Customer Reviews

The Absentee Landlord's Survival Guide

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a practical handbook that addresses almost every conceivable situation facing an absentee landlord. The author's experience shows throughout this concise volume. Reading it helped me anticipate and prevent numerous problems that otherwise could have cost thousands of dollars to resolve. It is the best investment a person can make if he/she is planning to rent a property or enter the real estate business in a serious way. It is especially eye-opening to those of us who have found ourselves suddenly thrust into a position as an absentee landlord through transfers or other abrupt moves with little experience to prepare us.

Moving overseas was very difficult for the family. Leaving our home made all of us sad even though we were in a new place. When we discovered after a year had gone by our property management company had neglected our home my wife and I were very upset.

We switched companies, but learned how to ask better questions from this book. In particular, the idea that we didn't have to use the mgmt. companies contractors saved us money when the hot water heater failed and needed replacement. Rower's simple style, use of key ideas, helped us understand our rights better and expect better service from our management company. We learned to be very demanding of the property manager, insistent that they solicit more bids, including bids of contractors recommended to us by others. Reading the book made us understand that though we were far away, the property management company had to "manage" the property the way we wanted it done.

This book and newsletters have already saved me money and aggrevation! It is easy to read, well written and well worht the price. Foreign Service Journal was right, this is a valuable resource for absentee landlords.

Eagerly anticipating the info within, I opened this book first from a pile of books I received from Amazon. I was sorely disappointed as the content matter went over general propery management topics with very minor treatment on the actual info I'm looking for: specific tips/hints for the absentee landlording. And if you need a good property management book, I'm sure you can find better references than this book.