7 House Rules That Landlords Need To Set For Tenants

I’m sure that when a landlord creates tenancy agreement, you hope that you have covered every bits that are necessary. However, not everyone will cause the same problem. Sometimes, no matter how much you think you have found quality tenants who will not cause you any problem, they still end up creating different kind of problems.

It has happened so many times until you are scared out of your wits on how prevent this from ever happening again. As a landlord, you can make your job easier by setting specific rules for your tenants to abide. But don’t just say it by mouth. Write in down in black-and-white, that is in the tenancy agreement.

Conflict between tenants and landlords can get out of hand when both sides are not clear on what are the rules in maintaining the property unit. There are a variety of reason on why setting house rules beneficial, some of them are:

• Both tenants and landlords can convey their expectations. Most of the time, tenants are not purposely trying to offend you. They simply don’t know that these rules existed. You are able to resolve this by explaining the rules during your tenancy agreement signing, as well as write them in the tenancy agreement. This way, you can clearly voice out your expectations. Tenants would also know how dire is this issue for you.
• You are able to take legal actions. If you have written down your rules and expectations in the tenancy agreement and your tenants still chose not to abide them, you are allowed to take legal action before evicting them. This way, there will be no ‘he-say-she-say’ in the court (worst case scenario) as you are able to show proof in the agreement.
• Protect your property and investment. Imagine if you do not have any of these house rules. Even if we give them benefit of the doubt, the property that you left them with will not be the the same. Be it broken fixtures or even busted furniture, you have to make it clear that you need these rules so that your tenants don’t abuse your property.
  
  

The house rules you need

You can add on to the house rules depending on your priority. But, today, we are going to give you the top X house rules that landlord generally likes to set for their tenants.

1) When rent is due

Setting the due date for rental payment and when is considered late is very important. In fact, many landlords even set a penalty fee is they haven’t received the payment by a certain date. It could be a few percentage of the total rent or a set amount per day until it is paid. If it is too harsh, you can set a grace period of three to five days after the rental payment due date so that tenants are allowed a breathing space if they are slow in cash. This way, the tenants are more encouraged to pay their rent on time, and even scared to pay late.

2) Your right of entry

You might want to check or inspect your property from time to time. By setting up this rule, you are always allowed to go to the property and check on how the property is being maintained by the tenants. But beware, don’t show up unannounced. No one likes being ambushed. Make sure that you are respectful of your tenants. Give your tenants at least a 24-hour notice that you are coming so that they can expect you.

3) What lies as damaged furniture and what happens if it’s damaged

If you are offering a partially or a fully furnished property to your tenants, this point is very important. I am pretty sure that you have invested a lot of money to furnish the unit. Hence, it is very critical that you explain what constitutes a damaged furniture and clearly states what happens if they are damaged. The repercussion could be the tenants deposit. Or if it’s too severe, you could ask the tenant to have them professionally replace. Damaged furniture could mean a shattered lamp, a door with a hole, or even a scratched sofa and/or floor. Explaining all of this will encourage them to take care of your furniture carefully.

Also, you should always keep an inventory of all the furniture and appliances that you have put in the rental property and a picture of the condition of these appliances when you give them the apartment. This way, you have proof against your tenants if they decide to manipulate you and say that the damaged stuff has been there before they move in.

4) Quiet hours

If you live in a high-rise building where the units are close together, it is important for you to discuss quiet hours with your tenant. You don’t possibly want to have bad blood with your neighbor just because your tenants aren’t able to keep the loud music down in the middle of the night, right? Respectfully explaining this to your tenant and making it extremely clear to them will prevent this issue from rising.

5) Cleanliness guidelines

In a residential neighborhood, it is important to maintain cleanliness. Even though this is basic knowledge, but not everyone will follow them. The last thing you want is a vermin and/or rodent problem in your house. This problem can quickly spread and before you know it, the whole building or neighborhood could be infested. If you want to avoid dealing with grungy tenants, establishing guidelines for cleanliness upkeep is important. This could include doing the dishes, throwing away the rubbish, cleaning the stove, also sweeping and mopping the floor. You have a right to evict them if they don’t follow these rules.

6) Appropriate use of appliances

Isn’t it annoying having to fix broken appliances all the time? Kitchen appliances are possibly the most expensive appliance you have in the property unit. Setting a guideline on the appropriate way to use them would probably works best in order to maintain these appliances or fixtures. You can discuss about the way to maintain the oven, the microwave, and also the kitchen hob. This is to ensure that the appliances work properly and don’t get clog up. Not only that, but making sure that the tenants use and clean the washing machine is also important.

7) Pet policies

If you plan to allow your tenants to keep pets in your rental property, you can state what kind of animals you will allow. Some people might allow cats but not dogs. Hence, if you have a preference, state them clearly in the tenancy agreement. In addition, you can state where you don’t want the pets to be. For example, pets are not allowed on the sofa. The issue about pet can cause a huge problem between tenants and landlords. So, please make sure that you are very careful when setting up these rules. Plus, if you live in a residential building like condominiums and apartments, they might not allow pets altogether. Please tell your tenants about what are the management rules that they have to abide.

Additionally, you also need to explain the consequences for violating these rules. There are violations that will call for only harsh verbal warnings, but there are violations that will need instant eviction. Remember, it is much easier to start with a strict rule and ease up as you go rather than starting with a relaxed rule and tightening it up after.