Landlord Cheat Sheets

How to use the cheat sheets across the landlord lifecycle

Most landlord mistakes are timing mistakes: the right rule, remembered too late. The sheets are grouped below by the stage where you need them, with the calculators and guides that go deeper.

1. Buying: run the numbers before you commit

Before you make an offer, the ROI formulas cheat sheet gives you cap rate, cash-on-cash return and the other ratios lenders and sellers quote. Plug real figures into the ROI calculator, the property investment analyzer or the break-even calculator, and work through the due diligence checklist. The maintenance priority guide is useful here too: its budgeting section shows why an older roof or water heater should change the price you are willing to pay.

2. Renting: advertise and screen the right way

Marketing and screening carry the biggest legal risk for a small landlord. Read the fair housing cheat sheet before you write the listing: it covers the seven federal protected classes, state additions such as source of income in California, New York and Illinois, and wording to use instead of phrases that signal a preference. Then use the tenant red flags cheat sheet to set written screening criteria, verify income and references, recognize overpayment scams and send the adverse action notice the Fair Credit Reporting Act requires. The tenant screening checklist, rent estimator, lease agreement template and security deposit calculator cover the rest of the move-in process.

3. Maintaining: triage, prevent and keep records

Once a tenant moves in, print the emergency contacts sheet for yourself and the tenant, and keep the maintenance priority guide near the phone. Its four tiers and decision tree tell you whether a call needs a plumber tonight or a visit next week, and its response times are labelled as targets so you check your state’s actual repair rules in the state legal guides. The maintenance checklist and move-in/move-out inspection keep the records that settle deposit disputes. At tax time, the tax deduction quick reference and the tax deduction checklist help you capture repairs, depreciation and other expenses, with the expense tracking template holding the receipts together.

4. Selling or exiting: know what you keep after tax

When a big repair comes due, a tenant leaves, or you simply tire of managing, the question becomes whether to keep the property at all. Use the ROI formulas sheet to see what the property earns on its current equity, then the keep-or-sell rental property calculator to compare keeping, selling, a 1031 exchange and other exits in after-tax dollars. The 1031 exchange calculator and tax strategy guide explain depreciation recapture and deferral. Fair housing rules still apply when you sell or hand the property to a manager, and good maintenance records support a higher sale price.

Tips for getting the most from them

• Print the cards and keep them where decisions happen: by the phone, in the showing folder, with your tax files.
• Read the long-form guide on each page once, so you know why each rule exists and where it doesn’t apply.
• Check your state guide wherever a sheet says local law may differ. Deadlines and limits vary by state and city.
• Pair each sheet with its calculator or template so a rule of thumb becomes your own number.

New to all of this? The first-time landlord playbook walks through the full sequence, and the resources library and tools pages list everything else on the site.

These cheat sheets are general information, not legal or tax advice. Laws vary by state and city; consult a licensed attorney or CPA for decisions about your property.