Why Can't We Be Friends?
It is a great characteristic to want to make friends. We want to be liked and basically we are all social animals. Otherwise, addictions like Facebook and Instagram would have failed with a thud. So, human nature is only normal that we like to like our business partners.
So, before I go on, let me clarify that this is not my request that you like me or our company. I hope you do and hope you tell others. But not my rant for this month...LOL.
How do you feel about being friends with your tenants?
The Landlord-Tenant Relationship
I appreciate that you may believe that if you get to know your tenant, and they like you, that they will treat your property with an added degree of respect. Or that you just want to know more personally about your tenant. If you feel really strong about that, I have some advise.
You are going to waste your money on a property manager.
Property management exists to take the burden off the owner of maintaining a personal relationship with their tenant. It creates a wall that keeps everything on a business level..not personal. This can help when the tenant starts asking for a new stove, needs more hot water, or eventually incurs a late fee.
If a lease violation occurs (say a pet that is moved into your home) management keeps the owner out of the tenant behavior modification that must ensue. Do you really want to pick up your phone to hear the stories about broken down cars and sick children that the tenants offer when they can't pay their rent on time? These are just some of the ways your property manager spends their time for their monthly fee.
If you become friends, or even acquaintances with your tenants, guess who they are going to bypass with all of this? And your manager still gets paid while you are now front and center with the tenant.
Is it really worth it to you to have a such a good relationship with your tenant that they can contact you with these issues..and more?
Why This Matters?
In the last couple of months we have encountered a couple owners and a few potential clients wishing to meet their tenants. I understand it is your property. You should make the decision as to what is best for your tenants.
It just makes our job very ineffective.
In the best case, the owner will become the go-between. The tenants will no longer contact the manager if they know how to contact the owner. In the worst case, we will be told one thing by the tenant only to have the owner state they never committed to it. As Manager we are left to figure out how to fix the tatterred tenant or owner relationship. The risks are high.
Judges have made rulings that give tenants extra time to make payments after the tenant shows that they communicated with an owner and were told something directly. Even if the tenant statement is not true or misunderstood.
Frankly, the owner creating a relationship with the tenant is an unmanageable situation. Avoiding it is also one of the primary reasons you likely decided you needed a property manager.
One Solution
Some owners just want to be able to go and inspect their property. Fair enough. We recommend allowing us to schedule an inspection. The tenant is informed that we are bringing in an appraiser or inspector. We do not divulge that our partner is the owner and we advise the owner to not get involved in significant dialogue with the tenant.
I still seriously caution you not to even be tempted to inspect the property while occupied. We will send you a report. It is inevitable, particularly if the rental is your former home, that you will be unhappy with the way a tenant is living in your home. You may give away that you care more than a typical appraiser.
When it comes to customer relationships, this is one that you really do not need. | 
