If you have multiple rental properties and you are a full-time Landlord (no W-2 day job),...what do you do all day long?

I just spent the last 2 weeks in the woods hunting. Right now I'm Christmas shopping with my wife....maybe WMH's tour group can say a prayer for me??

Yesterday I brought firewood to my house all day from the neighbor who was having trees cut.

Play guitar. Hike. Look for other houses, work on the ones I have. Looking at a 3 unit today.

NE,

I work on my business. Each week I check for expiring leases, sign new leases, advertise vacancies, oversee making units rent ready, I check on wage garnishments, on finding where debtors now work.

More importantly, I evaluate my lease (heavy influenced by this forum)and make improvements to my lease.

I read, I walk, I meet with others at Toastmasters, at Rotary, at Church.

Sisco,

Roy, I sure do enjoy it!

I have 16 rentals and am retired so I suppose that makes me a full time landlord. Now more so since William passed away from lung cancer in July. Prior to that I handled most of the business end of the rental business anyway (as well as the cleaning, painting, minor electrical work, managing plumbers, HVAC appointments, other repairs we could not do ourselves).

I do cat (and now puppy) rescue. My area is terrible for dumping animals and not spaying or neutering dogs and cats. Several counties have NO animal control facilities and no garbage pickup so puppies and kittens can be found at any dump site. Local rescue groups are typically filled with rescue animals and counties that do have animal control are euthanizing left and right. We try to save as many as possible but it often seems to be an impossible task.

Plan next vacation cruise.

Hobbies (woodworking and musclecars), repairs on my own house, travel, take care of and play with my dog, go out for dinner, entertainment (movies, plays, concerts, etc.), and manage the household finances and investments.

We only have 6 units plus one seasonal Airbnb, so we might not qualify as full-time LLs. We have other income streams besides real estate.

Dumpster Diving ? I bet that is a fun way to spend an afternoon. I thought only my tenants did that.

I'm not a full-time landlord, but I am retired. Yes, my rentals take a certain amount of time, but I have worked out my procedures so that almost everything is another example of something I have faced before and can minimize my effort. Frankly, it now doesn't take a lot of my time anymore.

I give seminars in the local university. In November, I spoke on the most recent developments in Middle Eastern diplomacy (Israel-Palestine) following President Trump's one-sided pro-Israel policy. In response to his policy, The EU has discouraged other countries from following Trump's example of moving their embassies to Jerusalem, a couple of countries who followed Trump have moved their embassies back OUT of Jerusalem. 137 countries now recognize the country of Palestine, the latest in November, while the EU wants to take over negotiations from the US. Ireland has announced that if there is no real progress soon, they will recognize Palestine, becoming the mainline EU country to do so, while the International Criminal Court has taken the situation of Israeli invasions of Gaza (3 times, no) under investigation, and issued a warning to Israel that it is taking very seriously the matter of Gaza and of Israeli apartheid and of settlement in the West Bank, which could result in indictment of Israel.

In March, I will give one on the 1973 war for a group studying military battles and how they have affected the course of history. Plus, again in March, I will give a seminar on Rent Control, especially in CA, but the dynamics of the situation, calculations about vacancy factor ratios, how landlords fight back, tactics of landlords in dealing with such laws, the future of rent control (especially in CA), and projections for the future, since, despite defeat of November's Proposition, the problem of unaffordable rents still remains, and the issue is still active.

Right now, the latest rehab is taking almost all my time. Normally: church, grandkids, kids, golf, kayaking, singing, teaching children, fixing bicycles (rescued from dumpster) for our children's ministry, gourmet cook with Sweetie, grill, snuggle with Sweetie... and just watch the rent checks roll in. Giggle.

