Those who want even more help are turning to rental-management professionals. “It’s been a huge boon for us,” said Brenton Hayden, president and CEO of Renters Warehouse, Golden Valley. Unintentional landlords now represent more than 50 percent of his firm’s customers, up from about 10 percent just two years ago. “We’ve had to staff up and train people on the ins and outs.”
Real-Time Leasing, a Burnsville company, also has seen an increase in accidental landlords, according to co-owner James Wagley. The chores that such landlords are most eager to outsource are “confrontations,” often related to collecting rent, and maintenance, he said. Many amateur landlords seek professional help after a tenant fails to pay rent for several months. “They [landlords] try to be nice, then feel duped and embarrassed” when the nonpayment persists, Wagley said.
Anne Healy’s year as a landlord was so frustrating that she put her St. Paul house back on the market and recently sold it — for $50,000 less than an offer she turned down last year.