Until recently, I rented and moved around quite a bit (different states). Wherever I have lived, I consider it my HOME, and I have always treated it that way. It surprised me that I would always have landlords contact me after I moved (to send me back my deposit) and thank me for keeping the house or apartment in such good shape. I naively thought that most people did that. Now I know how rare it can be.

We rented (with a lease agreement) from "friends". BIG MISTAKE. We paid our first months rent and deposit on the 21st of the month PRIOR to our move -in and were assured our apartment would be "move-in" ready. When we arrived to move-in, we had NO appliances, the closets were bare, the vents were missing from everything. The apartment wasn't even finished being painted yet. It took four weeks to get most of the things accomplished. There have been water leak issues, sewer drainage issues and we have also learned the "Lead Paint Risk Reduction" certificate is a phony. Needless to say, our landlords are now former friends and our disdain for them as landlords just grows. We recently received a notice advising that a fine was being instituted for trash put beside or on top of the trash cans provided. There is no way to police the trash area to know who any culprit may be. With multiple units, anyone could "mess with" the trash. We refused to sign. The next day the outside light, just outside our window, was left on and the "switch" to be able to turn off the light was removed. We were advised it was for security. Funny, they weren't concerned the first 2.5 months we were here. The laundry facilities, which were told to us to be "amenities/features" have rarely worked properly and after a few calls, we were advised these were a "courtesy" only. That single reason alone would have been cause enough for us to have chosen a different apartment. RESPECT in a landlord-tenant relationship is a two way street. And though we don't live on Pratt...it's definitely ONE WAY in our neck of the woods.

It's a shame that tenants can be so difficult. It's been a while since I was a tenant, but I was a renter at 4 different locations in the Baltimore area over 8 years. Only once did a small portion of the security need to be kept (questionable items by management company for things I would consider normal wear and tear, but not enough to fight about). You have to respect someone else's property.

This is a terrific topic -- thank you for offering it, Jamie.

I own a 3-unit property in the Fells Point area. I live in one of the units, and I rent the other two units. As a landlord, I don't expect tenants to take care of a property. Wear-and-tear is part of the life of a house, and accepting wear-and-tear as part of profit-making should be standard attitude for a landlord. The house has stood for 100 years with lots of people going in and out; a little tenant usage won't kill it.

Despite that I admire Steve's positivity, he takes his properties too personally. Expecting anyone to care for your property in the same manner you do is a recipe for disappointment. Chalk-up late payments and destruction to the cost of doing business.

I paid $100k for my house, so I'm not upside down. I watched in shock as my friends paid $2400 in rent to live on the waterfront while my mortgage was $650. My house isn't pretty, but it's MY ugly house, as compared to living somewhere plush, but not having anything to show for it after a year. Living in the rental property makes it easier to fix problems. My tenant apartments are nicer than mine -- I can get higher rents that way. I work full-time, not in real estate, and I itemize my taxes to get the best bang for my buck on the property.

Bottom line is this: everyone needs a place to live; I've chosen to make mine near-zero cost to me by having tenants pay the mortgage and utility bills. Most months I make a small profit after paying the mortgage and taxes and insurance and utility bills; some months I break even; some years I've lost money. When the City inspects the property annually, I'm subjected to a 60-day repair requirement. Some years repairs cost me $100; one year they cost $6,000 because I had to get new windows to deal with lead paint rules. In the landlord business, you win some and you lose some. I win more often than I lose, even though I never win big.

Since I'm not in the landlord business full-time, getting to live cost-free is enough for me. I was a tenant in my 20s; I'm glad to be a landlord in my 30s.

In truth, no landlord is a good landlord. If you seek to gain profit out of property by rents, you've made your choice. At best you can be not-so-bad, like a rash is not-so-bad, though life would be more pleasant without it. Count your profits, enjoy them, but don't ask me to share your illusion that, in your aspect as landlord, you can be good.

I've been on both sides of this fence. As a renter of a private residence, I took care of the house. However, the landlord made up $2500 worth of "repairs" that needed to be done to keep my $1000 deposit and I had no opportunity (which is to be afforded me under Maryland law) to remedy the issues; he had sold the house. It appeared that these were "issues" the buyer used to negotiate on the house at the time of settlement during the walk through, since some items I didn't deny but were in existence when the house was being shown for sale (misc holes in walls from pictures etc). Yet I got no credit for washing all of the basement walls of soot from the poorly drafting wood stove.

