Landlord's Guide

While many people search for Manhattan condominium apartments because they hope to craft a new home for themselves, many NYC condominium owners choose to rent out their apartments and become landlords in their own right. This Landlord's Guide will provide tips to streamline the process of renting out your Manhattan apartment, and help you make a seamless transition from New York City apartment owner to NYC landlord.

Determine Your Goals

Defining what you hope to achieve by renting out your Manhattan apartment will help you determine everything from your asking price to what kind of tenant you're looking for. Are you prepared for the possibility of a long tenant search, or do you hope to rent out your condo as quickly as possible? A low asking price will draw in more candidates and lead to the possibility of your NYC rental getting snapped up quickly. But the prospective tenants will vary greatly in terms of finances, backgrounds, and future goals. Setting a higher asking price may lead to a higher profit for you while thinning the pool of tenants, but you should be prepared for a lengthy screening and negotiation process. Other owners are comfortable making back their monthly maintenance and taxes and will set the price of their Manhattan rental apartment based on those figures.

As a landlord, you must be careful in choosing your would-be apartment tenants, screening them for additional factors besides their offering price. You should also screen them for compatibility -- compatibility with your ideas of what a good tenant is, and what kind of person you hope to rent to. For example, fresh college graduates will have less financial power than an established family, but may require fewer concessions or additional improvements. These qualities and factors will play a part in determining your goals for renting your apartment.

Write a Contract

Once you have successfully selected a tenant for your NYC apartment rental, it is time to develop the terms of your leasing contract to be signed by both the tenant and the owner.  The lease stipulates all the rules of the apartment rental as decided in your negotiations. These rules include: payment amount and when it is due, any late fees or discounts, whether pets are allowed and what kind, the number of people who can live in the NYC apartment, as well whether the tenant accepts the property “as is” or the owner will make some improvements before the tenant moves in. This agreement may also include guidelines to follow in unusual situations and detail the individual responsibilities of both the tenant and landlord.

A lawyer specializing in Manhattan property agreements is highly advisable at this stage, rather than writing up a lease on your own.

Manage Responsibilities (Tenant Rights)

The relationship between a NYC tenant and landlord is one of reciprocity, trust and mutual gain. In exchange for providing your tenant with a safe place to live and addressing any problems that arise, your tenant cares for the apartment and provides a steady stream of income on a timely basis.

Maintaining the accessibility and safety of your Manhattan rental apartment can take a wide range of forms. New York City landlords are responsible for monitoring the apartment's utilities and providing accomodations for tenants with disabilities. Tenants have a right to privacy but a landlord can enter with reasonable prior notice and at a reasonable time. Likewise, tenants that break clauses of the agreed-upon lease can be evicted. For a full list of tenants' rights and regulations, click here.