Some think being a landlord is an easy occupation to carry, but there’s a lot more that goes into it than getting someone into your rental property: You must make sure that you also cover yourself, for your own safety.
As a landlord you are gathering quite a bit of information for a potential tenant. You want to do a tenant screening, background check, and many other things to ensure that everything checks out. What you must realize, however, is your potential tenant and many others may be gathering information on you as well.
Putting Yourself Out in the Open
When you’re a landlord and you’re advertising you want to make sure you’re getting all your information out there so you can be properly contacted. You want to ensure your first and last name are advertised, your phone number and your email address at the very least. You also want to have many different options for advertising: take an ad out in your local newspaper, utilize the internet and/or social media groups.
Doing all these things will give you a lot of exposure, but you must also realize that you’re not just being exposed to the good people alone. There are some bad people that will see it as well. With that in mind, you want to ensure that you put forth an exuberant effort to ensure your identity is kept safe and well protected.
There are many things you can do as a landlord. Make sure to go the extra mile to ensure that your identity remains yours alone, and that you’re not an easy target for anyone to steal it and run rampant, doing things that can potentially harm you. Some of the things others may advise are really simple, but sometimes, it’s the simple things that you do that can make a world of difference in you and your family’s lives.
Those Simple, Extra Measures
One of the first things you can do is to get a special phone to use just for your landlord needs. You can easily buy an inexpensive no-contract phone that you pay for on a monthly basis just for your landlord needs. Put the number to that phone on your advertising and give it to your tenants. This way, there’s not a lot of information that is readily accessible on the internet or in any other area that can be gotten. Use this phone for work only.
Another easy action you can take as a landlord is to open and use an email account just for your landlord needs. There are plenty of sites that offer a free email address for you. Doing this will not only keep your personal and business emails separate. It will also prevent someone from hacking into your personal dealings, which in turn could jeopardize your life. One of the most important tasks you can take to keep your identity safe is to make sure your mail is sent to your actual home or to a P.O. Box, and not to your rental property.
There are also special services you can sign up for as a landlord that will give you special protection from having your identity stolen. So much is really done via the internet and through email these days and you’d be wise to be careful and cautious.
Most of the tips and tools given to help you protect yourself as a landlord are free and very easy to do. It takes a short amount of time but will make a huge difference. The choice to utilize these tips or to not can actually save you..