It was the LL's first rental, and probably last. They did not do my pre-move out walk through even though I had requested one. My roomates and I decided it wasn't worth the legal battle to try and recover, even at triple award in Maryland.

I was conscientious of these types of issues from having rented out my Grandfathers house a few years prior. We completely cleaned, painted and carpeted the whole house prior to the first renter. They had an animal (I think it was a dog, but I call it an animal) that ate the carpet and got dirt everywhere on the walls. It was a few thousand worth of carpeting, and a lot of time and trouble. They didn't deny the damages, but their security deposit didn't make up for it.

My family and I have rented way longer than we expected. Like Steve, we looked for houses in the height of the market and were very unsuccessful finding a place. Over 100 listings, 8 contracts we finally gave up. I would give anything to live in a home vs a 2 bedroom apartment. We are terrific tenants.We do maintain our home, minor paint touch ups etc. We love our home, but would just love some space and some real neighborhood feel. Apartment living is considerably different. It has its perks, but it is so faceless, if that makes sense. You really just become a number. I really believe that if tenants and landlords would just try to see things from each perspective, it would help, but hey, if the whole world did that, right? There is good and bad, on both sides. We like renting. I'm glad there are people/owners who appreciate good tenants because people like us love good landlords!

Great topic. I'm looking to buy a multi-unit property in Baltimore City soon - and will be an owner-occupant. I hope to be a a kind yet firm, responsive landlord, who respects their tenants privacy. But man - I know I'm going to sympathize with Steve! I get upset even when people leave trash in my car after riding with me!! This will be my first home purchase, so I know I'm going to feel extra protective. I need to just pound it into my head now that my tenants likely won't treat my apartments as nicely as I would, or have, in my past 13 years as a renter. It just seems like common sense and basic respect to leave a place in the condition you found it (minus the normal wear and tear - which I'll have to specific in my leases w/r/t to what I consider "normal"!).

Do current landlords have any advice re: how to screen potential tenants? I won't be renting super cheap apartments, but obviously money/economic status doesn't always correlate to how folks will treat an apartment (well - except if they want five people to live in a one bedroom - that could be trouble!). Do landlords (with smaller buildings) always run credit checks? Any other tips for sizing up potential renters? Are females usually cleaner than men? (ha - this might start a debate!!)

I recently became a landlord in August 2010 and the best $1400 I spent was hiring a real estate agent to help me rent my house. He drew up the lease, conducted all background/credit checks, had excellent advertisement methods, and gave me really good advice about being a landlord. Since this was my first time ever dealing with tenants it was money well spent. The next time around I will do it on my own and save the $1400. I recommend all first time landlords to spend the money and hire a real estate agent! Don' forget it is a tax write off!

I feel your pain. I rented to Baltimore Housing Choice Voucher program tenants...The people destroyed one of my homes.

They caused so much damage, that is how I found out how underwater my homes were...When I went to get a loan to take care of the damage. How can you barbecue on the roof and do 3k worth of damage? How can you put holes in the plaster walls so deep you see the brick? Why would you empty trash in the toilet, along with feminine products flooding the home? Who has the strength to rip off the door handles from a metal security door? Where do these people come from?

I did do the foreclosure process. I had no choice! The money going into the losing business was starting to put me so far negative, that I had to borrow from my retirement...a big no-no. It was that and be ruined on a business venture, or sink my future retirement...I don't foresee getting what I put in the homes, and my peace of mind took top priority.

Would I ever do it again, be a landlord? Maybe (with the state of property, I am not interested in investing that route though)...Would I do it in Baltimore? Not a chance in hades!

I'm with SLL. Does anyone know a way to review tenants credit and background for free?

Michelle, I don't know of a way to check someone's credit for free, but you can see if they have a criminal record in Maryland by going to the state court system's site: http://casesearch.courts.state.md.us

SLL/Michelle,

I used to have a couple rental properties before I became a Realtor, but now I'm down to one (which I would love to sell... but that's another story altogether). There really is no "free" credit checks available. There is a site called Mr. Landlord (www.mrlandlord.com) that you can register for credit checks for I think about $10-20 each. With all the credit and privacy laws, it's a process to get access to other people's credit reports. If you go to the site you'll see there is a non-trivial application process to get access. Basically you are dealing with people's personal (very personal) information so you have to attest you will only use it for rental purposes and not share it and keep it secure, etc. If they gave it to everybody without restriction, then anyone could get your credit info. I don't work for them or anything. :) I used them in the past, but now my RE brokerage has the power to pull credit so I use them. That's the other option as well, if you list a place for rent with a Realtor they will often be provide credit checks, although obviously this is not a "free" choice either since most Realtors will charge one month's rent as commission for listing the place and finding a renter. Not justifying it, just stating the facts!

