One of the biggest detractors from your rental property income is tenant turnover. It’s in your best interest to keep your rental properties occupied with tenants as much as possible. It would be ideal if you could find a tenant that would renew their lease year after year. However, life doesn’t work this way, and you’ll eventually find yourself needing to secure a new tenant for your rental property.
This guide will help you to secure Etowah rental property tenants faster and reduce vacancy times.
1. Proactively Ask Your Tenant About Renewal
Don’t be afraid to ask your tenant 90 days ahead of the lease expiration if they intend to renew. This starts the conversation early and helps you to secure an answer faster. If your tenants are considering leaving, then you can use this opportunity to incentivize them to renew. You could offer them a discount on the rent. Just be sure the discount is comparable to the turnover costs you’d save if they stayed. This ensures you don’t discount the rent too much.
If the tenants decide to leave, you now have advanced notice. You can start taking the steps necessary to secure a new tenant.
2. Improve Your Marketing Efforts
To get a better response rate from your marketing efforts, you need to have quality marketing materials. The first step is to have professional photos taken. If you haven’t already done this, arrange to have a professional photographer come out after your current tenant moves out. Have the property professionally cleaned and then have pictures taken. You can then use these pictures every time you need to create a property listing.
Add your rental property listing to as many online and local avenues as possible. The more you get the word out about your rental property, the more responses you’ll receive. Tailor the written content to speak directly to the type of tenant you want. If your goal is to have families, you’ll want to highlight the local schools and parks while showcasing your home’s bedrooms, storage capacity, and safety features.
3. Price Your Rental to the Market
A lot can change in the rental market since the last time you listed your rental property. If you signed a year lease with your current tenant, then it’s been an entire year since you last paid attention to the rental market. Before you list your property, do a market analysis to determine the current state of the rental market. This ensures you price your rental property correctly for the current market conditions.
4. Act Quickly at Lease-End
Don’t wait to act when the lease ends. You know the move-out date of your current tenant. Schedule any contractors as soon after the move-out date as possible. This could include a professional cleaning service or a home repair/maintenance service. The sooner you get these people in, the sooner your property is ready for the next tenant.
5. Hire Assistance
You may not be able to act as quickly as you need to get your property rented again. Your full-time job and life can get in the way and delay your process. Hiring a property manager could be the only way to ensure everything gets done in a timely manner. A skilled property manager will communicate with your tenant, prepare marketing materials, and schedule contractors.
Attract More Etowah Rental Property Tenants
When you know that your lease is about to expire, it’s time to start acting. Start by reaching out to your current tenant and determining if they plan to renew. If they don’t, begin preparations to perform maintenance and market your property. If you find that you don’t have the time or ability to act quickly, consider hiring a property manager to assist you.
Contact our team today and let our skilled property managers help you reduce your vacancy rate.