I consider myself a full time entrepreneur between my rentals and my accounting practice. Today was a rental day as I oversaw the installation of a new toilet in one of the units. I was going to leave the guy there to complete and we thought it would go quick, so I stayed--it took 4 hours and I had to run back and forth to the hardware store for some items. Maintenance guy has to come back to the same building on Monday to finish up some items and then move to my 7 unit next week to address a few issues. The rest of the day is taken up with accounting and writing. I love to write and generally stay current with events, so I publish a politically oriented FB page that I update daily. Between blogging and the FB page, I've probably written enough for 2-3 books.

Roy since you don't have it on your lease YET. send 2 copies - one for them to keep and one to retune signed. Include return envelope. (not just feminine products i hope.

As a working licensed contractor and owner of many dozens of units, homes and commercial properties, I used to work 7 days a week around 10 hours a day. At 45 I sold off my troubled properties and upgraded all others to limit repairs and maintenance.

At 48 years old I gave up my outside contracting and focused on my tenants, units and properties. I reduced my stress and limited my work hours to 6 hours a day, 5 days a week.

At 50 I bought myself several presents. A new home on a huge lot and a new car. Then I worked only 4 days a week around 6 hours each day.

Now at 58, I moved things around so that I work 2 full days a week on my properties so that I'll have 5 days a week to myself. This in theory. I still have emergencies that will consume another day a week of work.

So I have half of my time to enjoy my hobbies. I read, learn, spend time with friends and family. I'll build myself something for fun. Like add a second bathroom to a vacant unit that I'm in no rush to re-rent. Upgrading it to bring in a better class of tenant at a higher rent.

I do spend 1 day a month doing good for my community. I make sure to treat myself right and try to do something different for fun.

I workout, go to the gym and make better eating choices. I make sure my health is on track so that I can live a longer healthier life. The past stress from tenants and government was enough to give me an early grave. I had to correct my life choices and not allow those to push me around.

Renovations, maintenance and repairs...

So, the news is anti-Semitic?

In the University, anyone is free to object and back it up with any well-reasoned and credible facts, theories or analysis. I seem to be able to handle such objections, and keep getting invited back.

News is news, except to the gullible-niks.

What does that mean? That the news that I reported in my seminar is untrue? The question was, what do you do with your time? I give research seminars, bringing out news and other facts (well documented and reasoned) along with analysis and theories about what the future may bring. I am usually right, and well respected. My seminars are always packed, with not enough seats for everyone.

Whats your objection? That you don't like the facts that I show? Or, what it adds up to? Are you suspicious that my facts are inaccurate (just ask me for references)? I usually display newspaper clippings on a screen when I talk. Unlike statistics, the facts don't lie. My seminars are about what they mean, what they add up to, what they imply about the future of a problem that is very serious (last time it flared up, it provoked a very serious crisis of potential nuclear war), not to mention the growing attention that the world is giving to the documented plight of the Palestinians.

Do some homework. If you are capable of serious inquiry, you'll find that I am right, and it has nothing to do with any special affinity for one side or another, only with problems that need to be solved.

And, if you doubt my facts, just ask for verification.

My biggest problem is with the uber liberal universities (especially those in CA) that espouse left-wing propaganda like it is "NEWS." Probably not unlike the university that loves to invite you back for more of your word.

Many of the same universities will not even allow any Conservative speech on campus. UC Berkley just this week found out that was actually illegal. Imagine that!

JB and Moshe - Lets stay on topic here,...what do you do during the day?

To answer my own question - this year I bought 3 houses and did three rehabs which were almost back to back (I will never do this again - finish one rehab and then start another one). Even though I hire subs to work at my rehabs, I spend most of my time actively involved in the rehab on a daily basis,..managing the people I hire. Now that those 3 rehabs are finished and rented out, my daily schedule is beginning to lighten up some. I need to start a rehab on the house that I live in. That one has taken a back seat to all of my rental houses which always seems to be my first priority.

"liberal universities": most universities ARE that way.