As for screening, it is the SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT thing you can do as a landlord. Now, if you're renting a place in the city, there's a good chance the people are going to have lackluster credit. I've seen scores in the 400s. What I look for is what their deficiencies have been. You'll see credit cards, often a lot of medical bill writeoffs, maybe even a repo. My big inspection is for any negatives/collections from property management companies, since that's a direct way to show they have/haven't been a good renter.

But, be prepared - in general - for some crazy credit reports if you go that route. I had bad credit back in college, so I know that pain, but some of the things you see on there are just wild.

Screen! Screen! Screen! Rejecting one or two people now can save you time and money later.

@SLL/Michelle - I've had a rental property for 2 years now and I have always used the casesearch as a free background search. In addition to any criminal history, you can also see if the person has any unpaid judgments against them. This is a serious red flag. I also would rent to someone who has several charges listed but the charged did not move forward for whatever reason. As for finding tenants, both mine have been from Craigslist. There are good tenants out there, but it takes a bit of work.

Thank you so much, Jamie and John K.!!

I've used the US Real Estate Investors Association, www.tenantreports.org. It's a $10 yearly membership and then an additional fee to run a report ... that's why I charge an application fee for prospective tenants.

I have one rental property and I also help my wife's family manage their rental properties. It has only been in the past year or so that I've gotten all the properties in line and started actually earning a return on the investment (for them and for myself). I'm a lawyer by profession and even I have problems not taking things personally sometimes, as Steve relates. However, you need to not take things personally.

Steve, I know the areas you're talking about very well. I live not far from there, my wife teaches in a school right by there, and we live not far away either. What you need to realize is, those row homes are not going to attract the "upper crust" of society no matter what amenities you add. Unless you rent to friends, coworkers, church members, or someone else with a reason not to screw you over, you need to approach things like a cynic. You say that you're "fair" with tenant screening. What does fair mean? You assume they don't lie to you about occupation or income? That they won't claim there will only be 2 or 3 people living there, then it turns out to be 5 or 6?

At the end of the day, you need to screen the heck out of tenants. Then you need to write a very clear and strong lease and follow it closely. This means earning tenant respect by not bothering them and by delivering a good property at move in... which gives you the clean hands and track record you'll need to successfully handle any issues with payments or property conditions.

What amenities are you adding to these row houses that you think will attract good people? My view is that you should focus on a clean property with strong walls and floors, basic appliances, simple landscaping, and a sturdy, well-serviced HVAC system. If you and I were landlords in Canton or Federal Hill, I can see going beyond this, however along our stretch of Eastern Avenue, the basics are where you make your bones as a landlord.

I stated in the other thread that many people think they're making money as a landlord when, in fact, they're treading water or losing money. Simply put, rent collected needs to be at least 120% of PITI. If a new roof costs 5k and you need a new roof in 10 yrs, you need to allocate (for accounting purposes) 500/yr to the roof. Subtract this out of your rent received. Same for any appliances that need replacing, bath room repairs, etc. All this must be subtracted out of your rental income to see if you're still making a profit. Estimate the work you'll need in the future, prorate it over the appropriate period, and adjust your rental income accordingly.

One last thing -- mrlandlord.com is a great site. I read it regularly, to learn from others' mistakes.

Thank you to everyone's responses... Very helpful!

Stayed in my 1st apartment (in DC) 4 years. Wonderful, responsive landlord. No issues, no damage other than routine wear an tear. Ditto in apartment 2 (Baltimore). In apartments 3 & 4 (also in Bmore - I move in and out of the country for my job so I've gone through a couple of places) it took almost 6 months to get my security deposit back. There was no damage or other issues, the landlords just kept putting it off and avoiding me - my guess is that they had used the deposit for something else and didn't have the funds (this was during the recession). I had to threaten small claims court to get my money back. THAT is the kind of thing that sours tenants on landlords. Can't wait to buy my own place!