As someone who’s been in the real estate game for a while, I thought I’d seen it all. But nothing prepared me for the crazy turn of events that would change the way I look at being a landlord. This is the story of how I learned the importance of being ready for anything, especially when life throws you a curveball that feels like something out of a detective show.
Our silent, long-time tenant Doug, who had been living in the house for 19 years, was always on time with his rent and peculiarly resistant to the clerical side of paperwork. He was as reliable as they come. His sudden lack of communication or rent payment made for a puzzling start to an unimaginable series of events…
The First Clues
When Doug missed his rent payment and stopped answering our calls, my husband and I knew something was up. We decided it was time to pay a visit to our elusive resident. What followed was an eerie, unanswered knock, and the scent of stale cigarette smoke hanging in the air. It wasn’t until we ventured further and discovered a letter on the floor, left unopened, that we knew something was amiss.
The neighbor’s sparse sightings and our own investigation led to dead-end speculations. The mounting dread pushed us to make a daring decision — to enter the premises when no other options for contact seemed viable. What we found was far from anything we had emotionally or professionally prepared for.
The Horrifying Discovery and the Realities of Emergency Response
Opening the door into the unknown, the last thing you anticipate is finding a body. Yet, there it was. Panic ensued, followed by the reluctant but frantic call to emergency dispatch.
For the record, the dispatcher had zero, nada, zilch respect for my CSI experience. (Nor a sense of humor). This was one (of many) lessons of that day: Don’t joke with emergency dispatch. They take death VERY seriously for some reason.
All jokes aside, the ordeal forced us to confront a stark truth about property management: The reality is that natural causes can visit your tenants just as much as they can visit your property. And as the authority at the helm, it’s our responsibility to be as prepared as possible, even for the unimaginable.
Lesson One: Professional Distance and Preparedness
The haunting image of that day yields many lessons, but one stands out above the rest. Landlords cannot afford to blur the lines between professional duty and personal association with tenants, no matter how long-standing their residency may be. In retrospect, a non-emergency well-check request could have spared us the visual trauma and logistical nightmare that followed our discovery.
Preparation, in this context, takes on an entirely new weight. This isn’t simply about property maintenance or tenant verification; it’s about preparing yourself for every eventuality, with clear protocols and the emotional fortitude to implement them.
Lesson Two: Regular Check-Ins as a Form of Safety
The biggest hindsight is the realization that we must enforce a consistent system of property check-ins, not merely as a managerial gesture, but as a duty of care. Regular visits to the property could have signaled a distress signal far earlier, giving Doug the chance for timely assistance.
Implementing Regular Check-Ins
Strategic scheduling and formalized visitation policies are pivotal in the welfare of your properties and tenants. Here are the essential steps to implement regular check-ins that safeguard against unseen issues:
1. Determine a Regularity: Establish a frequency for your check-ins. Quarterly visits are often sufficient but adjusting this to suit the needs of your properties is necessary.
2. Develop a Checklist: Create a detailed checklist of all the vital areas that need inspection. From visible repairs to potential hazards, being thorough is key.
3. Notify Your Tenants: Proper communication is respectful and legally sound. Alert your tenants of the upcoming visits well in advance, outlining the reasons for these checks.
4. Professional Conduct: These check-ins are business. Maintain professionalism to avoid any misunderstanding.
5. Follow-Through: After
each check-in, ensure actions are taken if issues are discovered. This could be arranging maintenance, pest control, or consulting the tenant for cleanliness and care.
The Importance of Documentation
Every visit should be documented, complete with photos to supplement reports where necessary. This serves as a record that doubles as your protection and a sense of transparency for tenants.
How to Handle Emergency Communication
In the event of a tenant issue or, as witnessed in my experience, a tragedy, knowing how to engage with emergency services is invaluable.
1. Remain Calm: Emergency calls demand clarity, and a calm mind produces effective communication.
2. Provide Clear Information: Know your property’s exact address, understand the issue at hand, and relay the situation with precision.
3. Offer Reassurance: For services that require you to guide them in, supply the presence of calm and readiness on your end.
4. Trust the Process: Once you’ve relayed the information, allow professionals to take over. Stay accessible for inquiries and updates, but also recognize when they instruct you to remain across the threshold of the situation.
The Verdict on Protection and Empathy
Beyond these logistical defenses, the emotional barriers must stay intact. It’s the only way to balance empathy and professionalism, providing a safety net for tenants while managing your business prudently.
The tenants under our watch are not just sources of income; they are individuals with their own stories, struggles, and, at times, silences that need decoding. Our responsibility is to be the staunch guardians that anticipate and act on those silent cries.
These experiences, while jarring and deeply impacting, are growth opportunities. They underscore the necessary evolution of a landlord’s
role, encapsulating protection, foresight, and, above all, the empathy that is the undercurrent of every effective property management strategy.
In Closing
To all landlords, whether you’re just starting out or have been in the game for a while, this story is packed with insights that can really change how you deal with your properties and tenants. Understanding the importance of our roles is the first step, but it’s just as crucial to put that understanding into action by making sure we’re always ready – both practically and emotionally – for whatever comes our way behind those doors.