There are plenty of topics for debate that could arise between landlord and tenant but the subject of parking could cause the most argument. Even more so when your tenants need to park more than one or two vehicles and your Mamaroneck rental property only has limited space. You do not want your tenants to get frustrated if cars are sprawled around everywhere so outline the rules about vehicles and parking in your lease document and provide parking solutions for your tenant.
Parking by the Rules
Each rental property is unique so the availability of parking or lack thereof is different from rental property to rental property. But regardless of the size of property you own and the availability of parking space, you should include parking clauses in your lease agreement with tenants. It is commonly stated in leases the number of vehicles a tenant should not exceed when it comes to parking around your property. Some leases specifically do not allow a tenant from parking oversized or recreational vehicles on the property, such as boats and RVs. As the situation might dictate, your lease can be different. For some neighborhoods, cars are allowed to park in the streets. Right from the start, tenants should be aware of the places that they cannot park such as in the yard, near dumpsters, or on an adjacent property. By discussing parking rules and expectations with your tenants, you are most likely to avoid future conflicts.
Parking Solutions
Every once in a while, just giving parking rules to tenants proves to be inadequate. Oftentimes, when your rental property is in a highly urbanized area where parking space is in short supply. Even if your rental is not located in the city, your tenants can still have trouble finding a place to park their vehicles. When this happens, you need to squeeze your creative juices to find a way to boost your tenants’ parking options.
If your Mamaroneck rental property is a house and there is land around it, there are a few cheap options that you can consider. Adding a carport to your property may be a good idea if it doesn’t have covered parking or a garage yet. Carports draw tenants to your rental home. It may even add a few zeroes to your resale value. Renters love covered parking and that sometimes seals the deal of the rental. But before committing to a construction project, be sure that you do not break any zoning laws.
If a carport does not fit or your rental property does not have a large enough driveway, you can still increase your parking by making an adjacent paved or gravel area for parking vehicles. This should be located adjacent to the property. But not at the expense of curb appeal. When you use your front yard as a parking lot, tenants might walk away from your property. Other areas of your property should be considered.
For rental properties with small yards, small driveways, and narrow streets, creative thinking should get you some good parking solutions. Another recourse might be to rent parking from a neighbor or a nearby parking garage. There might be a property nearby that’s not being used so you can ask the owner to lease it for your tenant’s use. One more way to lessen the cars inside your property is to form an agreement with the tenants that they park their cars or less used cars somewhere else, and in return, you give them public transit passes.
Some property owners find attending to their tenant’s needs to be too much. Real Property Management DePenn offers professional solutions to your parking issues. Contact us for more ideas about how you can make your Mamaroneck rental property more appealing to renters while still offering what they need to live in comfort.
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