Rentals properties are a hot market. However, even in a hot rental market, tenants still move on. What can you do to ensure that your rentals stay full and that you avoid temporary or even prolonged vacancies? With proper planning, you can artfully ensure that you don’t need to worry about financial losses from vacant properties.
Keep Your Property Looking Desirable With Thorough Rental Property Management
Whether you’re trying to keep your current tenants happy or you’re trying to attract new tenants to your property, it’s important to keep that property in top condition.
This means you need to make property maintenance a priority. Check the exterior of the building for leaks regularly to keep your investment safe, your tenants happy, and your property ready to rent. Coordinate maintenance on a regular schedule instead of waiting for an emergency. If you need to rent to new tenants, they’ll appreciate the well-maintained home.
Maintain and Monitor Interest in Your Seattle Rentals
How many people ask you about your rentals on a regular basis? Keep marketing your properties and develop an expertise in the local market. Develop a portfolio of photos and written highlights about that property. That way, if a rental does become available, you’ll be known in the local market and you’ll know what kind of audience might be interested in a specific property, and you’ll have the marketing materials you need to get to the job of marketing that property right away. By marketing to the right audience, you’ll spend less time looking for the right tenants, according to Landlord Talking: “…one qualified renter is better than two unqualified applicants — and certainly better than 100 unqualified applicants.”
Choose an appropriate rental rate as well: while it’s tempting to charge a higher rent, according to Invest Four More, “…if you end up charging too much for rent and you have a house vacant for a month because of it, it will cost you money.”
Be Ready for Change
Have processes ready so that you can market your properties, screen new tenants, and manage move-in, move-out inspections and logistics with ease. If you have to struggle through these processes because you just don’t have the time, this will make it harder for you to rent those properties in an expedited manner.
Bring in the Experts
As a property owner, you’re asked to be an expert in many realms of the property business. From an understanding of the buyer’s market in your city to property marketing and repairs, you need to be able to manage so many diverse aspects of your property business. As you try to manage the needs for property repairs, respond to tenant questions, and keep an ongoing marketing campaign running, you may need some help. Be proactive: contact a property management company that can help you coordinate the properties you own and reduce your vacancy rate.
Are you curious about investing in the Seattle rental market? Are you already an investor?
Whether you’re a seasoned Seattle property owner or a new one, you might appreciate a helping hand. A property management company can help you keep existing tenants happy, market your properties, and bring on new tenants. Talk with Lori Gill and Associates today to see how we can support the property management of your Seattle rentals.