The Leasing Process
You have researched the market, found the perfect investment property, completed your due diligence and are eager to get a tenant in place and start earning income. Over the lifetime of your rental, you will likely need to repeat the process of finding a tenant many times; while this is key to a successful rental business, it does not have to be daunting. As your Ping Property Manager, we can help you to find and retain good tenants.
Find a great Tenant
The vast majority of renters search the Internet for their next home so we need to be where they are looking. We can start the process by marketing your property through the various property portals. We will share your listing with our base of tenants and extensive network of cobroke agents and relocation companies.
Fair Leasing
It is illegal to discriminate against anyone on the basis of race, colour, religion, national origin, sex, familial status or disability. Our advertisements, as a general rule of thumb, are to focus on the property and amenities and not on a group of people or features geared toward a specific group.
Show your property
To show your property, we can either set up individual appointments or organize an open house which could save you time and create a sense of urgency among interested renters. In either case, if the property is vacant, make sure it is clean — a spotless property goes a long way in helping us secure a tenant. If the property is occupied, we will give the current tenant ample notice that we are coming by.
Review applications
Once we have an interested renter, it is time to have them fill out a Ping Property rental application form. This helps us to review their qualifications and it is an important part of documenting our rental process. Using the same criteria and application form for each and every applicant allows us to evaluate candidates objectively and helps ensure our compliance with fair leasing rules. We will confirm that the information on the application matches what the renter told us either in person, via email or over the phone. We document every interaction we have with a prospective tenant by taking a few simple notes about the topic we discussed or any questions that were asked.
Once we have verified the application, we will want to run a credit check and background check, verify income sources and follow up with at least two previous landlord references (if applicable). We will request a pay slip or call the employer to verify income. A general recommendation is that a renter should not spend more than 30 per cent of their monthly income on rent.
Accept or reject an applicant
Once we have determined that some applicants are qualified, we will make the recommendations to you. You will make the final decision and accept your choice of tenant. If you decide that the recommended applicants are not ideal, we will reject the applications and start the search again.
Collect a security deposit
Ahead of signing the lease, we will collect the security deposit which is like insurance in case something goes sideways with the tenant at any point during their residency, and it can help cover the cost of property damage beyond normal wear and tear.
Sign the lease
The tenancy agreement is a binding, legal agreement between you and the tenant. As such, your Ping Property Manager will make sure it thoroughly addresses the rules, policies and conflict resolution procedures for living on your property, and clearly defines tenant and landlord responsibilities. Our Ping Property App makes your experience as a landlord more hassle free and provides copies of the necessary paperwork to both you and the tenant automatically.
Do a final walk-through
Before handing over the keys, your Ping Property Manager will perform a walk-through to assess the condition of the apartment or house and make notes of any issues or damage. We will do this with the tenant to reduce the chance of a dispute down the road. Our Ping Property App has a move-in/move out checklist to keep track of anything we find or want to document. So wherever you are in world, as a landlord, you will be able to have access to this information on your smart phone.
Maintain your rental
Now that all the paperwork is in place and your tenant has moved in, managing your rental property should be more of a proactive endeavour. As a landlord, you will still need to meet your landlord responsibilities that include ensuring the property is safe, performing regular rental property maintenance and responding quickly to tenant requests. As your appointed Ping Property Manager, we will handle all of these for you. So just sit back relax and get rich while sleeping.
Collect the rent
There are several ways to collect the rent, but many tenants expect and prefer to pay online. To ensure that rental is paid on time every month, we will collect the rental on your behalf and pay out any expenses for you. Before rental is due, our Ping Property App sends out a reminder to the tenants until the rent is paid. If rent is paid late, we remind your tenants of the terms of your lease and notify them of the late fees. With ample warnings, we will carry out the necessary steps to evict the tenants if there is a failure to pay rent. While we want to maintain a friendly relationship with our tenants and be considerate of mitigating circumstances, this is our business, so we have to be clear and firm about our expectations.
Renew the lease
Two months before the lease is up, your Ping Property Manager will check in with our tenant to learn if they are planning to renew. This is also the time to do another market analysis to determine if we should increase or reduce the rent and if so, by how much. We will give our tenant sufficient notice so they can decide if they want to stay at your property.