It’s getting ugly today…

And I’m a bit uncomfortable about it…

Usually, when I create a blog post, I like to share solid rent roll growth strategies and business owner tips.

But not today…

Today I’m gonna tell you about how I stuffed up…

You’re gonna hear about 3 things that I did in my rent roll, that I WISH I didn’t!

But before I tell you…

I’ve got a request…

I’m seriously uncomfortable about sharing this stuff…

And I feel insecure about it ANY TIME I think about these “stuff ups”

So, I’m asking you to hold your judgement…

Please be kind to me…

And if you’ve ever made mistakes like these yourself…

Please be kind to yourself too!

We all make mistakes…

So here are some of mine:

Mistake # 1 – Not setting up my entity structure correctly

Before I started my rent roll, I read an article about using the correct entity structure for your rent roll, and it made me think that I needed to plan carefully before getting started.

But when I spoke to my own accountant, he told me that it was going to cost a fair bit of money to get it set up.

So, I didn’t do it.

Then, when I sold my rent roll, I wished I had found that money, and set up my entity properly.

I know that it would have had a significant impact on my sale price, retention amount and it would have just made the transition so much easier.

So my advice to you?

Get a great lawyer and a great accountant.

Find a way to get your entity set up in a way that works for your own circumstances.

Actually, make sure you’ve set up everything correctly, not just your entity structure!

And if you’re thinking about starting your own rent roll, please download my start up checklist here.

Mistake # 2 – Signing up my first new management in desperation

My first new management was a nightmare.

And I only signed her up because I was desperate.

But my gut was telling me not to.

I met her on a Sunday afternoon.

I agreed to all her crazy conditions.

I signed her up.

And my gut feeling about her was right.

She was a nightmare landlord.

Fussy about tenants.

Wouldn’t take my advice.

And then on the day the tenant was moving in, she hadn’t fully moved out!

In fact, I ended up taking some of her furniture home with me, just to get her out of the house and allow the tenants to move in.

I tell you what, this was just the beginning!

She would go to the house and go into the garage when the tenants weren’t home (or when she thought they weren’t home!)

She was slow to approve repairs.

But fast to ring me if the front box hedge wasn’t perfectly manicured!

And eventually, I terminated the management.

So my advice to you?

Trust your gut!

Don’t take on new managements just because you’re desperate.  You leave yourself open to problems and stresses that you don’t need!

Mistake # 3 – Not enough time between landlord moving out and tenant moving in

I did this more than once.

So many times, in fact.

Can you relate to this?

Landlord moves out in the morning.

You rush to do the ingoing/entry condition report.

And you’ve got the tenant moving in that afternoon!

If you’ve been there, you know it’s too rushed.

And, if I’m really honest, the reason I did it was to impress the landlord and get them their rent the moment they moved out of their house.

But it was always a nightmare.

And the worst case was one particular property where the landlord left the house a MESS!

Like seriously, a mess!

It was dirty!

The carpets were filthy!

And then, they wouldn’t agree to me getting the place cleaned!

So, I did the unthinkable…

I called in a favour with my carpet cleaner, who halved his fee (which I paid myself)…

And I put on gloves, grabbed a bucket of soapy water…

And I cleaned like I’ve never cleaned before.

Because as soon as I was done, I had to do the entry/ingoing condition report!

So my advice to you?

Allow more time!

More time between a landlord moving out of the house and the first tenant moving in.

I found 4 days to be ideal.

And every single time I didn’t give 4 days, I paid for it!

So much regret in those moments!

So there you have it.

My 3 biggest regrets in my rent roll.

I think we spend so much time talking about all the awesome stuff we do.

We spend so much time, polishing our image for social media.

And we forget that we all make mistakes, have regrets and we stuff up.

I’m totally human, and I know you are too.

So thanks for allowing me to safely share these regrets with you.

And if you need some tips for growing your rent roll, download my free guide on How to Grow Your Rent Roll in 5 Hours a Week

If you haven’t seen my last vlog titled 3 Steps To Get Help In Your Rent Roll be sure to check that out next!