Key Takeaways
Understand Your Responsibilities as a Morristown Landlord: Renting out your house means more than collecting rent—you must comply with New Jersey landlord-tenant laws, handle repairs promptly, and enforce lease terms fairly to maintain a positive landlord-tenant relationship.
Prepare and Market Your Property for Maximum ROI: Ensure your Morristown rental meets health and safety standards, make cost-strategic upgrades like energy-efficient appliances and curb appeal improvements, and create compelling rental ads to attract qualified tenants.
Consider Professional Property Management for Stress-Free Renting: Hiring an experienced Morristown property manager, like PMI Prime Property Services, can simplify the rental process—from tenant screening to lease agreement to maintenance—while maximizing your rental income and cash flow.
Are you considering renting out your home rather than selling it? If so, this blog has you covered. Renting out your house and becoming a landlord can provide you with a variety of benefits. Landlords receive a recurring monthly rental income, bountiful tax deductions and mortgage interest, equity build-up, and generate extra income.
But renting out your house and becoming a landlord isn’t a direct ticket to riches and wealth. First-time landlords must do their due diligence and make appropriate considerations where applicable. With that in mind, here are some proven tips from PMI Prime Property to help you rent out your Morristown property.
Get A Free Rental Analysis Today!
The Key Responsibilities That Come With Renting Your Morristown Home
After you've received your first rental property, there are certain real estate responsibilities that you’ll need to handle to become a successful New Jersey landlord and rent out your house.
First step, you’ll need to familiarize yourself with the state’s landlord-tenant laws. These laws define important aspects of the landlord-tenant relationship, including rent-related rules, security deposit rules, and habitability codes. These laws ensure tenant protections as well as protections for landlords.
Local laws and regulations change frequently, so be sure to research new regulations often, so you can make more informed decisions as a landlord for renting Morristown property.
Two, you’ll need to stay on top of repairs and maintenance for the rental property. Things will not always run smoothly when it comes to real estate. The roof may leak, pests may invade the rental unit, or electrical issues may arise, among a host of other potential issues. It’ll be your responsibility to deal with such expenses and issues as promptly as possible.
Other responsibilities you’ll have as an NJ landlord renting your house include the following.
Determining the rent amount tenants will pay.
Evicting a tenant who fails to abide by the lease terms.
Screening tenants.
Ensure tenants pay rent and collect rent.
Storing tenant's security deposits.
Draft a lease agreement and enforce all its terms.
Treat tenants fairly as per the fair housing laws.
If you’re just starting, these responsibilities can seem overwhelming and could quickly lead to burnout. But luckily for you, you can always seek the help of a property manager to help you rent your house.
A property manager can help handle the landlord responsibilities for you, so you can focus on other business ventures as you collect monthly rent.
Prepare Your Morristown Rental Property for Occupation
Rental properties in New Jersey must meet certain health, safety, and building codes. That’s why you may need to have the rental inspected for maintenance issues before renting it out and having the tenant sign the lease agreement.
When renting out your house as a Morristown landlord, make sure to budget carefully for property maintenance costs, as unexpected costs often appear, and one of the common mistakes many homeowners make is failing to account for these surprises expenses and repairs.
Some of the maintenance issues to be on the lookout for in your rental property include the following:
Serious structural repairs, such as foundation cracks, sagging roofs, or severe water damage.
Electrical or plumbing maintenance issues. For example, lead pipes, persistent leaks, frayed wiring, or frequent power outages will all need repairs.
Mold and mildew infestations. These can pose a health risk to residents.
Pest infestations. Persistent issues with bed bugs, cockroaches, or rodents can make the rental unit uninhabitable.
Aside from fixing these basic uninhabitability maintenance issues before you rent the unit, you may also want to make some upgrades to the rental property to ensure your rental property stands out from the real estate competition.
If an upgrade costs more money, it doesn't necessarily mean quality—there are plenty of ways to upgrade your rental property without breaking the bank, so you can save money.
Some of the things you’ll want to do to guarantee a high return on investment (ROI) include the following.
Swap out an old, worn-out flooring with modern options such as laminate, tile, or hardwood.
Go for energy-efficient appliances.
