Be Accessible via Text Messages

“Americans ages 18-29 send and receive an average of nearly 88 text messages per day, compared to 17 phone calls.” – CNN

If you are an independent landlord, you need to be easily accessible so your tenant can notify you of an emergency.

Some property managers would disagree with me, but I suggest giving your cell phone number to your tenants. Even more so, make sure you can accept text messages. If you have younger tenants, they are more inclined to text you rather than call you.

The classic argument is “but then they will call at 1 in the morning!“. I have hosted hundreds of tenants, and I have NEVER had a tenant call me after 10pm at night. However, if there was a true emergency (flooded basement, house on fire, police activity), then I would want my tenant to call (or text) me no matter what time it is.

I have found that when my tenants knows they can reach me anytime, it builds trust, and then they only contact me when there is a legitimate need.