Landlord Location

I rented a house two blocks from my landlord. They were great landlords, and when something went wrong, they were right there and extremely responsive. I know they were keeping an eye on things, but at the time, I welcomed it. I was a single woman then working second shift and going to school part time. I came home late a night and was gone quite a bit. They never intruded or stopped by unannounced. All in all it was a positive experience.

I do t think I would matter as much to the renter as it would to the landlord.
If I owned an out if town/state rental property? I'd get a realty to handle it for me.
If I was renting an apartment or a house? I'd just want to know who to call if something breaks and where to send the rent.?i do t see why a landlord within walking distance would be a big plus.

Owning and managing a rental property yourself is akin to owning and running a business. How comfortable are you living very close to your place of business? Some people are more comfortable than others.

As long as you're not nosy and intrusive, a good, responsible tenant will probably appreciate having you (the landlord) close by (see JB's post below).

That being said, you need boundaries on your private family time too. Are they going to knock on your door Christmas Day when the dishwasher breaks? Who will handle stuff like that?

You are wise to think this through carefully before you make a decision. You may also want to talk with a real estate attorney or local property manager to get a feel for potential pitfalls (though property managers will try to solicit your business).

Good luck.

I found that the landlords who were farthest away were the worst, but really I only had one who didn't live nearby so take my sample size of 1 with a grain of salt. The ones who were nearby were invested in the property more...because their rental property was in their neighborhood, they made sure that things were kept up nicely and they were able to address maintenance issues quickly.

My absentee landlords were around only a few times a year. They would start work and not finish it, or have someone do work and then not inspect it to make sure it was done well (it was always shoddy work done on the cheap) and were slow to respond to things like a gutter dripping on the stairs creating a perpetual icy situation, or broken hallway lights, etc.

My local landlords were friendly and responsive but not intrusive, and they respected the privacy of their tenants. If you had a really controlling or busy-body landlord, then I could see how having him or her nearby would be a negative but if she or he is a professional person with good boundaries, it's nice.

Not to say that all absent landlords are bad by any means - I have plenty of friends who own rental property a few hours away from their own homes - but it's easier to be out of sight, out of mind if you don't walk past your property every day. So as a tenant, I took it as a plus when my landlords were local.

We rented three places before we built our home. The first was an apartment - no problem. The second was a town house and the landlords moved 20 minutes north. That was fine. The next was a house right next door to the landlords. Pure hell. But that wife of the couple makes life horrible for everyone she comes in contact with. We have mutual friends through the kids and she has more frenemies than people who actually like her.

Initially we thought it would be great, but they were in every aspect of our business. I was 2 weeks away from having our second child when we moved in and she literally came over every day...we weren't friends. They promised us a shed was going in the summer we moved in (we got there in April) and the shed got there the last summer we were there....but they complained that our kids bikes and lawnmower were behind the house. Umm, hello?? Where else should we put them with no garage and no shed?

So it likely depends on the actual land lords and how crazy they are. I have a friend who lives across the street from her house (moved in with her boyfriend) and they have no issues at all. My experience was a bad one though.

Well, how much would you enjoy being called to fix a stopped up toilet at all hours of the day and night?
Granted a lot depends on the tenant - some are great while others would get evicted from Hell they are so hard to live with.
We rent out our first house - it is 4-5 hours away from where we currently live.
Obviously we are not close enough to deal with any issues.
So we have a property manager (he's a close personal friend of ours) deal with our tenant.
Where ever you get a rental property and how ever you manage it - make sure you have an iron clad contract so you and your tenant know precisely where you both stand.
It should cover whether pets are allowed, is smoking allowed, who is living at the property, no sub contracts (they can't rent it out to anyone else), how many vehicles are parked on/around the premises (our first tenant was parking commercial trucks all over the place - big no no in a residential neighborhood - plus he abandoned a vehicle in front of the house - we called the repo man to tow it away), is there any grace period when rent is due (keep it small), etc.

It depends on how crazy it will make you if you drive by and find things not the way you'd like them to be. Like maybe a car parked on the front lawn or landscaping trampled. We have a duplex that's 1/2 mile away from our house. It works well for us because we are close enough to keep an eye on things (like checking to make sure the plow guy does all the plowing this time of year) and can be there within minutes of getting a call about a problem. We never get overly involved with the renters and we don't give any personal information about ourselves (because if you get too friendly they tend to take advantage of you).

Pros and cons with both, depends on the landlord. We had a tenant that thought there was no landlord on the property. The other owner rented to her and she thought we were renters. She started being hostile from day 1. She was a major nightmare all around. I truly believe she did not want a landlord on premises or nearby that would see what was going on. Took months to get rid of her.

When we rented, we had both near and far. When a landlord is far, they need to be sure to stop by not just to collect rent and to check out things. And have a reliable contact in case of emergency.

We have an apartment over out unattached garage so our tenant is VERY close to his landlord. He has been renting for almost 5 years so he must not have a problem with it!!!

