Having proper documentation is a fundamental aspect of owning a rental property business. Build was created to help educate new and aspiring landlords about the real estate industry, and as part of that, we’d like to provide you with the tools to carry out your newfound knowledge. That’s why Poplar Homes created the DocBox – a collection of all of the major legal documents landlords need at every stage of the rental property lifecycle. Here’s a brief overview of what it contains:
Sign In Sheet
If you want to lease out your property quickly, then you better save every prospective tenant’s contact information that you can. When open houses get busy your future tenant could slip out the door without you noticing. It’s good practice to collect their contact information as they enter so that you have the widest pool to select from when the showing phase ends.
Rental Application
This rental application has space for you to collect all of the information you need about prospective tenants who want to apply to the property after the open house. Collect it along with a W2, copies of photo IDs, and proof of income statements to help ensure you select a quality tenant. Don’t forget, you’ll still need to run a credit and background check to complete the process.
Rental Laws
Knowledge is power, and having general real estate knowledge can pay off huge in the long run as a landlord. Courts almost always side with the tenant in today’s world, so a mistake could end up costing even the best intended landlord thousands of dollars.
Lease Agreement
Probably the most important document in the DocBox is the rental lease agreement. Every dispute or request will ultimately end up with you referring back to what is stated in writing. A solid lease can be the difference between a nightmare experience or great relationship with decade long tenants
Prorated Rent Calculator
Our rent calculator spreadsheet is a good tool to quickly calculate prorated rent amounts and deposits around move-in and move-out time.
Move In/Move Out Form
One of the most common topics of dispute between landlords and tenants is the security deposit. It is well worth performing a thorough move in inspection on the move in date so that you can both agree on the condition of the house at the start of the lease term. To avoid a “he said, she said” situation upon move out you’ll want to both sign off on the document.
Notices
No one wants to have to evict their tenants, but it’s better safe than sorry. We included both a 3-day and 24-hour notice for you to keep on file. Remember to consult an attorney or legal advisor before taking action. Eviction laws are very strict, so the process must be handled in a specific manner.
