While, it is important for tenants and landlords to be on their best behaviour, both are entitled to certain rights, and tenants should be aware of them, when renting a house or apartment. The following tips are designed to help tenants make a good impression and get the best landlord deal, of all.

1. Before, getting into a nasty spat that might lead to an expensive legal battle, a tenant must keep all communication lines with the landlord open, if there is a problem regarding tardiness in the landlord’s response regarding a request made for necessary repairs to your rental unit.
2. Insurance policies taken out by landlords do not cover tenant losses due to theft or damage. It is best to take out renters insurance, as it will cover you even in the event of being sued for injury caused on the rental premises, as a result of your carelessness. Typically, renters insurance costs about $350 a year for a $50,000 policy and will cover loss due to theft or damage caused by other people or natural disasters. There are cheaper policies as well, in case you do not need that much coverage.
3. Tenants can avoid misunderstandings and protect themselves by ensuring their lease or rental agreements are clear on the subject of use and refund of security deposits, including allowable deductions. At the time of moving in, do a walk-through with your landlord, recording existing damage to your rental premises on a move-in statement or checklist.
4. Check out the safety of the building and neighbourhood, and what steps your landlord has taken to ensure it is a safe and secure environment for tenants, such as, safety devices like deadbolts and window locks specified in state and local laws. Check out if the property is vulnerable to intrusion by a criminal, and whether the property or neighbourhood has been the scene of criminal incidents in the past or present. If, the area is prone to high crime, then your landlord is obligated to take adequate steps to protect all tenants.
5. Any eviction must be dealt with properly, and a tenant must know if a notice for eviction needs to be fought out or obeyed. In case, a landlord has not issued a proper eviction notice, or the premises are uninhabitable, clearly he / she is in the wrong, and you may want to fight the eviction. However, remember without the law and facts that can be proved on your side, fighting an eviction notice is useless. Losing an eviction lawsuit could leave you in debt and damage your credit rating, including the easy ability to rent from other landlords.

While, it is important for tenants and landlords to be on their best behaviour, both are entitled to certain rights, and tenants should be aware of them, when renting a house or apartment. The following tips are designed to help tenants make a good impression and get the best landlord deal, of all.

1. In order, to give yourself a competitive edge over other rental applicants, it is important to win over a prospective landlord by carrying all necessary information with you, such as, a neatly and fully completed rental application; written references from landlords, employers, colleagues and friends; including a current copy of your credit report.
2. Before signing on the dotted line, do give yourself time to carefully and thoroughly review all tenancy conditions, as it may contain clauses you may not find acceptable e.g. a no pet policy, guest restrictions, veto for running a home business, or any alterations to the place.
3. Always, get everything in writing, since it will help avoid future disputes and misunderstandings between tenant and landlord. All correspondence copies should be kept, and any oral agreement should be followed up with a letter that plainly sets out your understanding of the agreement. For example, any requests to your landlord regarding repairs should be made in writing, and if he / she verbally acquiesces that repairs will be made, send a letter confirming his / her agreement to your request.
4. Next to rent and security deposit disputes, misunderstandings often arise from a landlord’s right to enter a rental unit and a tenant’s right to privacy. Tenants must understand their privacy rights i.e. the amount of notice a landlord must provide before entering rental accommodation.
5. Tenants should also be aware that they have a right to live in a habitable rental unit that includes adequate weather-proofing; heat, water, and electricity; and clean, sanitary, and structurally safe premises. In case, a rental unit is not kept in good repair, a tenant has a number of options, from with-holding part of the rent, to paying for repairs and deducting the cost from the rent, to informing the building inspector, who can order the landlord to carry out the repairs. In such an eventuality, a tenant with a signed lease can move out without any liability for breach of contract, or paying rent for the duration of the lease.

Say, you have a tenant who is suing you in a small claims court for returning too little of his / her security deposit, despite the fact that he / she has been given an itemised list of the much-needed repairs you carried out, after he / she moved out. To add insult to injury, your ex-tenant is asking not only for payment of the security deposit, but also for the grief caused, the time spent on going to court, and gas mileage, as well. The question is if he / she can get all that, considering you have pictures of the damage, receipts for some of the work, including estimates for material costs.

Well, to be exact, it does not matter what you say in a small claims court, as the evidence you provide, will clinch the case. If, you are well prepared with all the necessary paperwork to show why deductions were made before returning the security deposit, all you need to do is convince the judge, the rental unit was undamaged when your tenant moved in. As well, that you had to spend a considerable amount of money for much-needed repairs, even following to a T, all state procedures by itemising deductions and refunding the security deposit balance. Receipts, photos, and witnesses, if any, will have to be produced in court. In case, the witnesses are not able to appear in person, a signed declaration will suffice. You must not only impress the judge with your reasonableness, but also be calm, factual, and as succinct as possible, when delivering your spiel.

