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The LeaseRooster blog
What we are learning about running rentals, plus product news from the LeaseRooster team.
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101 posts-
A landlord's tax calendar, in the order the dates arrive
January 31 is the one that surprises people, because it lands before anything else and it is not about your return. Here is the year laid out, with the work that has to happen before each date rather than on it. Money -
How rental income is taxed, from deposit to Schedule E
Rent is ordinary income, but not everything that lands in the account is rent, and not every loss is usable. What counts as income, which schedule it belongs on, and why a profitable unit can still show a loss. Money -
Rental property depreciation, explained without the jargon
Split the price between land and building, put the building on a 27.5-year schedule with a mid-month start, and keep the appliances on their own five-year clock. That is most of it. Here is the rest, including the part that shows up when you sell. Money -
Which receipts a landlord has to keep, and for how long
Three years is the default. Six if you understated income badly, and forever for the documents that set your basis in the building. A retention schedule, plus the four documents that outlive every tenant you will ever have. Money -
Do landlords have to send a 1099 to a contractor?
The threshold moved from $600 to $2,000, the deadline did not, and the answer still turns on whether your rental counts as a trade or business. What to collect in November so January is a filing job and not a phone-call job. Money -
What a condition report needs besides a list of rooms
Most condition report templates are a room list with a comment box. The parts that decide a dispute are elsewhere: the header block, the rating scale, the second column for the tenant, the deadline, and the sign-off. Money -
The tenant disagrees with your move-out condition report
A contested condition report is a different problem from a contested deduction, and it arrives earlier. Here is how to handle the disagreement while the unit is still empty, and what to do when the tenant simply will not sign. Laws and rules -
The pre-move-out walkthrough is the cheapest dispute insurance there is
A walkthrough two weeks before the tenant leaves gives them a chance to fix things and gives you a witnessed record of what was wrong. California requires the offer. Everywhere else it is optional and still worth doing. Laws and rules -
How to shoot a move-in video somebody will actually watch
A walkthrough video is only useful if a stranger can follow it a year later. Ten rules for route, narration, pacing and length, plus the case for short clips over one long take. Money -
A quarter-by-quarter maintenance checklist for a rental you do not live in
Preventive maintenance lists usually assume you can walk down to the basement. This one is built for a unit somebody else lives in: four quarters, what to inspect, what to hand a vendor, and what to ask the tenant to do. Blog post -
Your move-in photos are only evidence if you can find them
How many photos to take, what each one has to show, how to name and store them so they are still usable in three years, and why California now requires them at the start of a tenancy. Laws and rules -
How to find a vendor who will still pick up in year three
Finding a plumber is easy. Finding one who answers in February, prices the same way twice, and treats your tenant well is the actual problem. A vetting sequence built around license verification, a paid trial job, and three questions most landlords never ask. Blog post