Managing the modern landlord and tenant relationship
The typical relationship between a landlord and a tenant has changed in recent years as technology helps tenants to find far more places to rent but also helps landlords to compete for their business.
Andrew Walker
SA Property Investors Network (SAPIN) in SA and Letsand in the UK
Property Practitioners AKA Estate Agents must adapt to the evolving needs of renters and buyers
The idea of aspiring to own a house with a white picket or, in SA’s case, a green palisade one is losing popularity for many people. We are a country where a truly diverse group of people reside, and everyone’s needs vary compared with the next person.
Some people are forced to leave the nest when they turn 18 in search of work and a rented room, while others might stay at home into their 30s while they buy an apartment which they rent out for extra income.
Therefore, a property practitioner such as an estate agent, needs to tailor his or her services to get consistent work or end up shutting his or her doors.
To start with, hosting show days and advertising on street poles might not be adequate to excel in your career anymore.
Greater access to information and resources
Website resources are nothing new, but they have developed rapidly in recent years. Tenants can access property listing websites like Private Property which boasts a detailed database of listings of properties for rent and sale; residential and commercial.
They can also conduct research about a developer or development before buying or renting an apartment within it. They are able to choose from a variety of residential property types including apartments, townhouses, multi-family rental units, homes in estates, traditional freeholds, with other types being added as our market changes. They can pick their landlord if they find out about that person’s or company’s reputation which places more pressure on landlords, managers and agents never to drop the ball.
Landlords are also able to gather information about the tenants who apply. They can use credit bureaus and property services to screen tenants for affordability and reliability, and proptech applications which help to prevent fraud.
A fair relationship
Our residential market is evolving, and it means that owners and tenants must educate themselves about their rights and responsibilities when entering a lease. They must use resources and seek help where possible.
SA Property Investors Network (SAPIN) CEO and founder Andrew Walker says these resources are often not expensive and that sometimes just asking for advice may prevent future problems between landlords and tenants. Walker also founded and manages Letsand in the UK.
“Very few landlords are also good managers. If you can own and manage a property well, all the power to you. But you don’t want to break your relationship and start threatening tenants when things go wrong,” says Walker.
Managing unpredictable behaviour and expectations
Tenants have an assortment of expectations of landlords, some of which are not always correct. A landlord can manage these if they follow the correct procedures and are clued up on their rights in terms of SA’s laws. But there are also numerous excellent residential property managers across the country who can help a landlord.
“Life happens. You might go through all the right checks and balances and get a strong tenant and then they fall ill and cannot work. You then must handle that unfortunate situation carefully and that is where a professional manager can help you,” Walker says.
Humans are unpredictable, unlike machines and that creates risk. Investing in property for rental purposes means that this risk is not only unavoidable, but also critical to the success of your investment. This may seem to be the reason why so many companies, entrepreneurs and other groups are driving technologies that remove personal interaction in favour of automation and speed. While efficiency is useful for business owners, especially small ones, a landlord-tenant relationship is long-term and personal, and needs to be managed with care.
“Investors need to appreciate that they are letting their property to another human and, with that, comes emotion. Life is unpredictable and you don’t know how humans will react to change so you must be prepared,” says Walker.
SAPIN provides training and advice, as well as other online resources to landlords. While some landlords might choose never to meet their tenants in person, preferring to use agents, communication between the parties is still critical. SAPIN emphasises the need to ensure tenants understand their lease from the outset, and the need to follow regular due process with the ingoing inspection of the property.
“It seems silly, but these relationships are formed early on and like any human relationship. If the tenant is put at ease, then they will be easier to work with. You can expect them to pay their rent on time and to abide by the rules of the complex and the stipulations within the lease and if something goes wrong, then at least you have set up a relationship already and can then try to find solutions without animosity,” says Walker.
While some landlords generally communicate via email and WhatsApp or SMS, sometimes arranging face-to-face meetings is useful. Also, if people manage more than one property, it might be tempting to use technology which limits human interaction, but this can have undesired effects.
“It doesn’t matter what technology you choose to use. You may think that using automation systems, chatbots in apps and other tech to cut out a meeting with a nervous tenant will help you but it’s often the wrong approach. Rather phone your tenant if there is an issue and setup meetings in advance so you don’t need to doorstop them if a small problem becomes a big one,” says Walker.
Julia Finnis-Bedford
Amazing Spaces
Bruno Simão
Bruno Simão Attorneys
Paying more attention to human connection
Estate agents or property practitioners also need to move with the times as technology changes a profession which has not changed materially for decades.
Julia Finnis-Bedford, director of diversified property services group, Amazing Spaces, explains that if you are selling or renting out a property, it doesn’t matter which market you are working in, you will always work with other humans, even if you use technology to assist you. The agents that you work with are people with emotions, as are the people who you help to buy, sell, rent and rent out properties.
While artificial intelligence driven technologies and other software tools will assist you, you cannot remove the human element in any property transaction. Finnis-Bedford encourages more people to become property practitioners or estate agents and to work in other residential real estate roles and not to fear losing work or a career because of rapid advancements in technology.
“You can be well rewarded financially from careers in real estate but just remember that it’s not all pretty buildings and people in stylish suits,” she says.
She explains that while some people might choose a career as an estate agent because you could sell luxury homes to the rich and famous, much of your time will be spent doing admin and other work with lawyers, so that your client learns to trust you.
