Increase their rent if you are unable to get rid of them. Tenants don’t always turn out to be the wonderful individuals we hoped they would be. They host out-of-control parties, trash the area, cause property damage, let 10 people remain in the two-bedroom apartment, and so on. You see what I mean — not ideal.

Many landlords would prefer to avoid having to deal with evictions. Evictions are frequently expensive and time-consuming.

Why not simply raise the rent if your lease is about to expire (and you’re not in a rent-controlled area)? Not a 2 or 3 percent increase in rent, but a 10% to 15% increase instead. Few renters will put up with that kind of rise, and if any do, it might be wise to think again about maintaining them as a tenant. Keep in mind that it is likely they would be paying far more at that stage than ordinary market rents.

Establish Ground Rules Right Away

You must create your rules in advance in order to prevent all of this from happening in the first place. Your tenants will take advantage of you if you tolerate poor behavior. Make them sign a set of rules that they must abide by along with a timetable of penalties. If they don’t pay on time, penalize them and provide them formal notices before eviction. Fine them if they cause damage to the property. To succeed, you must convey to them your authority.

I won’t list all the headaches I endured initially because I was too polite. Landlording became considerably simpler after I started to enforce the law and get rid of the undesirables.