Hi, there! Joe White here from Grow Property Management, your trusted property management company in Philadelphia.
As a property management company owner in Philadelphia, I’ve had the chance to work with many landlords – and I’ve noticed a recurring issue that often leads to trouble. Many of the landlords who come to us do so in distress. They’re overwhelmed, frustrated, and usually caught in a tough situation with a tenant. But there’s something deeper I’ve come to recognize: a pattern of entitlement and emotional decision-making that ends up hurting them more than helping.
These landlords often expect more than what is reasonable, and when things don’t go their way, they react emotionally. I’m bringing this up because if you’re a landlord, especially in a place like Philadelphia, you need to actively work against this. You have to shift your mindset from making decisions based on emotion to decisions based on logic, law, and sound financial sense.
Time and time again, I see owners come to us needing help with an eviction. They’re stuck in a bind with a bad tenant, and they expect us to clean up the mess. The first thing we tell them is that eviction is a legal process – it follows the city’s timeline, not ours. But that explanation often isn’t enough. Many of these landlords become angry with us during the process, even though we’re doing everything by the book. We move quickly, we follow up with attorneys, we make sure everything is handled correctly and efficiently. Yet, we’re still met with hostility because, in their mind, we should somehow fix what they got themselves into – and fast.
Here’s the thing: we didn’t place the tenant. They did. The issue started because of their own decisions – usually made emotionally or hastily. But now we’re the ones they blame when the consequences unfold. I understand that eviction is frustrating. I’d be frustrated too. But some of these landlords come at it with an intensity that goes beyond normal frustration. There’s a level of entitlement, as if they’re owed a perfect outcome, despite having made poor choices leading up to the problem.
One specific situation that stands out is a landlord who was furious that the tenant broke the air conditioner. He claimed the tenant shouldn’t have been using it during that time of year, and that it was their fault the unit failed. That logic doesn’t hold up. In Philadelphia, we can get warm weather even in months you wouldn’t expect – April, November – you name it. If the tenant feels warm and there’s a functioning air conditioner, they’re fully within their rights to use it. But instead of accepting that maintenance is part of being a landlord, this owner made it personal. He got emotional about the repair bill and directed his anger at the tenant and, eventually, at us.
This is why self-regulation is so important. You need to recognize when you’re making decisions based on feelings instead of facts. And honestly, one of the best ways to protect yourself from this emotional cycle is to use a property management company – not just because I own one, but because it creates a buffer between you and the daily stressors of managing tenants and maintenance issues.
When you work with a good property management company, they make decisions based on data, law, and best practices – not emotion. That’s why, to date, my company has never had to evict a tenant we screened and placed ourselves. We take a calculated, careful approach to tenant selection and property management, and that helps us avoid the traps that many self-managing landlords fall into.
Too often, landlords accept tenants they know aren’t ideal just to get rent money quickly. They see someone who’s willing to pay immediately, and instead of waiting for a better applicant, they jump at the first offer. They might even know the person isn’t a great fit, but entitlement takes over: “I deserve to get my rent today.” That’s not an intellectual decision—it’s emotional and short-sighted. And as the saying goes, pigs get slaughtered. Landlords who operate with that entitled mindset often end up paying a bigger price down the road.
It’s not that I don’t empathize. I absolutely do. I’m a landlord myself. My wife and I own rental properties, and I feel that same pit in my stomach when I see a big repair bill come in. Replacing a furnace, for example – that’s not fun. But I’ve created systems to help manage those emotional reactions. In fact, my own company manages our rentals. Outside of the occasional visit when a property is vacant – when I tend to go overboard upgrading it – I stay out of the day-to-day. I don’t make the final decisions. I don’t want to, because I know I’ll react emotionally. Letting the company handle things keeps the process grounded in logic, which in turn protects our investment.
If you’re managing your own properties, I encourage you to take a step back and really reflect on how you’ve handled things in the past. Think about a time when you were less emotional – maybe a year ago – and look at the decisions you made then. Were those decisions made from a rational place? Look at your past emails with tenants or contractors, review those text messages. Ask yourself: Was that the best choice, or was I reacting emotionally?
If you find that emotions are driving your decisions – whether it’s rushing to fill a vacancy, delaying needed repairs out of anger, or blaming tenants for normal wear and tear – you need to make a change. You can either partner with a management company that will make decisions based on facts and experience, or create your own system to check your emotions before they impact your choices.
The key takeaway here is that emotional decision-making leads landlords into distress. Based on my experience, I’d estimate that at least 17–20% of the owners who come to us are in real trouble – whether it’s a tenant issue, property damage, legal challenges, or financial strain. And in almost every case, it can be traced back to a decision that was made emotionally, rather than intellectually.
To be a successful landlord, you need discipline. You need to take the emotion out of it – especially when things get tough. Whether it’s dealing with repairs, tenant complaints, or vacancy concerns, making decisions based on logic and long-term strategy is the only way to thrive in this business.
And if that feels too hard to do alone, don’t be afraid to lean on a good property management company. That’s what we’re here for. We’ve built systems that run like machines, designed to protect your investment and reduce your stress. So if you’re finding yourself overwhelmed, angry, or unsure, it might be time to let someone else step in and help you manage things the right way.
At the end of the day, I’m just a humble property manager here in Philly, doing my best to help landlords avoid the same mistakes I see over and over again. Take a step back, reflect, and aim to manage your rental property like a business – not an emotional rollercoaster.
And as always, happy rental property investing.