It depends entirely on the landlord and what maintenance/services are provided. Let's use yard maintenance as an example. If I, the renter, am responsible for mowing and gardening then I would likely feel a certain amount of pressure to keep things just so knowing that my landlord lived minutes away and was likely visually inspecting the property on a regular basis. It would make me a little paranoid. I would probably wonder if the landlord was bitching about how I let the grass get too high between mowings even though I would be a responsible renter who mowed on a regular basis.

If everything were included and the landlord seemed like the type who didn't interfere then having him/her in close proximity wouldn't really factor into things too much for me.

I've owned for years now and when I rented I never had major problems with things needing repaired, etc. so I really had very little contact with my landlords. I just paid my rent and called the maintenance number on the rare occasion that I needed it. Which is just how I liked it.

I wouldn't want my landlord popping over with cookies just to see how things are going.

i would think it a plus. naturally it could be a nightmare if the LL is a jerk or a stalker or control freak, but for the most part it would probably get you better upkeep and service. absentee landlords are a big problem in this area, and give all landlords a bad name.
i think if a tenant were turned off by having a landlord in close proximity, that would be a red flag.
khairete
S.

I think that it would have a positive factor. A tenant would be more likely to take good care of the property, knowing that the landlord is right there.

Yes, you could get some odd tenants who make demands all hours of the night, but you could easily put into the contract that you should be contacted only during business hours unless the problem poses an immediate threat to life or property. Also, require the tenants to have renter's insurance, and be sure you are protected under a homeowner's policy which reflects your status as a landlord.

It is usually a positive.

If you already like the overall neighborhood and your neighbors (you don't have to be friends, but if you like the overall atmosphere) then i could be very helpful. Are there any major pluses or minuses that would get tenants? Great school district as a plus yet too close to a busy street as a minus.

The more common concern would be the tenant. I have a friend who finds everything wrong and runs her landlord ragged (she doesn't care about his location and I think it is over 25 minutes away). Another person could be very happy with the same rental and not complain.

My advice is choose your tenant wisely. Several people I know who own a second house in their neighborhood become friends with their tenant. The kids are often close in age and in school together.

I have properties in PA and here in FL. I find it's much easier to manage my properties closer to where I live. It's also cheaper when something is not working.

My husband and I will usually do any needed repairs (as long as we are capable), but the northern properties we always need to hire someone unless it's something we plan ahead for and can go there. We did have a very wonderful repair man, but he had passed away suddenly over a year ago.

I don't think it matters how close or far as to how tenants treat your property, some are good and some are bad. Just make sure you get background, credit checks, and references before signing any leases. I also suggest going through a realtor to rent them, I have gotten much better tenants that way.

I have it in the leases that they need renters insurance, no smoking and no pets. You will need to be sure everything is in your leases before signing. Also, your home owners policy WILL NOT cover tenant damage or tenants belongings. I found this out when one of my tenants used the house to grow pot.

If you need help or have other questions and/or need state law info I use this website (there is a section to talk with other landlords too). It has all the state laws and makes the leases easier to write up and print out. They also have other forms and letters that are very helpful.

https://www.ezlandlordforms.com/

You can be a good landlord or a bad one. I had a friend whose aunt owned a rental house on the corner down from her mother's house. So she drove by her rental property several times per day. If she noticed the air conditioners were on she'd go in and turn them off...entering without permission or notice or reasons to suspect there was a fire or anything that, to me, would indicate she had a valid reason to enter.

I asked her what gave her the right to turn off their window units when it was 113 outside. She said she didn't want them running all day to keep the house cool when no one was home. I told her it ran them more when they were turned on and ran for hours and hours trying to cool down a hot house. She said they were hers and if she didn't want them running she had every right to go turn them off when ever she wanted.

If I had been that tenant I would have changed the locks.

I told her she didn't have just cause to enter that person's home but she said it was her house, her property and no one would ever keep her out even if she wanted to go at 2am, again at 3am, and so forth. It was her house and not theirs...

I told her she'd never keep a tenant. She didn't.

So, consider yourself and what kind of landlord you'd be and how much interaction you'd want with those tenants.

When I rented I preferred my landlord to live farther away. As a landlord it is better for my property for me to be closer.

When I had a landlord that lived on the property, it was aweful. He was the worse landlord ever. He would "FIX" things himself. And kept the place too cold in the winter. He also never did anything about the rodent problem. The house had been abandoned before he owned it and I was the first tenant he rented to. The place was cute but no adequate heat in the winter wasn't any fun. Every weekend looking forward to returning to work and school just to be warm was unacceptible. He thought he was saving money by turning the heat up and down isntead of maintaining a consistent temp. I just couldn't take it any longer and couldn't do another winter of severe cold so I moved.

Every other place I rented the landlord didn't live there but a little further out and were responsive in fixing things and other matters.

It doean't matter where you live just as long as you handle your business by keeping and eye on your property without being intrusive. Responding to the needs of your tenants without being nosey and keeping the agreement thorough and simply clear.