{"id":8968,"date":"2025-05-06T16:25:22","date_gmt":"2025-05-06T16:25:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/?p=8968"},"modified":"2025-05-06T16:31:45","modified_gmt":"2025-05-06T16:31:45","slug":"3-common-mistakes-southwest-washington-landlords-make-when-renting-their-property","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/2025\/05\/06\/3-common-mistakes-southwest-washington-landlords-make-when-renting-their-property\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Common Mistakes Southwest Washington Landlords Make When Renting Their Property"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Owning rental property in Southwest Washington can be a good way to earn some rental income in the short-term as well as impressive returns in the long-term. However, it also comes with risks. Mistakes are easy to make, and unfortunately, those mistakes are usually expensive.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div>

As a professional\u00a0property management company\u00a0, we want to help you avoid those mistakes. Today, we are talking about the three most common mistakes that we see landlords make when they are renting out their properties.<\/span><\/p><\/div>

Inadequate Tenant Screening (or no screening at all)<\/h4>

We see a lot of landlords listing their property for rent and accepting an application as soon as someone shows interest in the home. A prospective tenant might look good on paper. It\u2019s a big mistake to simply approve the tenant based on what the application reflects. You don\u2019t want to let a tenant move into your property without thoroughly screening that resident.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div>

What could happen?\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div>

Well, there could be any number of problems. Maybe they\u2019ll stop paying rent or they won\u2019t respond to your attempts at contact. Maybe they\u2019ll violate the lease agreement or damage the property. When a problem does arise and the landlord goes back to look at the application more carefully, some key pieces of information may not add up.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div>

You want to look at an application carefully, and you want to verify things like prior rental history, employment, and other details. Otherwise, you\u2019ll be left with a tenant who is already living in your home. That\u2019s a bigger problem. Take time to\u00a0screen your tenants\u00a0before you approve them for your property.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div>

Improper Leasing Paperwork and Documentation<\/h4>

The second most common mistake we see is a landlord who moves in a tenant without the proper paperwork. There are very specific laws that govern what kind of lease you use and what information is included in that lease. It\u2019s important that you\u2019re using a legally compliant and enforceable\u00a0lease agreement.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div>

This is a litigious risk for landlords. Washington State is generally tenant-friendly and you have to protect yourself. Be careful with the leasing process. If you don\u2019t have the accurate paperwork, you could find yourself in trouble with the courts. That\u2019s not a place you want to be. Make sure you can access the right documents to protect yourself and your property.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div>

Making Your Property Rent-Ready<\/h4>

Finally, we have noticed that landlords often have a tendency to not prepare the house for rent. Sometimes, you might think a quick clean is all that\u2019s needed. You can find yourself dealing with an unhappy tenant or a long vacancy period if you refuse to do painting or install new carpet. Tenants want to move into a home that\u2019s habitable, functional, and attractive. Make sure it\u2019s ready for the rental market before you even list it. Don\u2019t bother showing a property that isn\u2019t well-maintained and in good condition. It will only waste your time.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

That\u2019s understandable. With the online rental sites and social media platforms available, it\u2019s easier than ever to market and advertise a rental home. But, it\u2019s also crowded. Tenants are scrolling through listing after listing, and it can be difficult to stand out. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8970,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,6],"tags":[9,12,13],"class_list":["post-8968","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-houses","category-property","tag-architecture","tag-design","tag-interior"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8968","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8968"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8968\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8974,"href":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8968\/revisions\/8974"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8970"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8968"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8968"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/myaiostagingweb.com\/sunworldgroup\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8968"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}