Handling tenant evictions is part and parcel of rental property ownership. However, while some evictions are pretty smooth and straightforward, others can turn out to be a landlord's worst nightmare.
Picture this:
You've sent an eviction notice to a delinquent tenant, but they've ignored to move out voluntarily. You have no choice but to follow the due process as required by Illinois tenant eviction laws.
This can take 2-3 months or even longer if the tenant puts up a fight. During this time, you may not collect any rental income from the property.
Clearly, it's in the best interest of every Naperville landlord to learn how to prevent or minimize rental evictions. Here are some strategies you can deploy.
Comprehensive Tenant Screening
Some landlords accept rental applications without doing any substantial background checks on the renters.
The only way to guarantee that you're getting reliable tenants is to do a comprehensive screening on every rental applicant. Check their:
- Credit history
- Rental history
- Employment record
- Criminal background
- Income verification.
The tenant screening process can take time and requires some expertise. For example, you need to know how to interpret credit reports or how to go about accessing someone's criminal records.
If you're a DIY landlord, you might struggle to do effective screening. The good news is you can hire a tenant screening service or a rental management company to screen renters on your behalf.
Put Tenants on a Lease
In Illinois, as is everywhere across the U.S., landlords and tenants have rights and responsibilities. A lease agreement is a legal document that can be used to ensure both parties are protected, but it's your duty as the landlord to prepare the lease.
Your lease agreement can go a long way in deterring evictions. For example, by putting your rental rules on the lease document, renters will be able to know what they're getting into before signing.
If you have a no-pet policy, renters who want to live with their pets will either have to take their furry friend elsewhere or find a rental with a friendly pet policy. By preventing such renters from living on your property, you'll have prevented an unnecessary eviction.
Embrace Conflict Resolution
A tenant can be evicted for various reasons, but that doesn't mean you trigger an eviction process at the slightest opportunity. Issues that can be resolved amicably need not escalate into an eviction.
For example, if a tenant is one month late on rent, you might want to hear why that's the case instead of quickly sending a pay or quit notice. Most tenants don't want to be evicted and will often try to remedy a problem if allowed enough time by their landlord.
Minimize Your Rental Evictions in Your Naperville Property
Tenant evictions can make your life as a landlord miserable and hurt the financial performance of your property. Thankfully, it's within your power to minimize the occurrences of these evictions.
These strategies will help, but to do even better, hire a full-service property management company. PMI West Surban serves landlords in Naperville and offers rental management services, including tenant screening, that will help prevent evictions.
Contact us for more information.
