Photo by jarmoluk
The relationship between apartment landlords and the tenants who live in their buildings can, unfortunately, at times be an adversarial one!
Tenants want building and apartment issues resolved immediately and to their satisfaction, while at the same time desiring that the rent they pay be as little as possible.
Landlords, in business to make money and whose buildings are valued in great part based on the rents they receive, want to maximize those rents while getting repairs done in a reasonable amount of time, at a reasonable price, and at a reasonable level of quality.
Of course the landlord and tenant ‘truths’ above will vary by apartment resident, building owner, management company if one is being used and by the ‘quality’ of the building in terms of the amount of rent being paid by the tenants for a given neighborhood.
Right or wrong, this is typically how things work.
In a 2015 article at Money.com, 14 points for how the landlord-tenant relationship could be improved is discussed from the perspective of the landlord.
Agree or disagree, it is typically in the best interests of tenants to maintain a civil relationship with the landlord that is as far from adversarial as possible.
‘The Top 14 Things Landlords Wish Tenants Knew‘ by Kevin Perk
1. Pay your bills on time. Seems fairly obvious, I know, but many tenants believe they can pay every other bill before they pay the rent. Want to stay on our good side? Please pay your rent on time.2. Always try to be polite. I will, too. Being polite and calm really does go a long way. You would not like it if I left you snarky or angry screaming messages on your voicemail. I know sometimes issues can seem to linger on and on, but we really are doing our best to get things resolved.
2. Always try to be polite. I will, too. Being polite and calm really does go a long way. You would not like it if I left you snarky or angry screaming messages on your voicemail. I know sometimes issues can seem to linger on and on, but we really are doing our best to get things resolved.
3. Listen to our instructions. We tell you things for a reason. If we show you how to trip a breaker or turn a gas valve off, listen. It may just save your butt. If we tell you there will be a hard freeze tonight and to please let your faucet drip, don’t call us the next day and complain that your pipes have frozen and you need to do laundry. I can’t control the weather, so you will just have to wait until it warms up.
4. Help us. We try to take care of our properties, but we can’t be everywhere all the time. Is there something we need to know about? Tell us. Is something broken? Let us know. Help us by being our eyes and ears.
Read #’s 5-14 at Money.com here.
Have thoughts from the tenants perspective for how landlords can work to maintain and/or improve the relationship with the people living in their buildings?
Share them in the comments below…
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