Ask Texas! What Are The Pros and Cons Of Having A Sister In Law As A Landlord?

Buzz Question -  Me and my wife are looking for a new house to rent. And, my wife says his sister is renting out a house and we need to go in that direction.. I'm cool with it but I do have some worries about my Sister In Law being my landlord? She can be difficult to deal with.  I just don't want any issues?  Pros?...cons?

 Here Is What TEXANS Have To Say About It!

Claudia
Was in this situation with my brother in law and I will tell you that there were a lot more PROS than cons. Especially when things needed repairing, because our landlord was family, he would fix them quite fast. Give it a chance , it worked out for us.

Raven
Don't do it! Been there done that and honestly it comes down to your relationship with your sister in law. We rented from my husband's sister and man, it did interfere with family stuff. I think she wasn't to fond of me and there was the problem. So, I would say if your good with her go for it if not, watch out. We ended up moving.

Ricky
In my personal experience, it is best to not do any business with family. Don't matter what it is, there are always issues, don't do it.

Stacie
Family and money don't mix. If there is already tension there, living in her rent house will only increase that tension.

 ADVICE FOR RENTING FROM FAMILY

The AMERICAN APARTMENT OWNERS ASSOCIATION does not recommend renting form family.

Their website states...

Unfortunately, the way renting to friends or family often works out is far from what would be expected between people who care about one another. For the most part, friends and family members will actually make bad renters, because they’ll expect more from you than a tenant who doesn’t know you. You may get a lot of requests for maintenance and repairs, even for minor things, and you may also find that family members and friends think they should be entitled to perks because of your personal relationship with them. For example, they may expect you to waive the tenant screening fee or not perform a tenant background check all together. When they don’t get special treatment, they can get angry with you, and that hurts both your professional relationship and your personal relationship.