Landlord

Ten Opportunities for Illinois Landlords While Evictions are Shut Down

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Need something to do?

I’m tired.  I’m tired of explaining to landlords about all of the bad things that have happened to landlords during the course of this pandemic.  Throughout the last seven months, government – at every level – has waged a war on housing providers.  They’re an easy target.  The press and the public have no sympathy for landlords.  It’s an uphill battle.  It can be depressing and I’m getting tired of explaining all day long what landlords can’t do.  But, let’s talk about something positive today. 

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Consultation fees for Landlord Tenant matters

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As readers of this blog likely know, this is a blog for landlords.  Here at Reda | Ciprian | Magnone, LLC, we don’t represent tenants in residential eviction cases. We help residential landlords.  We help lots of them.  We talk to lots of them.  We are usually glad to have a quick conversation to see if we are a match for an engagement at no cost.  Unfortunately, these are unprecedented times and the laws affecting Illinois landlords

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May Day: Time to ban “landlords”?

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It’s Time to Change Our Terminology

You know the old trope. Nell cries “But I can’t pay the rent!” while Snidely Whiplash demands “You must pay the rent!” just before Dudley Do Right sweeps in saying “I’ll pay the rent!” and saves the day.  Snidely Whiplash, defeated says “Curses, foiled again!” Here’s an important question.  Why does Snidely feel defeated?  He got his rent.  It makes no sense.  Today on May Day, tenants in Chicago, New York and elsewhere, egged on by “progressive” lawmakers and intolerant tenants’ rights groups who abhor property rights are making the case for a rent strike because, you know, landlords are evil.

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No one wants to think about winter but…

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Chicago Landlords Turn Up the Heat Here’s our annual reminder that Chicago landlords responsible to supply heat to their tenants are now within the required City of Chicago time period for heating.  The Chicago Municipal Code (13-196-410) requires minimum amounts of heat from September 15, 2014 and to June 1, 2015.  Heat must be supplied … Read more

Guest Blogger Ryan Coon talks about developing landlord systems

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gblogWhat Large, Successful Landlords Do (and you should too!)

This moth’s guest blogger is Ryan Coon.  Ryan is a co-founder of Chicago-based startup Rentalutions. Ryan has written a short article on how smaller rental operators can get the same results as larger operations.

What separates large property management companies from do-it-yourself landlords is the way that they anticipate and prepare for various situations. Large owners and managers have spent years developing systems and processes for everything from how and when to find tenants to what to do when a rent payment is late. These processes allow the companies to stay organized and to set expectations with tenants, which in turn leads to fewer vacancies and higher profits. Preparing for events and having checklists for different situations is something that all landlords should do. It’s not just for the “big guys”.

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Having tenant troubles? Don’t just “fix the glitch”

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Chicago landlords tenant troublesThe scene is from the movie Office Space:

Bob #1: Uh, Milton Waddams.
Dom: Who’s he?
Bob #2: You know, squirrely looking guy. Mumbles a lot.
Dom: Oh, yeah.
Bob #1: Yeah, we can’t actually find a record of him being a current employee here.
Bob #2: I looked into it more deeply, and I found that apparently what happened is that he was laid off five years ago, and no one ever told him about it. But through some glitch in the payroll department, he still gets a paycheck.
Bob #1: So we just went ahead and fixed the glitch.
Lumbergh: Great.
Dom: So, uh, Milton has been let go.
Bob #1: Well, just a second there, professor. We, uh, we fixed the glitch so he won’t be receiving a paycheck anymore so it’ll just work itself out naturally.
Bob #2: We always like to avoid confrontation whenever possible. The problem is solved from your end.

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Illinois landlord tips for move in and move out

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landlord tipsTips for Illinois Landlords

This week, I will be focusing on issues related to “moving” in the rental world.  Here’s the first in a series of posts helping landlords deal with move-in and move-out.  As my readers may be aware, I am of the belief that by the time most landlord-tenant matters reach me or any real estate attorney, most of the damage is already done.  Landlords can improve their odds for success in their rental business by instituting policies and procedures that keep landlord-tenant problems out of their lawyers’ hands.  One area where landlords can cut off a problem at the pass in in the area of move-in and move-out.  Here are a few simple tips that can ease the way.

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Landlord psycology and the “line of death”

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libyalineBack in 1986, Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi re-instituted a decade old claim that the Gulf of Sidra was part of Libyan territory.  He claimed that if Americans crossed the “Line of Death” from the Mediterranean Sea into the gulf, they would be destroyed.  In the ensuing months, America crossed the line again and again to Libya’s extreme detriment.  Landlords can take an important lesson about dealing with tenants from General Gadhafi’s failed handling of the situation. 

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