This past summer, we published a blog titled “3 Tips for Those Looking to Rent.” In this piece, we gave you three great pieces of advice to put your best foot forward when searching for a place to rent.
These tips – such as knowing your options, learning more about the property manager or owner, and being thorough in your inspection and inventory – are very useful, but we’ve just scratched the surface.
To better help you rent a house in Birmingham AL, here are three more tips you can use to improve your experience.
Know Your Deal-Breakers
Have you ever seen the TV show “Baggage”? “Baggage” features a person looking to choose between three contestants for a date. The catch? He or she bases the decision on three embarrassing facts from the contestants’ – and then decides which fact is the “deal-breaker”, or something that just is too much to handle.
Know what your home must have or cannot have in order for you to pick it. This will save you a lot of time and effort as you search for properties by weeding out the ones that simply will not work with you under any circumstances.
Understand Your Budget
Budget is huge when it comes to renting, especially if you are renting because you think owning a home is too expensive.
The first step is to do a little math. Take your annual income – your take-home pay, not what your gross salary – and divide it by 40. That number will give you a suggested amount for monthly rent that is affordable. What that number is based off of is the old rule of thumb that you should try to only spend around 30% of your net income on rent and other costs (such as utilities and renter’s insurance.)
Of course, some things are worth spending a bit more, but keep this rule of thumb in mind.
Watch for Red Flags
Finally, watch for red flags during the process. These include:
A manager who won’t go over the contract with you or who is reluctant to do so;
Not being able to tour a property;
No references available;
Unkept yards;
Rent significantly above the typical market rate for a similar property (without any apparent reason as to why);
Difficulty communicating with the manager or owner;
Owners who don’t actually own the home they’re trying to rent
Anything that seems “too good to be true”
Consult with the professional managers of gkhouses.com today – let us answer your questions about pursuing your rental.
Matthew is the CEO of Evernest. He is a student of the book Good to Great and is passionate about building the best property management company on the planet (and maybe even the universe if Elon Musk will hurry up). You can usually find Matthew at the baseball field with his son, at a dance recital with his daughter, or at his favorite restaurant with his wife, when he’s not in the office. And if you can’t find him in any of those places, it probably means he’s traveling.