Most of you probably disagree that renting to Gen Zers is a great idea. But let's give them a chance! We asked Andrew, a 21-year-old back-end developer, a few questions regarding his tenant experience, and here is what he said:
1. How long have you been renting an apartment? Do you have a roommate?
I've been renting an apartment since June 2018. I used to live on campus, but I didn't like it there. It's much more comfortable to rent an apartment and be "king of your own place." I have a roommate my age and we get along. Since there are two separate rooms in the rental, we don't quarrel much about everyday stuff.
2. Did you have a parent cosigner when you signed the lease agreement?
No, I didn't have a parent cosigner. My roommate either. We just provided our landlord with a security deposit and earned his trust with that. We're lucky that our landlord seems to be a decent guy who doesn't believe the stereotype that renting to college students automatically leads to disaster. I don't get how people still believe that our generation is such a mess. If you look at my rental, you'd be surprised how neat it is. Plus we never miss deadlines. I mean, we pay rent on time even if one of us doesn't have enough money. (If that happens, we ask our parents to loan us the difference or notify the landlord in advance that we'll be, for example, two days late with the rent.)
3. Do you take care of your rental? Score your level of tidiness from 1 to 10. And is your rental furnished or did you have to buy furniture and appliances?
I'm a perfectionist by nature. I just can't handle disorder, even at work. My coworkers make fun of me, saying that I can't write code if there's a dirty mug next to my laptop. And it's true! So I'd give myself an eight: The rental is clean most of the time, except when I have no time to make my bed or vacuum.
And regarding appliances and furniture, we had to buy a toaster and another rug. That's it. We even have a dishwasher in the rental. That's pretty awesome.
4. How often do you have parties? Is your landlord okay with that?
I have to confess, I invite friends to hang out at my apartment a lot. But we haven't had any complaints from the neighbors so far. Anyway, we always turn off the music by 10 p.m.
And the neighbor downstairs is such an angry lady. She has two little kids and seems extremely exhausted, so we're trying not to mess with her.
Our landlord lives in Canada right now, and his property management business is mostly run by a relative. So I guess he doesn't mind. *smiling*
Related: How To Find A Roommate In A New City: 6 Tips To A Great Start
5. Would you like to rent out properties yourself and/or invest in real estate business?
Yes, I'd definitely like to rent out properties, since it seems to be the best way to get passive income. Also I'd help college students find the perfect place to live. Being financially able to donate to charities is my main goal.
6. What do you think are the latest property management trends?
Well, I'm not sure. It depends on age. Probably families are looking for a quiet, single-family home, while guys like me are more focused on condos or things like that. And recently I've read that it's possible to pay rent in bitcoin, isn't it?
7. Can you recall any maintenance issues you had to resolve yourself?
Once we had a leaking boiler. We were so afraid to flood our downstairs neighbor (the angry lady). But we submitted a maintenance request and a service pro came up to our place to take care of it. So we didn't have to fix it ourselves.
Related: Tenant Maintenance Checklist: 8 New Tenant Tips Needs To Know
8. What character traits should a landlord/property manager develop to become the best ever?
The best landlords are those who don't interfere in their tenants' lives. And I love that our landlord pays for utilities.
If you have any questions for Andrew, leave them in the comments section. He'd love to provide you with answers. :)
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