However, Berkeley has long since defended the right of free speech, cancelling speeches only when there is threat of violence. UCLA has taken a similar approach. The University of Chicago (once considered to be the most liberal university in the universe) has announced to their fist year College class that " "Our commitment to academic freedom means that we do not cancel invited speakers because their topics might prove controversial and we do not condone the creation of intellectual safe spaces where individuals can retreat from ideas and perspectives at odds with their own ". My granddaughter is a member of that class, and reported to me at Thanksgiving (she has just begun her first year) how she cannot imagine herself being happy at any other University. Everyone is so smart (she's not so bad herself) and she feels that she gets smarter with every campus discussion.

But news comes in more than one form: there are opinion columns which are the property of the writer to write as he/she pleases, and there are attributed reports of events, which are carefully vetted and verified, and are reported by all respected news sources. I acknowledge in my seminars how important it is to distinguish between the two, and what I report is documented facts, and use opinions for what they really are: what someone else thinks, and the logic of what they say is what is important.

You sound as though you don't know anything about this complex problem, only taking your opinion based on what pleases you, rather than facts, logic, synthesis, and careful analysis. It is truly a very, very, ... very complex problem indeed, and it requires a deep knowledge of the actual history and area activities and political perspective, including historical, political, moral, international and diplomatic perspective. Thats why my seminars are so popular.

If the fighting is over, I'll chime in. I sleep everyday until I want to get up-sometimes. I get up @ 6am, sometimes @ 9am. I drink coffee and surf the internet for way too long! We watch a lot of tv-old shows, new shows-doesn't matter to us. (Brett and I are determined to get our money's worth out of our Netflix account~LOL)

We usually take a walk-sometimes with our dogs, sometimes without. We are both training our dogs in Agility, and practice and going to school takes up a bit of time-I'm training mine in obedience and rally as well. I usually cook the meals around here, do most of the shopping etc.

We both enjoy reading-he reads all political stuff, I read (usually) for fun.

We are both pushing 65, and more and more, we just enjoy taking it easy and relaxing @ home.

If the fighting is over, I'll chime in. I sleep everyday until I want to get up-sometimes. I get up @ 6am, sometimes @ 9am. I drink coffee and surf the internet for way too long! We watch a lot of tv-old shows, new shows-doesn't matter to us. (Brett and I are determined to get our money's worth out of our Netflix account~LOL)

We usually take a walk-sometimes with our dogs, sometimes without. We are both training our dogs in Agility, and practice and going to school takes up a bit of time-I'm training mine in obedience and rally as well. I usually cook the meals around here, do most of the shopping etc.

We both enjoy reading-he reads all political stuff, I read (usually) for fun.

We are both pushing 65, and more and more, we just enjoy taking it easy and relaxing @ home.

Roy, we wake up when we want, but unfortunately that is ALWAYS too early...we cannot seem to "sleep in" anymore. We high-five each other if we make it to 7am.

I handle the LL paperwork and scheduling the trades when needed and vetting tenants, and DH handles the hard work of fixing things that he can and rehabs as well.

Last year I started volunteering with the Court System as a Guardian ad Litem, helping with Family Court and kids taken into the foster system - I am assigned a few kids and my job is to be a voice in court for them. I am pretty passionate about this job and I go to any and all trainings about poverty, drugs, kids in care, etc that I can.

I've been on the same case (3 kids soon to be 4) for that whole year. It's tough but so worthwhile.

Moshe:

You are doing something similar to what I'd like to do. I plan on creating some youtube videos where I bring in guests to discuss certain issues in depth. I want to create something that has a shelf life. I don't have the time to set that up now, but that's the plan.

For news analysis, try CNN or MSNBC. Of course, each commentator has his/her own point of view and bias, sometimes there is even a network point of view, but there is never any way to escape that.

Reporting of actual facts is at the consumer's own risk. Sometimes you need to read between the lines, sometimes not. The professional press corp is very good at verifying its facts (maybe for fear of lawsuit), but as to facts, you never know what the REAL truth is.

