6 Steps To Take Before Renting Your Home

Getting your property rent-ready can be a stressful and overwhelming process for homeowners. From inspections, repairs, to finding a compliant tenant: the process can require a lot of time, effort, research, and consideration of federal and state laws. Here, our San Diego property managers at Pasas Property Management have outlined extensive steps to take when preparing your property for rent in California. 

1. Establish a Process

Before renting out your home, you’ll want to develop a process that can help make renting easier for future tenants. There are different options you can take to make prepping and renting your property trouble-free. Hiring a local property manager that is experienced in your area can help you avoid time-consuming tasks while also maximizing your potential profits. Property managers with established connections in your area can be helpful when finding maintenance help and qualified tenants. 

2. Consider Expenses

Renting out your property can be a great financial investment. However, it is important to consider all of your expenses prior to renting out your property. These expenses can include: 

• Mortgage
• Insurance
• Maintenance
• Property Manager
• Insurance
• Upgrades & Repairs

3. Familiarize Yourself With Local Landlord-Tenant Laws

If you are looking to go down the do-it-yourself path for renting your property, it is important to familiarize yourself with landlord-tenant laws in your area. California is known to be a tenant-friendly state. Tenants in California even have rights before they sign a contract to rent a home. These rights help protect them against any kind of discrimination against their application.

In California, Assembly Bill No. 1842 (AB-1482) was signed into order mandating statewide rent control from 2019 until January of 2030. Also known as the Tenant Protection Act of 2019, this bill states that rent cannot exceed 5% in addition to the rate of inflation, or 10%, whichever of the two is less.

4. Create a Lease Agreement 

Prior to renting your home in California, you’ll want to create a legally binding rental contract. This is an important step in your renting process. Without a written lease agreement between the renter and the tenant, it will be more difficult to enforce regulations of the property. It is important to protect yourself and your property prior to putting your property up for rent. Some essential points of a lease agreement include term of lease, utilities covered, security deposit amount, allowed pets, damage costs, and more. 

5. Screen & Meet Potential Tenants 

After placing your property for rent, it is important for landlords to collect a tenant’s information prior to leasing the property. As a landlord, you should provide each potential tenant a rental application to collect personal and employment information. When providing a rental application, the point is to not make a large profit. Instead, this fee is meant to help with landlord screening costs. According to California Civil Code  §1950.6 the maximum screening that can be charged per applicant is $53.33. 

Providing a rental application can help landlords have necessary information to determine if a tenant is able to pay their rent routinely. If you are creating your own rental application, you’ll want to include basic components in your rental application. Some of these components to include in your tenant application include:

• Contact Information
• Employment History
• Previous and Current Residence
• Move In/Move Out Dates
• Pets 

6. Rent Your Property

After you have paired up with a screening service and decided on your tenant, it is time to present your potential renter with the leasing contract. Make sure to not turn down other tenants until your contract is signed and finalized. 

The process of renting your property can be time-consuming and difficult for homeowners that have never gone through the rental property process before. If you are looking to rent your property, hiring a property manager to take over landlord responsibilities could end up saving you time and money in the future.