Reply to New Landlord-to-be of DC Condo -Please Help a Novice Out

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]You should focus on getting through the DCRA approval process if you haven't already. That will take longer than you expect.[/quote]

I filed and received the BBL on Monday, condo passed inspection on Thursday. I was warned by property managers I interviewed that the inspectors usually fail everyone initially, but my inspection was all of 5 mins. I was told that condos are usually pretty easy.

I have a property manager now. Her rate is 8% per month, plus 50% of first month's rent.[/quote]

I manage several family-owned properties and I've had the same experience with the BBL process - no big deal, especially for condos. You sound like you have it all set, but keep in mind that if you turn out to be unhappy with your property manager you [u]can[/u] do this from overseas yourself. Most of my communication with my tenants is via email and I can go for several months without hearing from them about an issue. If you've left your condo in good shape then you shouldn't have too many problems. If you do run into an issue the internet is your friend - just find a vendor. Even better would be to give the names of your preferred vendors to the renters prior to them leaving. As for the rent you can set up a direct deposit with your bank for a nominal monthly fee. It would be much less than what you are paying a property manager.

Another thing to keep in mind is that the security deposit needs to be kept in a separate bank account since it is technically the tenant's money. Your bank will set up a sub-account with your account. Your property manager may handle it through her own account, but you should make sure this is done separately - not worth getting on the bad side of the DRCA...

Also, check with your condo association about any rules & regulations regarding renters. Some will simply require that they have the name & contact info for the renter while others will want a copy of the lease.[/quote]

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