Best options to rent out an apartment

ElVenao

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Mar 16, 2017
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Hello!

I will be going to the US for a year and I am looking to rent out the apartment in Santo Domingo until I get back in 2019. What do you think would be the best venues to advertise or promote the apartment for rent? Would you say that real estate agents have your best interests at heart?

Now I've read a couple of threads stating that www.dr1.com/rentals is a good alternative but after taking a glance at it I could only see two postings there and both haven't been updated since 2015. I am unsure of the web traffic and reliability this option would bring.

Are corotos, supercasas a good venues for these or are there other places? Should I just leave it all in the hands of some real estate agent?

Your input would be appreciated.
 

mofongoloco

Silver
Feb 7, 2013
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I don't recall the thread...

But a few people here said something about using airbnb for a few days then cutting a side deal in cash if you like the place/owner.  

Lots of places aren't owned by the person listed in airbnb.  They are property managers, of a sort. 
 

LTSteve

Gold
Jul 9, 2010
5,449
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Hello!

I will be going to the US for a year and I am looking to rent out the apartment in Santo Domingo until I get back in 2019. What do you think would be the best venues to advertise or promote the apartment for rent? Would you say that real estate agents have your best interests at heart?

Now I've read a couple of threads stating that www.dr1.com/rentals is a good alternative but after taking a glance at it I could only see two postings there and both haven't been updated since 2015. I am unsure of the web traffic and reliability this option would bring.

Are corotos, supercasas a good venues for these or are there other places? Should I just leave it all in the hands of some real estate agent?

Your input would be appreciated.

You will most likely have to go through a realtor to list your property for rent and this will cost you a fee, possibly equivalent to the first months rent. Also be very careful when renting that you have a well written rental contract and you collect first and lasts months rent in advance and the tenant is aware that that the last's months rent is a damage and security deposit and he is required to pay all monthly rental charges and you will refund the damage and security deposit after he has moved out and you have checked your apartment. He should also be required to pay for electricity separately. It is not an easy thing to rent long term. You have to find the right tenant, collect your deposits, arrange for the monthly rent to be deposited into your bank account, have someone monitor the apartment to make sure there are no security issues and hope that no other issues come up while you are gone. Being out of the country makes it twice as hard to insure things are going smoothly. I rented my apartment in LT long term while I was in the process of listing it for sale and found a decent tenant, however, no matter how buttoned up you are there will always be little problems that crop up. Do you have someone in SD that you could rely on to go to the apartment if there are problems? That would be a big plus. That could either be a real estate agent or a personal friend or family member. I would think long and hard how much the monthly rent is worth to you. If you don't really need the money you may want to consider just locking up and leaving the apartment vacant while you are gone. Obviously the money would be nice but a simple rental could turn into a problem if you don't have the right pieces in place. With you out of the country it is very difficult to monitor what is happening back home. Good luck and good travels
 

windeguy

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Jul 10, 2004
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Airbnb currently "owns" this type of rental market. Of course there are other ways to rent.
 

AlterEgo

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Staff member
Jan 9, 2009
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South Coast
You will most likely have to go through a realtor to list your property for rent and this will cost you a fee, possibly equivalent to the first months rent. Also be very careful when renting that you have a well written rental contract and you collect first and lasts months rent in advance and the tenant is aware that that the last's months rent is a damage and security deposit and he is required to pay all monthly rental charges and you will refund the damage and security deposit after he has moved out and you have checked your apartment. He should also be required to pay for electricity separately. It is not an easy thing to rent long term. You have to find the right tenant, collect your deposits, arrange for the monthly rent to be deposited into your bank account, have someone monitor the apartment to make sure there are no security issues and hope that no other issues come up while you are gone. Being out of the country makes it twice as hard to insure things are going smoothly. I rented my apartment in LT long term while I was in the process of listing it for sale and found a decent tenant, however, no matter how buttoned up you are there will always be little problems that crop up. Do you have someone in SD that you could rely on to go to the apartment if there are problems? That would be a big plus. That could either be a real estate agent or a personal friend or family member. I would think long and hard how much the monthly rent is worth to you. If you don't really need the money you may want to consider just locking up and leaving the apartment vacant while you are gone. Obviously the money would be nice but a simple rental could turn into a problem if you don't have the right pieces in place. With you out of the country it is very difficult to monitor what is happening back home. Good luck and good travels



Exactly why we don’t rent our home when we’re not here. Even with very trusted family around, not worth the risks and wouldn’t want to impose on relatives (who would be insulted if we offered to pay them) to handle repairs, etc
 

ElVenao

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Mar 16, 2017
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Hey LTSteve,

Thanks a lot for the helpful information.

You will most likely have to go through a realtor to list your property for rent and this will cost you a fee,
possibly equivalent to the first months rent. Also be very careful when renting that you have a well written rental contract and you collect first and lasts months rent in advance and the tenant is aware that that the last's months rent is a damage and security deposit and he is required to pay all monthly rental charges and you will refund the damage and security deposit after he has moved out and you have checked your apartment.

Understood. This is what I had in mind originally. Just a little confused about your indication that the "lats's month rent is a damage and security deposit". If that is the case, and it wouldn't be counted towards the actual payment of the last month (when it comes), then shouldn't it be just called a "security deposit". Either way I have several friends that are lawyers and deal with these contract on an every day basis. Shouldn't be much of an issue.

He should also be required to pay for electricity separately. It is not an easy thing to rent long term. You have to find the right tenant, collect your deposits, arrange for the monthly rent to be deposited into your bank account, have someone monitor the apartment to make sure there are no security issues and hope that no other issues come up while you are gone. Being out of the country makes it twice as hard to insure things are going smoothly. I rented my apartment in LT long term while I was in the process of listing it for sale and found a decent tenant, however, no matter how buttoned up you are there will always be little problems that crop up. Do you have someone in SD that you could rely on to go to the apartment if there are problems? That would be a big plus. That could either be a real estate agent or a personal friend or family member.

