16 steps landlords should follow before taking in a new tenant

Being a landlord is serious business. You’ve purchased what is likely to be one of your most valuable assets, so treating it like a business, rather than a hobby, will help you yield greater returns.  
As in any business, establishing procedures to manage your rental property can be extremely useful. It can help you make sure you don’t miss any steps or documents in the process of admitting a new tenant into your property, therefore avoiding potential liability.
 

Preparing a checklist to welcome new tenants into your property can make the experience a lot less hectic. We are talking about a simple list of bullet points of items that need to be completed prior to a new tenant moving in. Below, we have prepared a sample checklist to help you get started.
 
Because every property, every landlord, and the laws of every state are different, we suggest you customize the items on this list to suit your needs. Think about the specific procedures you want to establish for screening tenants, the type of lease agreement you want to enter into, what the laws of your state stipulate regarding notices, security deposits, etc.   

Steps regarding tenant screening:

• Receive rental application
• Open physical and/or digital file for tenant (even if you don’t end up accepting a tenant, you may still be required by law to save certain documents)
• Complete background check (credit report, criminal check, sex offender records, eviction records, etc)

 
Steps regarding lease procedures:

• Explain rules and regulations to tenant
• Sign lease agreement
• Sign lease addendum
• Sign legal disclosures
• Ensure condo association procedure if applicable
• Collect security deposit and inform tenant in writing of how it will be managed during tenancy
• Collect advanced rent
• Confirm tenant has purchased renter’s insurance

 
Steps to prepare the property for tenancy:

• Repair any damages to the property
• Clean property
• Have tenant sign the rental unit condition checklist
• Have tenant sign receipt for keys, fobs and any means of access to property and common areas
• Transfer utilities to tenant’s name