How do you monitor Tenants after they move in?

As a professional landlord, I would suggest that you do a formal inspection 2 times a year, I know it is hard to accommodate. I ran almost all single-family homes (157 properties)spread across 4 communities in my region. That is an inspection almost every single day of the year. That’s a lot of time, but with single-family homes, you don’t always know what is going on and often the neighbors don’t even know the house is a rental or who to contact if there are tenant problems.

On inspections, I check smoke detectors; many tenants disconnect them even when they are hard-wired. I check the furnace filters, Flush the toilets, and listen for leaks. I also look for mold and pests and various damage. In single-family homes, I have to check yards and make sure that the tenants are keeping that up, or I can get city bylaw notices, especially if they start junking up the yard.

Please note that this is not a housekeeping inspection, everyone has a different level of cleaning, I only act on cleanliness if it is causing property damage or pest infestations.

In an apartment, you are often in there a lot more often because you have annual inspections for fire alarms and other city issues so it is less important.

In my inspections, I have found a couple of places abandoned without notice, a grow op, and a hoarder, so it is important to keep on top of what is going on in your properties, and much more difficult if it is a single-family home.

Change the filters every 3 months AND pest control every 2 months. Written into the lease and an annual inspection 

I'm on Section 8 housing, Section 8 does inspection once a year. It's a check to make sure smoke alarms, all toilets, stoves, frig work. Heat, running water fixtures work. They also check for cleanliness as when you agree to a Section 8 voucher you agree to keep your living space in a clean and sanitary manner. If you flunk your inspection, the housing inspector explain why you didn't pass you and/or the landlord are given a specific amount of time to remedy the issue.