In the unlikely event that the tenant wins, you can rest assured the judge will not award the compensation for transportation costs.

That apart, landlords should make themselves cognisant with all rules and regulations before drafting a lease, and must take all necessary precautions, such as, screening tenants and conducting background checks on prospective tenants, including ensuring all promises in the rental lease are adhered to, as their insurance for a litigation free landlord / tenant relationship. A simple click of the mouse and any landlord or property manager can visit www.e-renter.com for tenant screening and background check services. www.e-renter.com, the best tenant screening agency in America!

Direct Deposit

Another way of collecting monthly rentals from your tenants is via the direct deposit system. Very useful, it saves the bother of waiting for the cheques to arrive, then having to deposit them, finally waiting for them to clear. While, there are direct deposit services designed for huge apartment complexes with fee structures that may be priced way out of a small fry landlord’s league, the CheckMan application is just what small-timers need. Sign up all new tenants on it stressing it is standard company policy, while coercing existing residents to join, as well.

A fantastic application, tenants will receive an email that notifies them of the coming draft, as it runs through the banks Automated Clearing House systems (ACH), so there is absolutely nothing a landlord has to do. Tenant accounts get debited automatically on a designated day, with an email sent to the landlord the very next day showing him / her accounts drafted successfully, including ones that failed, if any. Three days later, funds are automatically deposited into your account.

Tenants, who have signed up, are aware that their accounts are going to get drawn on like any other bank drafts, without the bother of writing any cheques / drafts on their part. The simplest of solutions, it is very affordable rent collecting to boot. Once you know about all the features and benefits of the application, you too will be singing praises of it. Look it up on the following website i.e. www.clearnow.com/public/ClearNowEnrollmentGRQ1.pdf, and if you sign on, you will get a full two months to try the service absolutely free of cost. No doubt, you’ll be hooked enough to go for it.

That apart, landlords should make themselves cognisant with all rules and regulations before drafting a lease, and must take all necessary precautions, such as, screening tenants and conducting background checks on prospective tenants, including ensuring all promises in the rental lease are adhered to, as their insurance for a litigation free landlord / tenant relationship. A simple click of the mouse and any landlord or property manager can visit www.e-renter.com for tenant screening and background check services. www.e-renter.com, the best tenant screening agency in America!

Printing Rental Cheques

Successfully tried by a number of landlords, you can also see whether this inexpensive method of rental collection works for you. All that is required is to just sit down and print monthly payments at one go. Get all new residents to sign on and bribe your existing ones to join in.

An auto-draft service, residents can sign a one-page form authorising you to debit their account. A Windows-based software application programme, it allows you to print these ‘Demand Drafts’ any time you like, after arranging for recurring monthly rental payments from tenant bank accounts . No longer, do you have to wait for the mail to arrive, simply turn on your PC and hit the print button for the cheques to roll off the printer. And, on the first of each month (or whenever), you can simply head for the bank and collect the month’s rent.

Again, it remains to be seen whether the tenant has sufficient funds in his / her bank account, but at least the wait for the cheques to arrive before depositing them is over, though it remains to be seen whether they are honoured or not. Another disadvantage is purchasing stocks of cheques, but a good number will come free of cost on your initial purchase.

An additional advantage of this software is the ability to set up your own bills, so each month recurring bills can be printed or even a set of blank cheques with your relevant information. You can find out more about this software from www.TexasRealEstateClub.com/checkman.html, and even purchase it online. A trial of this method is the only way to find out whether it works for you or not.

Tenant Rental Deposits

While, some landlords may baulk at the idea, it has proved successful and saves the effort of chasing tenants to collect monthly rental cheques. Simply, give your tenants a bank account number into which monthly payments can be deposited, directly.

Moreover, you can provide them with pre-printed deposit slips to ensure the account name and account number are not inaccurate. This way, you will also reduce monthly telephone calls from tenants asking for such and such information. If, you are concerned about an attempt to withdraw from your account, a reasonable possibility, decrease the risk with a separate bank account for rental deposits, from which funds can be swept into another account at regular intervals.

This method of rent collection also has to factor in that potentially one could run into a failed eviction for accepting partial payments. Whether or not, a judge considers a tenant making a small rental deposit in a last ditch effort to avoid getting evicted as ‘constructive receipt’, is solely dependent on the judge’s discretion. What also needs to be considered is that tenants with an unethical streak may make partial payments, leaving you trying to determine who paid what.

However, this method has advantages, such as a trip to the bank being eliminated, and online banking that allows you to find out within a day or so, how much rent has come in. Though this method is not recommended for each and every tenant, it can be considered for one who is honest and can be trusted.

Mailed Cheques

Being a landlord is not an easy job, and the toughest bit is collecting rent from tenants who begrudge it. You may have arranged a drop-in box for rental cheques, but they don’t seem to arrive and if and when they do, your mortgage payment is already long overdue. On being questioned about delayed payments, defaulting tenants have a ready excuse, claiming the cheque has been mailed and should be arriving any time soon. Indeed, it may arrive, but whether it will clear or not, remains to be seen.

