I think one of the most important personal attributes to cultivate is generosity. Giving of one's self with no expectation of return, and often for no real reason says more about the person who does the giving than it does the one receiving the gift.

I do my best to treat my tenants well, so in this way the post is semi-on topic. I am rarely GENEROUS with them, however. This is something I'm trying to change. Not in an enabling way that wold allow them to skip rents or withhold late fees, but rather in a great customer service way.

I read a neat little snippet from a person called "Sean of the South" shared on FB this morning that was a great description of what I'm talking about. Try this link (if the post allows me): seandietrich.com/thanks-2/ or just Google "Thanks Sean of the South."

Sid,

Roy, as a fellow "Class C" land lord, I'm sure you're aware that a little customer service goes a long way with our customer based. They are used to being thought of as nothing more than $$$.

One thing I've started doing recently is courtesy follow-ups on maintenance issues. Once a maintenance issue is resolved, I check back the day after, then one last time 2 weeks later. Nothing formal. Usually a text or email.

"Hey, Joe (cue Jimi Hendrix), I'm following up on repair X....everything still working okay?"

That is fine Sid. For a minute there I thought you were giving 10% cash back for on-time rent payments. Some LL's actually do this.

“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ Matthew 25:40

I think it's decent and generous that you address the problem well and now are following up with a query. I think that it can be a fine line to be overly generous because I can imagine that some tenants really push the envelope to ask for the sky.

Yikes, I thought that when S i d once schooled me on Class C tenants, he wasn't kidding. Nevertheless, I could see him doing his best to be generous but not to let up his guard lest he get trampled. Again, it can be a fine line if at least an art to be generous or even gracious.

Here's how I show generosity to tenants:

One tenant who was approved asked if we could put up window coverings because he works second shift. I had a stack of blinds that someone had given me that were collecting dust, so I put them up. He was very grateful.

Another tenant has his aging mother living with him. She loves to garden and insists on feeding me every time I go over to fix something. I brought her a $4 bag of flower bulbs.

I explain to them before they move in how to negotiate with the cable company so they don't have to pay installation fees.

I help the non-native speakers understand their bills.

Sorry no. Hasn't worked for 35 years and tenants are worse then when we started. Do I want the lords blessing? yes of course who doesn't?. Do I want to lose my business being the GOOD guy? NO.

It's a business. I just can't think of any service- Banking, Credit union, Hdepot HVAC co's yea know none of them do it either.

Nice Sid!

Generosity is not always about money.

We spend extra time making the homes nice. We jump on maint requests. We treat folks with respect, even when denied and during eviction.

Good business needs firm boundaries. We draw the line at the lease because the govt requires we treat every applicant and resident the same.

Thanks to everyone who responded! Robin gave some great examples....not necessarily the ones I'll follow, but still great. Brad, as usual, "gets" it... I'm not going to start leaving them turkeys for Thanksgiving--I've been pretty clear in the past I don't do "gifts"--and I am not letting anyone slide on rent or fees. We too will continue to "draw the line at the lease."

"No good deed goes unpunished." True, but as I said earlier cultivating generosity is an exercise for me, not so much for the tenants.

I liked how the Sean of the South post (did you read it Bill, myob? If not, invest 3 minutes...) talks about tipping generously even when the waitress screws up. Ramsey agrees. It's not an obligation to tip, especially when service is lacking, but again it says more about me when I tip generously than it say about her if I stiff her completely.

Kill'em with Kindness. (In a Business sort of way)

That applies to Coming and Going.

OTOH, I don't see any examples as being generous. Just giving good customer service for the payoff of tenant loyalty with us when its needed.

Banks, credit card companies do this all the time. The other day the bank teller made a really big deal about how he was happy to fill out the deposit slip for me for a check I brought in. A big deal. He was pointing out he was giving me great service ( maybe I'm getting 'entitled', lol)

One time, the bankers at a major bank spent more than an hour figuring out what was going on with tenant deposits, why it wasn't going through properly (pre-Zelle,) I brought flowers and candy back to thank everyone who puzzled it out (Day after major flowers/ candy holiday, I paid half price.) Manager from same bank called me later in the week to make sure everything was sorted out, working well. (Yep) That was a big name bank.

Don't get me wrong, these things we do for others are all needed in our business. Customer service is everything these days. The best tenants have choices. Great customer service means they choose us.

Offering a clean, well-kept property, with responsive maintenance IS offering great customer service. Efficient, business-like, and leave 'em alone. Some customers wouldn't want the touchy-feely service that some landlords offer.

Others prefer that interaction. Want a two-minute chat about how things are going, like that that bank teller fills out the deposit slips *grins*. Its about finding out what YOUR customers want, or, looked at another way, attracting the customers YOU want.

Well said, "Busy". In these 'busy' days (wink)...perhaps taking extra time to give excellent customer service is de facto generosity?

There is an old saying in the teaching field: Don't smile until Christmas.

This means that after the rules are established, then you can be more generous with your kindness.

I think tenants think I am really firm and pretty scary during the application and lease signing.

The generous and high level of customer service kicks in later.

I treat people the way I would want to be treated. And Sid has reminded me to follow up with the oven repair from earlier this week.