UGANDA, Kampala | Real Muloodi News | Renting out a house can provide a consistent revenue source for rental owners. However, property owners regularly have to deal with some proverbial headaches as a result of their tenants, which can be stressful.
Here are some of the challenges that rental owners may face.
Tenants Dishonesty and Delayed/Late Rent Payments
Joseph Mubiru, a landlord in Bweyogerere, says the problem with some tenants is dishonesty.
“For example, a tenant might lose a job and won’t tell you. He keeps quiet about the issue, and when the time comes to pay rent, he then becomes unreachable. Such a tenant will refuse to pick your calls or whenever he sees you, he hides,” Mubiru says.
According to Mubiru, tenants should always be open and honest with their landlords, so they would resolve the rent dilemma efficiently.
“When you are honest, landlords become more considerate and understanding. I mean, they are also human beings and understand that life is not always perfect,” Mubiru says. “If you can’t pay your rent for whatever reason, reach out to me. Call me up or set up a meeting. Then, let’s talk. Tell me the challenges hindering you from paying the rent on time and how you are trying to address the problem. Such discussions will enable both of us to come to a common understanding,” he says.
Also, waiting on tenants to pay can be financially draining for the landlords. Constantly dealing with tenants who do not want to pay on time can be incredibly frustrating, especially if they are repeat offenders. Some tenants escape from the houses without paying at all, which creates a loss for the landlord.
Damaging of Property & Frequent Repairs
Tenants sometimes damage properties ranging from windows to tiles and walls. Sometimes, a tenant may even deliberately vandalise property in retaliation against a landlord.
Such damages bring additional costs for the landlord when replacing the damaged items, whether by recklessness or accidents.
Some landlords are now turning to social media, such as Facebook, to name and shame tenants who escape from their rentals without clearing their rent arrears.
Recently, a landlady went on Facebook and vented that a former tenant had escaped with his property without clearing rent arrears. The tenant left the interior of the house in a sorry state. The bathtub had enormous holes punched in it.
The need to renovate a property after a tenant vacates the premises is an added expense to the property owner.
Unfavourable Laws
Whether the tenant cannot pay rent, the landlord cannot evict them without following procedures.
To carry out an eviction, Sharon Kisakye, a lawyer, says rental owners should follow processes before evicting a tenant from their property.
“Even if the apartment is yours, as a landlord, you can’t just kick a tenant out of it because they have failed to pay rent, or damaging property or for other reasons,” Kisakye says.
There are legal ways of conducting an eviction. “If you are a landlord demanding rent from a tenant, you could ask or pressure them to pay it,” Kisakye says.
Kisakye advises that in case the pressure on the tenant doesn’t work, before taking any other action, which may sometimes include going to court, read the tenancy agreement for guidance.
Stress over Property Management Responsibilities
Managing a property is a critical part of being a landlord, but it is certainly not a simple job. To succeed in this business, you must screen tenants, collect rent, deal with tenant complaints, and so much more. That said, these tasks can take a toll on any landlord.
Whereas, a landlord can employ the services of a property management company and to take care of all of these issues on their behalf and make these headaches go away.
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