When you’re a landlord, the first thing you want to do when your home rentals empty is to fill them up as soon as possible. When there’s no one living in one of your units, it means that you’re not making any money. There’s no income to offset the expense of owning a home, either.
If you want to know how to rent your home fast, keep reading. We’ve gathered the top tips for fast property rentals to help take the guesswork out of renting your home fast.
Establish the Local Rental Value
The first thing you want to do is establish the market value in your area. You could have the nicest home on the block and be the most reliable landlord in the area, but if your home is priced too high for the area, it’s going to stay vacant.
Take a look at the rental homes in your area. Compare them to your home and decide what a common price for a home of your size and quality is.
You can check any of the popular rental listing websites to find homes to compare to yours. You could even ask to tour a few homes in your area to get a closer look if you’re comfortable doing so.
Check back from time to time to see if the homes are being rented quickly. If the house is off the market quickly, it’s a safe bet that it was priced fairly.
Make Home Improvements
Before you start to show your home to rentals, you need to get it in good shape.
Focus on the major repairs that could dramatically change the way people live in the space. Make sure your home is up to code and safe to live in.
Here’s a list of things you can focus on to get your house move-in ready:
- Clean and repair carpets
- Apply a fresh coat of paint
- Update appliances
- Repair broken windows
- Replace blinds
You should also make sure that there are no leaks, clogs, or other water issues. If left unchecked, issues with standing water and leaks could cost you a lot of money down the road.
Broadcast Your Listing
The places that you could list your rental property will vary depending on where you live. Online listings are common nowadays, but you shouldn’t count writing a listing for your local newspaper out of the equation.
Some popular social media sites also allow for rental listings and many landlords find success advertising with them.
One of the best ways you can ensure that you fill your rental unit quickly is by working with a property management company. Property management companies can put in the work and resources to make sure that your listing goes where people will see it.
Plus, property management companies usually have a lot of trust built up with the local community. This also comes with the added benefit of taking some of the work of being a landlord off of your plate.
You could also use your home itself as advertising. You could always stick a “For Rent” sign in the yard, but if you take the extra time to create a professional, eye-catching sign, you may have better luck finding the right kind of tenant.
Choose the Right Tenant
The only thing worse than having an empty home rental is having a home rental with a bad tenant living in it. If your tenant doesn’t pay or wrecks your house, you’re losing money fast. A bad tenant will cause issues and unexpected costs.
No matter how quickly you want to get your rental filled, don’t take chances with who you let live there. Make sure that you advertise and price yourself so that you don’t run the risk of attracting a lot of the wrong kinds of people.
Screen every tenant thoroughly, making sure that you follow all applicable screening laws in your area. You may even want to consider charging an application fee to cover the cost of a background check.
Additionally, it’s a bad practice to rent to friends and family. Even if you trust them to be reliable and clean, you risk ruining a good relationship with business if something goes wrong.
Word of Mouth is Key
At the end of the day, even if your home is fairly priced and in good shape, if you have a bad reputation as a landlord, the right kinds of tenants are going to avoid you.
If this is your first rental property, you likely don’t have to worry about your reputation as a landlord. But if your previous tenants have nothing but bad things to say about you, it could hurt your chances of getting a new tenant quickly.
Make sure you are a fair and attentive landlord. If something that is your responsibility to maintain breaks, fix it quickly. Be the kind of landlord that you would want to have.
Something that makes this a little easier is having a property management company on your side. Property management companies often have a network of contractors who are known to do good work and respond quickly to emergencies. And most property management companies will handle the more difficult situations that arise for you.
Fill Up Your Home Rentals
Home rentals can be quite the headache. You have to spend a lot of time searching through a sea of potential tenants to find the one that will fit your needs perfectly. But you have to balance that search, because the longer it takes you to find the right tenant, the longer you wait before you start making money.
But as long as you follow these tips, you’ll find the right tenant in no time.
For more information about property management, contact us today!