Though, there are advantages to this method of rent collection, one that most landlords and tenants find hassle free, it is good only as long as the tenant believes in making timely and regular rental payments.

However, the method also has its downside, as everything depends on the tenant remembering to write the rental cheque on time, putting the correct address and postage on the envelope, and actually remembering to drop it in the mail. If, all is as it should be, then a landlord has to rely on the postal service to deliver the payment to the correct address on time.

A landlord may provide self-addressed stamped envelopes, so as to remove some of the risk associated with this method of rent collection. However, it does not always produce any noticeable results, and is not a method that comes highly recommended, with more involvement on the tenant’s side.

It is important landlords make themselves cognisant with all rules and regulations before drafting a lease, and take all necessary precautions, such as, screening tenants and conducting background checks on prospective tenants, including ensuring all promises in the rental lease are adhered to, as their insurance for a litigation free landlord / tenant relationship. A simple click of the mouse and any landlord or property manager can visit www.e-renter.com for tenant screening and background check services. www.e-renter.com, the best tenant screening agency in America!

If, you are new to the rental business, then the following methods of monthly rental collections from tenants will assist in helping a rooky landlord to figure out the best way for a successful business. Not only will you be able to weigh the pros and cons of each technique, you can opt for the one that works best for you. Here goes:

Personal Collections
Either, an appointment can be scheduled with tenants for dropping by to pick up the month’s rental cheque, or else they can be informed that it is their responsibility to drop it off. This way, you will know right away, who’s paid up and who hasn’t, however, you are still not sure, whether the cheque will clear or bounce, in the event the rent was not paid in cash or certified funds.

Nevertheless, the best method is to designate a place for the tenants to drop off their rental payments e.g. a drop box. As for chronic late payers, you can stress they no longer have the privilege to pay any other way, except by certified funds. And, if they consistently pay on time for 6-months, tell them you will consider reverting back to the standard pay system after careful deliberation.

If, you prefer your tenants to drop in with their rental payments, make sure it is not at your personal residence; as well it is recommended you arrange for an unlisted residential telephone number, while removing all personal information from Internet sites.

Whilst, you may go for this method, a seasoned landlord will not recommend it, since it requires too much effort on one’s part.

However, landlords on their part, should make themselves cognisant with all rules and regulations before drafting a lease, and must take all necessary precautions, such as, screening tenants and conducting background checks on prospective tenants, including ensuring all promises in the rental lease are adhered to, as their insurance for a litigation free landlord / tenant relationship. A simple click of the mouse and any landlord or property manager can visit www.e-renter.com for tenant screening and background check services. www.e-renter.com, the best tenant screening agency in America!

Signing a Rental Agreement
Everyone should be aware of their legal rights, while moving in to new rental premises, including that the length of a lease determines some of your basic rights as a tenant. Depending on state laws, an unwritten month-to-month tenancy can be terminated, with as little as 20 days’ notice. However, a written lease guarantees a place to stay for a specific period of time, anywhere from 6-months to a year, or longer.

Tenants are advised not to sign any lease that makes them give up their rights under state landlord-tenants laws or local tenant ordinances. Before, putting their signature on any lease, they should go over it carefully with a fine-tooth comb, reading and understanding every single word of it. In case, of doubts, fire the questions about anything that does not make sense. No matter, what a landlord says, it is best not to sign a lease that contains clauses and stipulations, a tenant does not agree with.

The security that is deposited with the landlord is meant to cover any damage to the rental property, and is generally refundable. There are some states that will permit a landlord to apply the security deposit toward unpaid rent, if a tenant breaks his / her lease.

Tenants should ensure they receive receipts for rental payments to ensure there are no disputes later on, over whether rent has been fully paid up or not.

Tenants should also be prepared to pay for the credit and reference checks required by many landlords before agreeing to rent out their property.

Holding Deposits are legal in some states, where landlords are allowed to charge a deposit, in order to reserve an apartment for a tenant, who cannot move in immediately. If, this is permissible in your state, do find out whether it is refundable, in the event you change your mind about renting the apartment.

Most leases permit tenants to sub-let, only if the landlord finds the sub-tenant suitable and approves it in writing.

In case, the rental property needs repairs, which the landlord promises will be carried out, before you move in, get the promises in writing, and as a part of the rental agreement.

If, you have a pet dog, cat or bird, make sure the lease is not a NO PETS ALLOWED lease.

Moving Day
Take a tour of the place with the landlord and make a detailed checklist of anything that is not in perfect condition. Get your landlord’s signature on it, as an accurate representation of your apartment’s condition. A sample checklist can be obtained from the State Attorney General’s office or local tenants’ union.

Better still; take pictures of areas where there is damage of any sort.

Following these simple steps will help make life as a tenant, a whole lot easier.