Good recommendation as well. Fortunately the majority (if not all) of my family and extended family lives here in Santo Domingo. A lot of them live just a couple of blocks away from my apartment so that shouldn't be an issue.

I would think long and hard how much the monthly rent is worth to you. If you don't really need the money you may want to consider just locking up and leaving the apartment vacant while you are gone. Obviously the money would be nice but a simple rental could turn into a problem if you don't have the right pieces in place. With you out of the country it is very difficult to monitor what is happening back home. Good luck and good travels

Yes, the money would be a tremendous concern. I am paying a mortgage on my apartment and on top of that when I go to the states I will be renting so the money is always more than welcome. I really don't see many options in this case. I am running a little bit out of time hence I need to find a good quality tenant really soon (I know it can be big ask), that's why I am looking for alternatives other than the real estate agents I have happily worked with in the past.
 

ElVenao

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Mar 16, 2017
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Airbnb currently "owns" this type of rental market. Of course there are other ways to rent.

Airbnb is currently not allowed in the building I live in. It would have to be a long term rental (12 months) and either way that is how I would prefer it anyways.
 

ElVenao

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Mar 16, 2017
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Exactly why we don’t rent our home when we’re not here. Even with very trusted family around, not worth the risks and wouldn’t want to impose on relatives (who would be insulted if we offered to pay them) to handle repairs, etc

How close to you in terms of being a relative to you is your "very trusted family"? I mean, my parents would happily, willingly and unequivocally demand me to let them take care of all these repairs, issues, etc.
 

AlterEgo

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Jan 9, 2009
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How close to you in terms of being a relative to you is your "very trusted family"? I mean, my parents would happily, willingly and unequivocally demand me to let them take care of all these repairs, issues, etc.



My husband’s brothers, he has 4 in SD, but two are particularly close.  Parents are a whole different category, now that you’ve said that, it changes everything.
 

LTSteve

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Jul 9, 2010
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Hey LTSteve,

Thanks a lot for the helpful information.



Understood. This is what I had in mind originally. Just a little confused about your indication that the "lats's month rent is a damage and security deposit". If that is the case, and it wouldn't be counted towards the actual payment of the last month (when it comes), then shouldn't it be just called a "security deposit". Either way I have several friends that are lawyers and deal with these contract on an every day basis. Shouldn't be much of an issue.



Good recommendation as well. Fortunately the majority (if not all) of my family and extended family lives here in Santo Domingo. A lot of them live just a couple of blocks away from my apartment so that shouldn't be an issue.



Yes, the money would be a tremendous concern. I am paying a mortgage on my apartment and on top of that when I go to the states I will be renting so the money is always more than welcome. I really don't see many options in this case. I am running a little bit out of time hence I need to find a good quality tenant really soon (I know it can be big ask), that's why I am looking for alternatives other than the real estate agents I have happily worked with in the past.

Yeah, you could collect first, last and a separate security deposit. What I was hoping you could avoid would be a mistake I made where my tenant didn't want to make the last months rental payment and told me to keep the "security deposit". I told him that the security deposit was to insure that the apartment was left in the same condition as when he received it. For some reason he couldn't see the logic in that. I went round and round and had to have a third party go to verify for me that the apartment was in good shape after the tenant vacated. Many tenants have their own agenda and that is what you need to guard against. You sound like you have a good understanding of what you need to do. Good luck and good travels.
 

Cdn_Gringo

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Apr 29, 2014
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You will need to collect 1st & last months rent and a separate deposit to cover potential damages. This usually takes the form of the renter having to pay the equivalent of 3 months rent before they move in and the lease stipulates that the third payment is a damage deposit. When you do this, you are required to pay interest once each year on that security deposit but no interest required for the last months rent.
 

Yallarent

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May 15, 2018
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Renting out your home can be a great way for earning more money. AIRBNB is the best way to Renting your property in these days. Through Airbnb you can Make More Money on Your Rental Properties
. They do all the Necessary Paper work for you.
 

ctrob

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Nov 9, 2006
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I am running a little bit out of time hence I need to find a good quality tenant really soon (I know it can be big ask), that's why I am looking for alternatives other than the real estate agents I have happily worked with in the past.



If you're "running out of time" you probably have only one really good option.

1 - Assuming you have an atty, and they know real estate, tell them what you're doing and ask for references of a good property manager.

2 - Hire that Property Manager to handle it for you

3 - spend what time you have left making sure your house is ready.

Relatives just won't do it properly regardless of their good intentions, they have their own lives and also won't know property management.

And if you do it yourself, and try to absentee manage you could have some serious headaches not to mention loss of value, etc. Get a professional. Believe me, I've been doing it a long time.
 

drstock

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Oct 29, 2010
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Yeah, you could collect first, last and a separate security deposit. What I was hoping you could avoid would be a mistake I made where my tenant didn't want to make the last months rental payment and told me to keep the "security deposit". I told him that the security deposit was to insure that the apartment was left in the same condition as when he received it. For some reason he couldn't see the logic in that. I went round and round and had to have a third party go to verify for me that the apartment was in good shape after the tenant vacated. Many tenants have their own agenda and that is what you need to guard against. You sound like you have a good understanding of what you need to do. Good luck and good travels.

This is a very common scenario, which you should fight against. In my early days of being a landlord here, I allowed a client to use his security deposit instead of paying the last month's rent because he claimed it was the only way he could pay, and it was a big mistake. He left the place in an awful state, which cost the value of the security deposit and more to put right. I also learned from this sorry episode to carry out regular checks on the apartment's condition while the tenant is staying there.