It took myself and Jo a few years to get the hang of being a landlord.
I never envisioned myself or Jo as being the type of people to own property, but after an inheritance this is where we find ourselves. The logistics of handling so multiple tenants, dealing with their problems, and collecting rent are too much for me and Jo, so we hired a property manager to handle all the details. This is a recent development for us, because at first we tried to do everything, with disastrous results. I thought we could save money by doing some of the handyman tasks by ourselves, and almost right away I ruined a central Heating & Air Conditioning system by trying to scrub it. After that we refused to ever touch a Heating & Air Conditioning system again. If it is anything more advanced than increasing the dirty air filter, or putting modern batteries in the temperature control after that I will call for an expert to handle it! I have forged a great entirely working relationship with a local man named Max, who had recently retired after 25 years in the Heating & Air Conditioning industry. Max might be retired but he is very bored, and he enjoys money, so I pay him “under the table” to handle any little Heating & Air Conditioning emergencies that come up. Because Max still has his Heating & Air Conditioning certification he is legally allowed to do the work, although our this working arrangement is not legal. By entirely working with an “outlaw” Heating & Air Conditioning tech instead of using the major corporation I am saving myself ten thousand dollars a year, maybe more! Max makes extra money, and I save a lot of money so everyone wins.