I just leased as property. It was listed through an agent. The lease was executed properly and now the tenents are moving in this week… in Texas do I have change all locks before they move in? Is this required? or this is something I should tenets pay for it? What is my liability and responsiblities…
Thanks,
DFW
You don’t have to change the locks. The only requirement that you need to ensure on a rental property is to make sure there is a deadbolt that has a keyed entry on the outside, and a lock that is not accessible from the outside. The only time that really gets checked is on Section 8 properties or in areas that have special landlord permit requirements like Garland. My company manages about 350 single family homes in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. If you have any other questions, feel free to give me a call.
Lee Warren
I’m not in Texas, but I change the locks as soon as the previous tennant gets out. I have changed them in front of former tennants so they know there is never a reason to return to the property. This is with good tennants or bad (eveicted) tennants.
I changed the locks on the day of closing (before closing if possible) Who knows how may sets of keys are floating around to the old locks.
I am not a major investor like many on this board… I currently only have 2 properties… changing the lock sets out is not much of an investment for me…