RentersInsurance.org is proud to announce the first in a series of interviews with property management bloggers around the Web. This week we spoke with Bruce, owner of The Succesful Landlord Blog, an excellent source of information for landlords (and tenants could probably learn a thing or two from his site, as well).

Bruce is a Florida-based landlord who started getting into property management after “burning himself out” in the software development world. He blogs about “the sometimes amazing and sometimes just-plain-crazy people who are my tenants, contractors, real estate agents, loan officers, city officials and certain inane service providers.”

RentersInsurance.org: How did you first become a landlord?
Bruce: I first became a landlord in 2004 after buying a single-family house to fix-up and rent out. The rest is history.

RI: Knowing what you do today, is there anything you would have done differently when you first started in the business?
B: Yes. I would have bought all my properties for cash as opposed to taking out a mortgage on them.

RI: What are the top pet peeves landlords have of their tenants?
B: When tenants don’t pay on time and/or don’t take care of their units.

RI: What is the best way to resolve a dispute between landlord and tenant?
B: The best was to resolve a dispute between a landlord & tenant is to talk about it over the phone. Usually by the time it gets to court, I’m done talking and aiming to get rid of the tenant.

RI: What is the worst damage you’ve seen done to a unit?
B: A tenant got evicted then broke into the unit and broke every exterior door in the place.

RI: Has the housing crisis affected your business?
B: The housing “crisis” has affected my business by bringing a glut of rental properties onto the market thereby dropping rents.

RI: Do you have any advice for landlords with little experience in the market?
B: Control your expenses. Whether it’s mortgage, insurance or maintenance. They all need to be watched.

RI: Do you recommend renters insurance?
B: We require that our tenants purchase renters insurance. It’s stipulated in the lease they sign with us.

RI: Finally, is there anything else you would like to add?
B: The best way to succeed in this business is with scale. For example, an apartment building is better than single-family homes. There are fewer roofs to deal with, less traveling between properties and expenses are more consolidated. Just make sure the building is in a good area.