Trying to answer directly to your post which doesn't have to do with Israel-Palestine, but in 1981, Israel was forced to open its own government archives. When scholars researched the archives, they found how the entire Israeli narrative of its history was chock full of lies, and the narrative that the Palestinians had always insisted on was true. So you never know whats true and whats fake news. Who are you going to believe, me or your own eyes? [Groucho Marx, DUCK SOUP]

Moshe,

What are you?

Moshe:

I stopped watching TV and network news in 2003. The only time I watch TV is if I happen to be sitting in someone's waiting room. I'll read CNN via the web. I find Fox and MSNBC to be polar opposites of each other with Fox being the worst between the two. I generally get my news from a Feedly feed and a FB feed from various publications, both international and domestic.

Fred, I grew up in Israel, served in the army, fought in Sinai in 1967, graduated from the University in Tel-Aviv, came to the US to go to graduate school, then came to CA where I have been ever since.

Are you thinking that my point of view is determined by who I am, rather than by the facts? I am an objective scholar, extremely interested in what goes on, and extremely curious about the history, the politics, the pursuit of peace and the moral dimensions of this twisted problem. I am interested in the truth, rather than which group I like best. I like research, I like to do IN-DEPTH reports and seminars, and I would like to see this problem resolved. I also know something about where some of the bodies are buried.

What are you, that you are so skeptic about what the world has now learned about what has and is happening in that area. Are you an Arab, an Israeli, or the other kind of Semite (or some other)? Are you sufficiently educated to be able to look at evidence and make the appropriate logical conclusions? If you want to ask me about what is the evidence, I am glad to share.

Evidently, no one is interested in my coming seminar about Rent Control.

Anyway, thats what I do in my retirement.

Roy - I am a full time landlord, property manager as well as a Real Estate Associate Broker (oh my the haters are coming for me now)!

I look for deals (sometimes), I DO take calls (since it is my business to do so) and I LEARN as much as I can (from this site, from the tenants I have or don't want and from others LOL).

I spend time with my family and currently on vacation (just got back from the pool so I figured I'd see what's going on in here LOL).

As for the "letter" you just wrote to your tenant there should be a LIST that you send to them about what not to flush or pour down a drain. Like myob said - send her TWO copies - one for HER/them and one for them to sign and return to you. Going forward include it in your leases. Unfortunately we have to tell tenants things that just seem like "common sense" but they don't have any.

As a full timer for about 15 years, I have found that sometimes I find myself doing some task that I really shouldn't be doing.

If you break down what the task of a LL is into action steps....it can be a full time job running heard over top of each of these functions.

With about 95 or so units, if you would simply do site visits for example, you would have a job equal to about 25% of a full time job. So with that complete task of multiple things that occur, I find myself not trying to find a single person that can do it all. Instead I am looking for someone who can do something small. That 16 year old that can clear the sidewalk in heavy snow storms in that MFH is someone different than the snow plow driver who clears the driveway.

I break up these task so if I loose the snow shoveler, my operation doesn't come crashing down. Instead only a small part of the entire operation is impaired. Now by doing this, I find out that somewhere in my operation, a task isn't being completed to the correct level so either I am training someone on how to do something right or looking for a replacement person to complete a small task.

I sure do wish there was a one person who could do it all, but the reality is that person is busy doing it all for themselves and not you.

Whatever i want! Today i helped at neighbors estate sale. I wake up when i want. I'm available for my kids. I make my schedule. Lunch. Shop. Pickup mailbox money. Accounting. Get homes rent ready. Could be painting, caulking, Cleaning. Answer phone. Place Ads. Some work, some fun. Plan meals,

Love all the responses! I found some good ideas in there to try.

I meditate every morning. I read every day currently reading Benjamin Franklin by Walter? Isaacson.

I workout at the gym and listen to podcasts currently loving Ed Mylett.

GKARL, I love your answer, I haven’t watched the news since around the same time. I would recommend anyone interested in improving their outlook to do the same.

I also write & paint. (Houses and canvas in my spare time)

And of course I collect the rents once a month!