If a neighbor calls you with a complaint “your tenant is noisy” or “they let their dog run loose”…do you deal with it or tell them to call the police?

Do you introduce yourself to the neighbors when you purchase the house and give them your number? If so, aren't you basically telling them to call you if there is an issue?

I introduce myself to neighbors when I get the chance and give them my number to report any concerns they have. Most neighbors don't like the thought of tenants moving in next door. They are relieved to discover a landlord who cares about their property and neighborhood.

In many years I've had three phone calls. One telling me my tenant was failing to pay for garbage service and as such it was accumulating in their carport. This eventually resulted in the problem getting solved. One call was to let me know my tenants were "moving out". Turns out I was aware but they were concerned I may not know. The third was a neighbor telling me another neighbor was looking to sell their home and they thought I might want to buy it. I did.

Oh, one neighbor who is only seasonal asked me to check on their property after the hurricane for them and subsequently asked for and used my plumber and electrician for work on their house. I was happy to help them. Actually another time one called to see if I had any vacancies as they wanted to refer me to someone they knew.

I barely talk to tenants and even less to neighbors.

This can be a tricky topic. Everyone's got a view on it.... My view is taken in light of what do the "big boys" do?

Does local big boy ABC Property Management introduce themselves to the neighbors at all of the 1,200+ units they manage? Nah....

To me it's like my screening process? Is it perfect? No. Do I occasionally miss some good residents due to my "all calls go to voicemail" policy? Yes. Do my policies protect my properties, my profits, and my freedom? YEEEEESSSSS!

I've always introduced myself and given out my phone number. I now have several neighbors phone numbers blocked as they think I'm supposed to solve THEIR life problems. One neighbor was constantly calling to complain about my tenant's kids. It was the neighbor's grandkids who were actually causing issue. That one got ugly, police, alderman, mayor's office involved. This lady was calling everybody. I finally threatened to get fair housing involved, had serious conversations with police, alderman's office.

One of the other neighbors has said this nut job neighbor wants her daughter to be able to rent that house from me. Neighbor early on asked if her daughter could rent the house when my tenant was gone.

The other neighbor whose phone number has been blocked was also asking frequently if a relative could rent the house.

I'm not the police-- call them when there's a problem.

It's been a mixed bag for me, but I still give neighbors my contact info.

The good: got notified when a tree came down on my property and was able to take care of it.

Got notified when a fence panel was pulling away from the post and was able to fix it before it got worse.

I have threatened legal action on several occasions against out of state slumlords in my town. Mainly due to drug issues. In each case we were able to improve conditions, before I had to get my shovel. Usually by the tenants moving.

I have used quiet enjoyment, private and public nuisance lawsuit threats to get landlords to take action against tenants negatively affecting my property.

I like to stay on good terms with the neighbors and I like to know if my tenants are misbehaving.

Chances are that if tenants are bad enough for neighbors to complain, tenants are probably damaging the property.

Hoosier,

I LOVE neighbors!! I cannot be at every property and see everything on every day. I give my "office" card to every neighbor I meet. I make a point to knock on the door of the folks on each side of my rentals. Great PR and I firmly believe I get FEWER calls because of this.

Just got a call from a neighbor who said"I don't mean to be nosy but you did say to call. Your renters are moving out and I just wanted to make sure everything was OK." No, they were skipping so I ran over and got their new cells and new address.

Like Sid said, we don't answer the phone EVER. This greatly reduces the drama. They leave a message, we can check it out before we call them back. Some complainers LOVE an audience and will call frequently if the LL answers.

BRAD

17 to go?

Another: residents come and go but neighbors live forever. Keep good relations.

The door banging thing was strange but maybe not as big a deal as she let on.

Back to your original question Yes, we give our res a form letter that says "Someone has complained to our office and we are allowing 7 days to correct the issue. Please text a photo to show it's fixed." The letter has a list of common issues like tall grass, trash, improper parking, noise...