7 Tips for Showing a Rental Property
Organizing property tours for potential tenants is a necessary but scary part of owning a rental property. Apart from marketing, this will make or break how many offers you’ll get and whether you’ll be able to find a suitable tenant.
Although you should never withhold problems and the accurate picture, showing off your home in the best possible light is the way to go. It takes more than just a pleasant first impression to sell a tenant on signing a lease agreement.
Here are our top 7 tips for showing a rental property.
1. Preparation is key
If you want all your best rental features to shine, you must prepare your home well. Remember, you can’t be subjective. It would help if you did all you could to make your house appealing to as many people as possible. This means decorating, cleaning, and doing landlord inspections.
a. Fix any issues
Firstly, you must fix any major issues that your home has. When showing a rental property, one of the biggest no-nos is hiding the truth, especially if it could put someone in danger. Your best bet is to have a professional inspector come over and look through your home in detail. Once they’re done, you’ll know what to do to make your place an eligible one for tenants.
b. Redecorate
Imagine seeing your home for the first time. What would you change to make it seem more homey and cozy? If you’re not great at redecorating and staging furniture, ask someone to help. If you insist on doing it yourself, you can draw inspiration from various sources, such as magazines and interior decorating internet pages.
c. Don’t forget about curb appeal
One of the things landlords often forget or neglect on purpose is the outside of their home. Even if you don’t think it’s as important, you surely understand the importance of a first impression. The curb appeal is what prospective tenants will first see upon entering your yard, so make it count.
2. You need to be presentable as well
No matter how wonderful your home is, you need to leave a good impression. Tenants aren’t merely looking to rent out a great-looking house – they want to have a great relationship with their landlords. Show them that you’re firm and responsible but also understanding and fair. Even if potential tenants see you on a bad day, you need to maintain a presentable front and be pleasant and informative.
3. Be upfront and informative
To be a successful landlord, you have to be informed about your own home and the neighborhood as well. Make sure to find out all that there is to know if prospective tenants ask you anything. Knowing your audience is critical, too. If you’re mainly talking to families, make sure to check out nearby schools. If your tenants are all single youngsters, tell them all about popular places in the area. Here are some other topics you should check out beforehand:
- Nearby restaurants
- Shopping malls
- Entertainment opportunities
- Parks and other outdoor spaces
- Proximity to public transit
4. Ask questions
Asking all the right questions is as important as giving the correct information. This way, you’ll learn a lot about your future tenants. Make sure to be consistent with your questions and ask every person the same things so that you can deduce who’ll be the best fit.
Keep in mind that your tenants will want to leave a great first impression, and they’ll present themselves in the best light. You need to be on the lookout for any red flags. You could run into common red flags, such as rudeness, asking for an unrealistic price, and seeming too agreeable.
Be fair and discuss the responsibilities upfront so that there aren’t any surprises later. Just like you want your tenants to be honest, you should respect the same moral conduct.
5. Cleaning is essential
Cleaning before showing a rental property is a must. No matter how well you decorate and how beautiful your home is, entering a dirty and unorganized place would make anyone run. Regular maintenance and improvement are advised. However, if you don’t currently live in the house you’re renting out, make sure to create a routine to keep it as presentable as possible before showing it off.
6. Leave no room unturned
Although tenants will be happy to see a well-decorated living room and a beautiful kitchen, they also want to see all the space at their disposal, no matter if it’s empty and unused or poorly lit. Areas like your basement, attic, storage room or a spare room that you’re not currently using will greatly add to your home’s value. That’ll be the key selling point for your future tenant, for all you know. Likewise, keep in mind that tenants love plenty of storage. Thus, arranging your home storage before showing your property is great. Don’t hesitate to show off all the space and attract many prospective tenants.
7. Follow up after the showing
As we’ve already mentioned, showing a rental property entails more than just letting people look at your home. You need to form a bond as well, albeit a professional one. Customer service is a significant factor in that. One of the best and most memorable things you can do to win tenants over is following up with them once some time has passed. Reach out to prospective tenants after a day or two and say how they’ve impressed you. Add that you’re hoping that they’re just as pleased as you are. Offer your assistance when it comes to filling out the application. You can do this either by phone call or via email, whichever feels more appropriate. Likewise, you should respectfully thank them for their time if they state that they’re not interested anymore.