactions with clients and customers every day, helping to build awareness around their brand and boost their revenue. Get creative with your social media – create various ad campaigns and share relevant stories explicitly aimed at your audience. Do some research and discover which channels they are more likely to use (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook), and make them your primary focus. Likewise, don’t be afraid to reach out and talk to your customers through comments and messages to solidify your presence even more.
Create a professional website
Aside from social media, your website will be the very first place that people will go to find out more about you and your brand so it’s crucial that it is fully functioning, professional looking and mobile friendly. Lastly, if you are creating your website yourself, you will be spending a lot of your time online so make sure to protect yourself and compare internet providers to get the best deal in your area.
Be adaptable
Whatever your business or industry, the only thing that you can be certain of is that trends rapidly evolve, new technologies are continuously being developed and things are constantly changing. In order to survive and thrive in the world of business you have to make sure that you are open to new ways of doing things, while being open-minded and adaptable or else run the risk of falling behind. The most successful businesses are the ones who are always evolving to cater to the needs of their customers, so make sure to do frequent research into the latest consumer and marketing trends to stay ahead of the competition.
Running a company is a massive commitment, especially if you have a team of employees looking to you for strong leadership. Doing this alongside a family throws up even more demands on your time and emotions. So how can you balance the two and ensure you have time for yourself too?
It’s challenging to separate work from home when you run a business, you have your work family, all of whom need your advice, guidance and support. You also have your actual family, your partner and your children. These guys also require you to support them emotionally. Freeing up time is possible, but you might need to invest a little more into your work to make it happen.
A virtual assistant is a great place to start. Using someone who will look after all of your daily communications. This could mean diverting your phone line, so they take all calls coming into your office, forwarding only the most important ones to you. It could also be managing your office inbox. On average, we spend over 2 hours a day dealing with emails, and many of these aren’t vital. Your virtual assistant can organise everything that comes into your inbox. They will work with you to create template responses and ensure you only need to deal with the most urgent communications. There are other managed services you can use too. Outsourcing to IT companies will save you money on employing staff and help relieve some of the pressures.
If you don’t already have a time management system in place, then it’s worth looking into one. There are multiple companies online that offer systems to help you plan project timelines. The time blocking method is a great way to increase productivity in the workplace. It will also help you to get out of the office at set times every day. You need to work with your employees to create a healthy time block plan. Get everyone together and work out which tasks you have that are the most critical. Your team will be vital in this process. You will highlight your most productive hours and use these to perform the essential jobs. Time blocking ensures everyone is focussed and dedicated to a particular project, and you can use this to manage multiple project deadlines.
You should also set rules for the office and home when it comes to your phone. Your family shouldn’t call you during the day unless it is an emergency. When you get home, you should switch your phone off and not take any work calls. A good solution is to have a work phone and a family phone. Give managers at work more responsibility and steer any late-night emergencies to them. If you rotate this, then all of you will have an equal share should something go wrong. Don’t give your employees your personal phone number. A supervisor should be the only person who has this number, and it should only be used for situations that can’t be controlled without you.
There are many ways you can create a division between your two worlds. Just make sure you set enough time for yourself too. Without you, everyone will suffer.
Life doesn’t always run smoothly, there are a number of little bumps along the way. Being able to call on professional help is one way to get you out of a bind. That’s why it’s a good idea to be able to call on them when you need them.
Lawyer
Most people will need a lawyer at some point in their lives. Having someone like Wasatch Defense Lawyers on hand to help out with any legal issues can give you peace of mind.
Not all legal issues are of criminal nature. You might need a lawyer to deal with issues surrounding family law, employment issues, or if you need to bring a lawsuit against someone else.
By using a company that has a number of lawyers specializing in different areas, you can be confident of getting the right legal advice for the situation from a law firm you trust.
Accountant
Having someone to watch over your financial affairs is a good idea. A good accountant can help you with much more than your tax return.
They can advise you on the best ways to invest your money in a tax-effective way, save for your future, and estate planning to look after your family after you die.
Doctor
Your primary care provider is an important person in your life. They will get to know you and your family’s medical history in detail and build a level of trust with you so that you can go to them with any health issues. People who visit their doctor regularly have less chance of dying from a heart attack, stroke, and cancers.
They can also refer you to any specialists if you have a health condition that they cannot treat.
Specialist Tradespeople
Most people wouldn’t know what to do if they had a plumbing or electrical problem in their home. Being able to call on someone at short notice to deal with your emergency.
Mechanic
Our vehicles are a vital part of our lives, they take us to work and our kids to school. Regular maintenance and servicing by a mechanic can keep them on the road for longer.
A mentor
A business mentor can make a huge difference in both your professional and personal life. A mentor can help you focus and develop your strengths and work on improving your weaker areas.
A mentor can help you at all stages of your career, you don’t need to be a CEO or entrepreneur to benefit from their expertise and guidance.
A mental health professional
Thankfully, the world has come to embrace the need for people to look after their mental health. The stigma that it had in the past is disappearing. You don’t need to be living with a particular mental health condition to speak to someone. Think of it as similar to getting your car serviced, you are looking to keep your mental health in good condition, preventing problems before they become major issues.
If you feel that you are experiencing mental health issues then you need to talk to someone you trust.
Are you considering getting a hot tub put into your home? It could go on the deck or in the backyard, for example. There are many great health reasons to do so. Use this information to persuade your partner that the hot tub is a wise investment, as well as looking forward to the physical and mental health benefits yourself.
Better Range of Motion
As you age, it’s natural to lose at least some of your range of motion, particularly if you have a condition like arthritis. With regular use of a hot tub, though, you can enjoy some increases in flexibility compared to what you had before.
Furthermore, if you are stiff because of a medical condition or for any other reason, the warm water can help alleviate muscle tension. This relaxed state is one you can look forward to doing after work and on weekends.
While in the water, why not try out some gentle exercises? You will likely find they are easier thanks to the water-induced buoyancy that takes weight off sore joints. If you have a medical condition, though, always speak with your doctor before starting a new fitness activity of any kind.
Easing Back Pain
You are not alone if you experience back pain. But knowing that doesn’t make it any less bothersome; lower back pain can cause discomfort at work and interrupt your social time too. You may be less likely to go out at night when you are sore.
Research shows that people with chronic back pain who did hydrotherapy treatment experienced at least some relief. Of course, always make sure that you follow your doctor’s advice and instructions.
Sleep Improvements
If you have trouble sleeping, there could be many reasons for it, including stress and anxiety. If your thoughts keep you awake at night, you could benefit from a hot tub’s relaxing environment.
Laying in the warm water is a restful activity for both the body and mind. Unwind from the day, escaping any worries as you enjoy the soak. The feelings of peace can help you drift into a deep slumber afterward in bed.
More Family Time
If you and the family are finding it hard to connect lately, perhaps you simply need to find an activity that you all can share and love. A hot tub can provide a relaxing way to bond with your spouse and kids.
Talk about your day when all together in the hot tub and create new memories as a family. The time together will be fun, as well as relaxing and private place to enjoy together.
Ensure the hot tub is put correctly into your preferred location at home using a reputable crane hire. Then you are ready to fill and start your hot tub to enjoy the great moments ahead.
Final Words on Home Hot Tubs
Immersed in warm water, you can receive many health benefits. You could have a soak in the morning before heading to work or enjoy a relaxing time in the water at night. Your mind and body will thank you, as will your family!
Recent Comments