Bryan Wittenmyer’s article, Creating Long Term Income said a number of things that are of particular interest to us Leading Landlords.
He reminds us to pay attention to the language we use as we go about probing the unexplored regions of landlording. It is extremely helpful to use new words to construct thoughts that help uncover new sources of income.
Wittenmyer wrote:
“You aren’t a landlord. You are an income stream manager.”
This ties in with my previous article on landlord job descriptions where I recommended trading the landlord title for Resident Services Agent. When we’re thinking about making our rentals more profitable, we can boost our creativity by freeing ourselves from the “landlord” title. That word has too much baggage.
We need to keep the “landlord” term around so folks know what we’re talking about. But, in reality, we’re so much more than the word implies. We have the ability to capture more income that just rents. And there is absolutely no reason to apply self-imposed limits on our potential.
So as we scratch out what the world of the next generation of landlords would look like, let’s see what we can learn from Wittenmyer.
Wittenmyer believes the landlords job descriptions can conceptually be compared to a banker’s duties:
“You are in reality not much different than a banker. Banks control capital and then re-lend or rent that capital out in the form of loans. You control capital also. You also re-lend that capital out in the form of shelter. The user pays a fee called rent. This control of capital and renting it out is the same whether you are a banker or landlord.”
Okay, hold that image in your mind. Assume that concept is correct and follow me as we look at new and unexplored possibilities.
Should the Landlord Job Description Be Modified?
Let’s use our understanding of what a banker does on a day-to-day basis to help us expand our understanding of what a landlord/income stream manager could take on:
| Banker | Income Stream Manager | |
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Charge customer fees for financial conveniences |
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Charge tenants fees for postponing rent due date |
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Allows customers to pick among a variety of accounts to store their money. Each account has its own pros and cons |
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Allows tenants to pick various lease terms with various fees associated. Tenant may pay extra to have lease convert to a monthly basis after six months fixed or play a different amount to have the option to sublease during summer months |
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Create and sell financial options and opportunities |
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Might allow tenant to buy an option on a portion of their residence after a certain number of lease terms |
You see where I’m going. This conceptualized comparison primes the idea pump. If the idea is profitable in one industry, it might be profitable in ours as well.
And finally, let’s take Wittenmyer’s call to action. He said:
“Your first job is to start changing your mentality. From landlord to income stream manager.”
I am all for calling landlords to a higher level.. to become income stream managers. We should expect more
from ourselves simply because we have so much more potential than midevil landlords.
Try the table mash-up with the job descriptions of another profession. Let us know what ideas you come up with.
Innovating is hard and lonely work, that’s why I need your brain power. Leave a note in the comments. Tell me what kind of ideas you come up with.