“If Netflix series’ like ‘Selling Sunset’ and ‘Owning Manhattan’ were your only window into the real estate world, you'd believe the industry revolves around designer outfits, luxury cars, and dramatic confrontations in multi-million-dollar mansions. The reality, however, couldn't be more different,” she says.
“As someone who established a film locations business in 2000 before expanding into real estate, I've learned that success in this industry depends far less on glamour and far more on genuine human connection, teamwork, and a supportive company culture,” Finnis-Bedford says.
Moving house, whether you choose to rent or buy, is one of the most stressful things you will go through in your life. If you are an agent, you need to recognise this and focus on keeping your client happy and not worried about anything around their home sale or purchase. It’s probably not possible to completely remove the stress around such a personal and expensive decision but as a practitioner you must strive to get as close to this goal as possible.
Real Estate as a worthwhile mission
It’s not only reality TV that portrays agents as lone wolves fighting for listings and commissions. Many real estate agencies try to advertise themselves as groups of flashy professionals which people aspire to be like. The reality is that sustainable success depends on teamwork, mutual support, and a wholesome company culture.
The housing market is challenging. Agents burn out when they get rejected after seeking a mandate. They must deal with the complex emotions of buyers and sellers and navigate the financial and emotional significance of property transactions. Without proper support systems, even the most talented agents will struggle to sustain a career.
Buyers need to do the work and “that’s all the work”, Finns-Bedford says. You need to understand why the property you want to sell would appeal to a buyer and to which kind of buyer. You also need to appreciate why the person you are helping to sell a property is letting go of their asset. Has there been a change in their family life? Have they taken a financial knock?
Sellers need not only approach large agencies to sell their homes either. Boutique agencies can address challenges when selling homes and help their agents to manage their careers. Intentional culture-building is worthwhile. Rather than encouraging internal competition, invite collaboration with experienced agents mentoring newcomers.
What South African rental tenants expect in 2025
Aside from a tenant expecting their landlord to be professional, what else should they bring to the party? Landlords are expected to provide a house with functional infrastructure and reasonable security.
But it is typical in South Africa, for tenants to demand that landlords will provide “backups for power shortages” according to Bruno Simão of Bruno Simão Attorneys.
While SA may have progressed in limiting electricity interruptions in the past year, and a variety of products have entered the market in the past 18 years since loadshedding first occurred, having backup power feels like it should be a legal requirement for a landlord - but it is not.
Renting a space out with backup options like generators and solar panels may make their offering more competitive, but this is not mandatory unless pre-agreed in the lease, Walker explains.
Other tenants may expect high tech security at their property. This does not fit into the Rental Housing Act of South Africa and consequent Unfair Practices Regulations.
The home needs to fit for the purpose for which it has been let and be habitable and have doors that close and lock.
A rental agent can convey this information to a tenant before they sign their lease. Also, agents who are clued up can answer assorted questions that tenants may have. If they do not know the answer to a tenant’s question, they should be able to ascertain an answer timeously and accurately. Those agents who work well with tenants will build positive reputations and be able to get future work from developers and multifamily residential rental companies, for example, in the future.
Landlords must be reasonable and appreciate that tenants expect landlords to act fairly and within the law and landlords expect the same of tenants. As managing larger and larger pools of housing becomes popular in South Africa, as seen by the growing number of letting agents and property management businesses, one needs to be aware of property and contract law. Each landlord must find a way to pay rates and taxes each month. It has become common in complexes that certain tenants don’t pay rent and certain ones do and then this leads to the electricity being cut off as the landlord does not make a rates payment, but then the landlord is in the wrong. The landlord needs to have money kept aside for these contingencies, otherwise the relationships with their good tenants face friction and other issues can arise down the line such as a rent paying tenant deciding not to pay rent for a period or taking the landlord to the Rental Housing Tribunal.
What tenants expect vs what landlords must provide
Avoiding fraudulent tenants
Numerous tools which vet prospective tenants have come to SA in recent years. Landlords have access to 12 credit bureaus as well as other service providers who can help verify information provided by tenants.
“We have seen huge increases in fraudulent information being presented by tenants. To avoid this, landlords can check info against SARS and these bureaus,” says Walker.
Preferental, a property management proptech solutions provider launched a new tenant screening app in March this year. CEO, Ross Fitzcharles, says this “state-of-the-art application” offers a faster, more efficient and cost-effective solution.
A landlord could take a tenant to court after following the correct procedures to obtain an eviction order, but this can be an arduous process. It is cheaper to avoid making the mistake of placing a “bad tenant” from the beginning. While more than 18% of tenants are in arrears and a tenant in arrears owing 77.5% of one month’s rent in any given month, according to data provider PayProp, 40% of landlords do not conduct any form of tenant vetting, leaving them vulnerable to numerous risks, he says.
Landlords can also work with the likes of Xpello, a company established in 2017 which expert staff who have worked in evictions. This group includes specialist attorneys who attend eviction hearings on a landlord’s behalf. Xpello is a SAPIN partner. This is a growing area of real estate management and competing companies are entering the market.
The residential rental property industry is as demanding as it is rewarding, if not more. But it is also dynamic. Being a landlord, letting agent or property practitioner can be far from boring as you find properties to rent out and then match them with tenants. You may then need to manage the relationship day to day. If you stay within the lease’s and body corporate’s rules and treat the tenant like a human, you should enjoy a lucrative and fulfilling career.