Renters ... the scum of the earth ?

[ToxicBunny]

I've never rented from anyone, but I've rented to before, and all I can say is it is true that people simply have zero respect for what does not belong to them.
Every 2 year's between tenants, half the house had to be fixed up in some way or other.

This is the thing..

Thankfully I've been lucky so far with my tenants in my granny flat. Only had to repaint after 2 years....

 

[proxilin]

I think it's important for the landlord to meet the tenant, and be free to judge all they want. If the person presents nice, and you hear they are a professional with a good job, and look whether the car they have is looked after, I think you start getting a better picture of the person. Going through an agency that doesn't really care about your property is going to end up in tears. I'd probably go through an agency, but be clear that I want to be present when potential tenants come for a viewing, and would want to choose the tenant myself.

I've always been a tenant, and I've found it works out the best if the landlord actually lives on the property as well. For the landlord this firstly scares of some of the chancers because they know they won't be able to live like pigs privately. For the tenant it also means that maintenance work is usually quickly taken care of by the landlord. I realise that both parties living on the property can end badly, but I've only had good experiences. That being said, I also judge my future landlords when I meet them, and have chosen good ones.

 

[OverKill69]

I rent out... so let me give prospective tenants some insight into what most of us landlords are looking for:

1) 6 month lease is a little short... a year is better, but if it HAS to be 6 months, then a lease expiring in January is better than one expiring in November and December. Worst time to try and get new tenants in.

2) Someone who pays rent on time, doesn't need to be the 1st, or the 3rd, or even the 5th... but pays reliably, and if there is ever any problems, a courtesy call to let your landlord in on the situation is reassuring.

3) Treat the place as if it's your own. Show initiative and interest in the property. If something breaks or gets damaged, PLEASE inform us TIMEOUSLY. A geyser won't stop leaking on its own, and a broken lock is a security risk. If it's something small, and you can fix it yourself... FIX IT! I'm sure 99% of landlords won't mind a couple hundreds bucks here and there off the rent as long as you let them know. But don't get Uncle Louis to replace the swimming pool pump for R28000 and then ask for the money back.

4) Don't phone us that the lights aren't working in the kitchen... only to come out and the bulb has burnt.

5) Make sure you discuss security contracts, household insurance, water and lights... all before something goes wrong... and it WILL go wrong.

6) Agents suck. Rather bypass the agent and develop a good relationship with the landlord directly.

7) If your landlord sucks, then bug the agent because it's their job to deal with sucky landlords.

8) Don't be a sucky tenant

 

[Grant]

I have tenants in 2 properties of mine. Both have been in the respective properties for some years now.
As a "landlord" (hate the word) I have always looked for people with a stable and verifiable background as opposed to those who can simply afford the rental. If their past history was good, I have been prepared to lower the rental in order to secure good tenants. It is very much a two way street.
As a tenant, I expect you to look after the properly & not trash it.
As a landlord, I make sure any problems are attended to immediately. Also, if the tenant would like improvements done, I am willing to explore that, as it unlimitedly adds value to the property & desirability to live there on the part of the tenant.

MY best advice to someone who wants to rent a property, is to provide as many easily contactable references as possible, banking, employment and even character references from respected friends as well as any from the owners of pervious properties you may have rented.
If it is a property you really want, you have to sell yourself.
Also as a prospective tenant, find out a little about the owner of the property. if possible speak to previous tenants, and even neighbors. If the landlord is a twat, they will be sure to let you know.

 

[DerpiesFreud]

We have been both tenants and landlords

as landlords,all our tennants are/were referred by close family/friends
Never had an issue in all these years.
Maintenance was always done on time and regularly(nobody wants to live in a dump)


As tennants,we always paid on time,maintained the place...went well
except one place which was an absolute dump,we GTFO ASAP

 

[TJ99]

We have been both tenants and landlords

as landlords,all our tennants are/were referred by close family/friends
Never had an issue in all these years.
Maintenance was always done on time and regularly(nobody wants to live in a dump)


As tennants,we always paid on time,maintained the place...went well
except one place which was an absolute dump,we GTFO ASAP

Aren't you like 20? How can you afford properties at that age? Rich uncle die and leave you a few platinum mines?

 

[DerpiesFreud]

Aren't you like 20? How can you afford properties at that age? Rich uncle die and leave you a few platinum mines?

WE
We = {Parents,Uncle/Aunts,Siblings,etc}
I`m talking from their experiences,I don`t have any property...I`m just along for the ride

 

[droplet]

always meet the landlord. you don't rent a property, you rent the owner of the property

 

[OverKill69]

always meet the landlord. you don't rent a property, you rent the owner of the property

profound...
deep...
and...
NONSENSE

I've had a number of different types of tenants, and they've NEVER rented me. Just my properties...

If you ask me, if you're a crusty landlord, then you'll eventually fail at the game because it's not sustainable.
But bad tenants... they can live on forever!

I've had all sorts!
-The professional, court savvy, con artist (who never paid a cent for 2 years)
-The foreign diplomat (who ran a sweat shop in the house)
-The clueless marketing guru gym bunny (who puts a whole bucket of HTH into the pool)

but I've also had...
-The dream tenants: Guy paid RELIGIOUSLY, sent photos of meters and his partner owned a gardening service! BEST TENANTS EVER!!!
-The single mom who needed help: She didn't always pay the full amount, but she always let me know and she did what she could and more to look after my house.
-The student digs: The guys were polite, kept me informed, kept things in order, and even managed to get the "rainbird" system working again (hadn't worked since I bought the place).

If you're a property owner that doesn't look after the place and blatantly avoids doing necessary repairs and maintenance, chances are, you're going to lose money at a rapid rate of knots when things start getting out of hand. These owners usually don't want the hassle of owning a property, and sell... or their asset loses so much value that they can't get people to move in anymore. Bad landowners get burned.

Bad tenants will still be around after the nuclear apocalypse. Bad tenants and cockroaches.

 

[Compton_effect]

profound...
deep...
and...
NONSENSE

I've had a number of different types of tenants, and they've NEVER rented me. Just my properties...

If you ask me, if you're a crusty landlord, then you'll eventually fail at the game because it's not sustainable.
But bad tenants... they can live on forever!

I've had all sorts!
-The professional, court savvy, con artist (who never paid a cent for 2 years)
-The foreign diplomat (who ran a sweat shop in the house)
-The clueless marketing guru gym bunny (who puts a whole bucket of HTH into the pool)

but I've also had...
-The dream tenants: Guy paid RELIGIOUSLY, sent photos of meters and his partner owned a gardening service! BEST TENANTS EVER!!!-The single mom who needed help: She didn't always pay the full amount, but she always let me know and she did what she could and more to look after my house.
-The student digs: The guys were polite, kept me informed, kept things in order, and even managed to get the "rainbird" system working again (hadn't worked since I bought the place).

If you're a property owner that doesn't look after the place and blatantly avoids doing necessary repairs and maintenance, chances are, you're going to lose money at a rapid rate of knots when things start getting out of hand. These owners usually don't want the hassle of owning a property, and sell... or their asset loses so much value that they can't get people to move in anymore. Bad landowners get burned.

Bad tenants will still be around after the nuclear apocalypse. Bad tenants and cockroaches.

My wife loves gay tenants - they fix the place up and normally end up buying.
But lesbian... Once ended up with the sheriff of the court having to use bolt cutters to open the gate for the movers, while four screaming women inside were hurling abuse at them over the barking of their 20 dogs.