Florida ranks 2nd in the nation for eviction and foreclosure moves.
If you're a Dunedin landlord, you never want to add to the above statistic. Unfortunately, when you've got a tenant who puts your investment property at risk, you've got no other choice than to get rid of them. If you don't know what you're doing, the eviction process can be a major headache for a property owner.
In today's post, we're going to tell you how to create an eviction protection plan. Keep reading and you'll understand the benefits of eviction protection and how to create a plan that puts you in the best position to succeed.
Tenant Screening
The best way to protect yourself against having to evict a tenant is to screen them carefully. Tenant screening involves looking into an applicant's financial and criminal background to determine if they can help you in reducing vacancies.
You can also contact former landlords to get a sense of the person's character. Always make sure to ask pointed questions that tell you what you need to know before accepting a tenant.
Eviction Protection Through Inspection
Even with thorough tenant screening, you should take particular measures to ensure you protect yourself against poor tenant behavior. One of the ways you can do this is with regular rental property inspections.
Doing regular property inspections will help you detect tenant issues before they become major problems. If a tenant is damaging your property or performing an illegal activity, an inspection will tell you.
Collecting a security deposit from every new tenant will help you deter poor behavior as well. These deposits act as insurance against missed rental payments, as well as costly lease violations.
When You Must Evict
When you must evict a tenant, it's important to follow the law. Every state has unique laws around evicting a tenant and Florida is no different.
In Florida, you can only evict a tenant for nonpayment of rent and lease violations. When you serve the eviction, you must do it with the corresponding notice.
For example, nonpayment of rent is served with a 3-day notice to pay or quit. A lease violation is served with a 7-day notice to cure or quit, while a violation that has no cure is served with a 7-day notice to quit.
When the notice is served, the tenant has 3-7 days to vacate the rental before you file for official eviction. Once the eviction is filed, both parties are given a date to appear in court for the eviction hearing.
How Property Management Helps
Even with the right measures in place, evictions are a stressful endeavor for any property owner. If you need a bit of help dealing with them, hiring a property manager is the best thing to do.
Successful property management will help you mitigate the chances of an eviction, but they'll offer eviction protection as well. Eviction protection will ensure that you don't lose any money when dealing with an eviction.
PMI Palms is the top property management service in Dunedin, offering a variety of services, including tenant screening and eviction protection. Contact us today to learn how we can help you thrive as a landlord.
