Some secrets to leasing your property out quickly!
Just as location, location, location has become a mantra in the property world for when selecting a property to invest into, presentation, presentation carries a weighty importance when looking to rent (or sell) your property.
First impressions count for a lot. They can help sway a tenant's or buyer's “maybe” into a “yes”.
Many of the things to do with presenting a property well are really quite simple:
Make sure the property is clean and tidy. Pay special attention to the kitchen and bathroom(s) for cleanliness but also that all appliances such as water heaters or built in cookers are working. The same goes for air conditioners or space heaters.
Ensure all obvious repairs such as water leaking in around windows or ceiling leaks from overhead pipes have been attended to; and that any nasty stains have been removed.
If practical, have the unit freshly painted or at least have the decoration touched up to smell and look fresh. Keep the colours scheme neutral and generic but try to have the colours contrast with and complement each other. You are aiming to rent to the “typical tenant”, not the one-off tenant who likes purple walls or darkly coloured ceilings!
Remember tenants are choosy at the best of times but more so in a weaker or over-supplied market when their expectations are much higher.
Of course you’ll want the best (highest) rental you can get for your property, but it pays to be sensible on the rent and other key leasing terms. Show some willingness to compromise or offer a slight discount on rent (especially if the tenant is working for a major company or is looking for longer-term rental). Or, instead of reducing the rental too much, perhaps offer some “value-adds” such as “x hours” free cleaning per month or “x tokens” for the laundry machines in the communal areas.
Let the prospective tenant know that you are an experienced landlord who values quality tenants and will be responsive to their needs and undertake the responsibilities in the lease. Keeping a tenant long term takes away a lot of the issues associated with vacant units, having to find a new tenant and, of course, saves the associated costs.
Make sure the marketing of your property is effective. Being reactive is not the way to go, you have to be pro-active and get your property out there in the market. Do it yourself or engage a real estate agent who knows the market well and specialises in renting property. The process of preparing adverts, listing the property on a website, placing ads on Facebook, maybe putting a short video on YouTube, or even signage at or near the property is the same whether you or an agent does it.
But the real estate agent will have far greater marketing reach, receive many more enquiries and, almost certainly, have a large database of prospective tenants. And if you do want to rent your unit quickly, it’s probably worth letting the agent handle the process, which, importantly, has to include screening and checking credit references of tenants.
