Blog

We are talking today about the new Indianapolis Landlord Registration ordinance that went into effect January 1, 2015. Indianapolis has followed the lead of several municipalities around the country and is now requiring property owners and investors to register in their system each year. The cost is $5, and that’s $5 per property owner. So if you have four properties you need to register and you do them all at the same time, it’s going to cost you $5. If you go in and register them each individually, it will cost you $20 or $5 per registration. There are two ways to register your property. You can go down to the Code Enforcement office. They have a kiosk set up in their lobby and you can register there. The other option is to register online. It takes about five minutes per property and it’s not very difficult. The link for that website is here: https://permitsandcases.indy.gov/citizenAccess/ When you go to register, make sure you have a parcel number for each of the properties you are going to register as well as the number of units on each parcel. Then, they will want the contact information for the individual responsible for each property.

In today’s blog, we’re talking about three things you can do to help minimize the damage to your Indianapolis area rental property. Setting Expectations The first and most important thing to do is to set clear expectations for your tenant up front. If you are a coach or a parent, you’ve probably noticed that kids will often meet your expectations, whether they are high or low. When they know what you want, they’re going to deliver. Tenants are usually the same way, so it’s important to let them know that you have high expectations for how they will care for and treat the property while they’re living there. Documentation Documentation is always important. When the tenants move in, let them see you document every inch of that property. We recommend that you take at least 100 photos at the move in. Shoot a video as well that details the condition of the home’s interior and exterior. Do this with the tenant alongside you. Then, your tenants will see how important it is to you. Have a detailed checklist as well. Ours is six pages long, and we walk through the unit with the tenant and go over it, line by line. Have the tenant sign the checklist at the end so the condition is documented and everyone agrees how the property looks. Inspections Periodic inspections are important in protecting the condition of your home. You might want to go in there twice a year or quarterly. When you get inside the property, you can see how things are doing. Sometimes you can catch a big problem while it’s still small, and that will save you a lot of maintenance money. If you have a contractor you trust and have a good relationship with, have them observe things when they’re there to take care of repairs or issues. Tenants are always on their best behavior when a landlord visits, but when a vendor comes over, they can usually see how things really are.

On our blog today, we are taking a few moments to talk about three specific events that tell you it’s time for an eviction. Hopefully, you will have a better understanding of when it’s time to get rid of your problem tenants. Payment Issues It’s pretty clear that you need to evict a tenant who is not paying rent or is slow to pay every month. Landlords often ask us how long they should wait to get the process started. It’s critical that you start right away. Don’t wait 30 days to pursue an eviction. If rent is due on the fifth of the month and it’s not paid on the sixth, send out a letter letting the tenants know that the lack of payment won’t be tolerated. If you do get to an eviction with the tenant in this situation, it’s important that you understand whether you should be taking any money from them or not. If they want to pay half this week and half next week, it’s not a good idea to immediately agree. This can mess up your eviction process and you should only accept partial payments if the tenant really wants to make the situation whole. Ask yourself if this is a tenant you want to continue doing business with, or if it is better to cut ties. Breaking Lease Terms Another good reason to evict is when your tenants violate the lease. Maybe a tenant has moved in an additional person or a pet that was unexpected and not approved. Again, you must take action immediately. Let them know you are aware of the situation and that they need to remedy it, or action will be taken. It’s important to be consistent. If you have a couple of units or multiple properties, be consistent across the board or you’re opening yourself up to liability. Maintenance and Behavior Issues This reason for eviction is a little more subtle. Perhaps your tenants are not maintaining the property the way you expect them to. It’s possible they are not changing the furnace filters regularly or keeping the gutters clean. Maybe they are a nuisance in neighborhood – they could be throwing parties all the time and generating police activity. This will affect the value of your property and your standing with the neighbors in your community. It’s important that you detail your expectations up front. At Indiana Property Management Group, we have tenants who are moving into a property sign a six-page maintenance addendum that spells out their responsibilities.

Today we are talking about the three areas to focus on if you want to get your property rented quickly in the Indianapolis area. Rent Ready First, you need to pay attention to the inside and the outside of the house and make sure it is rent ready. The landscaping outside doesn’t have to be fancy and ornate, but it does have to be clean, trimmed and maintained well. Your property’s exterior should make people want to get out of the car and come into the house. Once those potential renters are inside, they want to see clean carpet and freshly painted walls. You need to have appliances that sparkle. The kitchens and bathrooms have to be especially spotless. Those are hot buttons for prospective tenants. Marketing Once the property is ready for the rental market, you need to let people know it’s available. You do that by strategically marketing the property to as many potential renters as possible. The hottest way to generate leads right now is through online advertising. When you list your rental online, you’ll get your property filled fast. There are three or four websites that really drive traffic, and we get leads in from dozens of sites; some we’ve never heard of. Follow Up Once leads are generated and you’re getting requests for information from people looking for rental homes, follow up quickly. It has become so easy for prospective tenants to make inquiries on multiple houses within a matter of minutes. They are able to ask about 10 or 15 houses at a time. You want to be