Keep good tenants happy:
If your tenant is paying rent on time and is relatively quiet, now might not be the time to hit them with a rent bump. Every landlord must consider the fine line of getting fair rent for their property and keeping tenants happy. Of course, it is not always easy. During this time vacancy can be hard to fill and expensive remodeling cost might not be the best plan if you can’t get the rent to support it.
Listen to people’s concerns:
People are scared and their home is where they want to feel most safe. The best thing a landlord can do is listen to people’s concerns. You might not be able to offer the best solution to the problem they are having but listening can help. If you can put off capital expenses that directly affect tenants now might be the time to do make that call. Consider reminding tenant of the quiet enjoyment rules of the property and keep them up to date of common area cleaning schedules.
Offer virtual showings:
If you do have a vacancy now is the time to get creative with marketing. Offering Zoom or Skype virtual tours is a good way to show properties. You can also record walk throughs and post them to your YouTube channel.
Stay up to date with California rules and regulations:
There are a lot of places to go to get the best up-to-date information on COVID-19 and the rules to follow. You can start with the CDC website. The California Associate or Realtors is a good place to go if you are a Realtor and the National Association of Residential Property Managers for property managers. There is also NAIOP for commercial knowledge. You can also go to https://covid19.ca.gov/ for government information regarding COVID-19.
Keep your people safe
Make sure your staff wear mask if they show a property or do maintenance on them and try to assess if the maintenance is necessary. Now is not the time to be giving in to every whim your tenant might have. Tenants have an obligation to take care of some, more simple problems themselves. Your maintenance person can also use the power of modern technology to walk tenants through simple fixes. Simple fixes include, light bulbs, smoke detectors and even fixing small holes in walls. It might go without saying but why not say it anyways- repairs that have anything to do with plumbing or electrical should be handled by a licensed professional.