Boost the curb appeal. You can do this by trimming bushes, maintaining the lawn, and planting attractive foliage.
Repaint the exterior walls.
Provide more storage areas for renters.
Market the Rental Property for Qualified Tenants
After handling the basics, move on to the next stage of letting prospective tenants know about the vacant home. Before you begin listing the home for rent, know the potential tenant type you’ll be targeting.
Will you be looking to rent to families, single professionals, tourists, or even students? Because the type of renter you’ll be targeting will determine the kind of marketing campaign you run.
Once you have that figured out, begin by creating a high-quality rental ad to attract potential tenants. The rental ad must contain certain elements. That is: one, an eye-popping headline; two, an engaging summary description; and three, high-quality photos.
Next, list the rental ad so that the targeted potential tenants can see it. Use as many relevant platforms as you can for maximum reach. The goal is to have the ad seen by a large prospective tenant pool, which can increase your chances of landing the right tenant.
Popular listing spaces for landlords include rental listing sites and social media. Others include using yard signs, local dailies, and community bulletin boards to find potential renters.
Alternatively, you could hire a qualified property manager to do everything on your behalf, including the screening tenant process. This process ensures you find a quality tenant and that the applicant pays rent on time each month.
A property manager knows exactly what to do to help you land a great tenant for your NJ rental property, including conducting the time-consuming process of screening tenants, which includes criminal background checks, credit reports & credit checks, and income verification.
The background checks and credit reports ensure that the potential tenant has a track record of on-time rent payments and good behaviour, so that you can lease the unit to a responsible person.
An expert property manager will find you a quality tenant who will care for the rental, report issues on time, and pay rent on time, every time. This keeps your rent income steady and your rental unit occupied, protecting you from vacancy periods, tenants that are poor fits for the lease, and potential renters damaging your property.
Know the Basics of the New Jersey Landlord-Tenant Law
Once you establish a lease agreement with a NJ tenant, you automatically obtain certain responsibilities. You must abide by them for a smooth landlord-tenant relationship.
The following are some of the basics you’ll want to familiarize yourself with:
You must make repairs within an “adequate” time after proper notification from tenants.
You must carry out just tenant evictions that abide by state laws.
You must return the tenant’s security deposits, minus allowable deductions, within 30 days after they move out.
Treat tenants as per the Fair Housing Act in New Jersey. Protected classes include race, color, sexual orientation, gender identity, and marital status.
You must provide the tenant with a one-day notice before entering their rented premises.
Hire a Property Manager to Help Handle Everything on Your Behalf
Renting out your house in Morristown, NJ, can seem like a simple task. However, it goes beyond just finding a tenant and collecting rent income every month.
Among other things, you’ll need to know the state and local landlord-tenant laws, how to market and screen tenants, including credit checks, and administer the lease agreements. All these tasks can be stressful and time-consuming.
Fortunately, working with a property manager can help. Most property management companies cost a management fee ranging from 8% 12% of the monthly rental income. A property manager also provides financial support and can help you with property taxes, tax deductions and tax returns, mortgage interest, and growing your real estate investment portfolio.
A property management company's expertise and local knowledge will take away the day-to-day pressures of landlording, help you maximize your income, and keep your investment and cash flow protected.
Meet Our Property Management Team
Conclusion
Before you rent out your house, it’s important to determine the rules and responsibilities you'll follow as a landlord. Becoming a successful landlord begins with a plan. Luckily for you, you now have everything to get you started in the right direction, so you can start to generate income from your rental property and earn money as a landlord.
From handling repairs and ongoing maintenance to covering utilities and mortgage payments, there are many expenses to consider when you own a rental. Make sure you understand what you’ll be required to pay for and what your tenant will handle under the lease.
Keeping your rental in good shape means budgeting for repairs and other unexpected expenses, but with the right plan, you can maximize your rental income and keep your rental property profitable. A property manager can help you navigate the financial aspects of landlording, like tax deductions and mortgage interest, so you can build your income and wealth.
For expert help in managing your Morristown, NJ rental property, look no further than PMI Prime Property. We’re a full-service property management company serving Northern New Jersey and surrounding communities. Get in touch to get started.
