Showing Rental Property To Tenants – Prospective

What To Know Before You Show Your Property: Showing Rental Property To Tenants.

This is where the rubber meets road your first chance to meet interested renters in person. In this article we will examine the process of showing your rental property to prospective tenants and cover the following:

• Safety considerations
• Different types of showings
• Showing an occupied rental property
• How to reduce no-shows (automatically)

It begs the question… what’s the best way to show your rental? We polled our Facebook group and got a lot of great answers on this topic.

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Beneath the poll, we will dive into everything you should know before you show… yes… that line was cheesy.

If you want to see the 15 comments just click here to get community insights.

Different Ways To Show A Rental Property: Showing Rental Property To Tenants

As you can see from the poll, there are three main ways that landlords and property managers show their apartments.

• Individual Showings
• Individual showings scheduled in a block of time
• Hold an open house

The fourth option is the same as an open house with a different context. We will cover that briefly as well.

Individual Showings: Showing Rental Property To Tenants

This one is straightforward. You find an agreed upon time and you meet the interested renter to do a walk-through.

The pros are that you can be hands-on and really highlight the rental. A good realtor does this when they’re trying to sell a property.

Now… we’re not saying renters are bad people. But… one thing to think about with an individual showing is that you can easily keep an eye on an interested renter.

You can walk with them to make sure that nothing in the rental gets legs, this is crucial for occupied rentals.

Individual showings scheduled in a block of time

If you’re showing an apartment, it really shouldn’t take more than 10 minutes. In these situations, you can schedule your showings in 15-minute increments.

Pros:

• Save on trips to the rental
• Still, give individual attention

Cons:

• If someone is late, it can throw off your schedule
• Not as flexible for the interested renter

Should I Follow The Renter Around?

We were wondering what our Facebook Group thought about this question.

So we set up a poll…

Hold an open house

When Apple first launched the iPhone, they purposefully made it a huge event and limited the supply. It created a buyer’s frenzy where people would camp out to buy a phone. Showing Rental Property To Tenants

The laws of supply and demand still ring true when you show your rental.

You create a sense of demand when eager renters see competition in the form of other interested renters.

If there are not a lot of rentals on the market, this can certainly drive a lot of demand for your rental.

However… there are cons to an open house. It’s difficult to highlight features, and it makes the process a little more hectic.

When you walk the rental with one person, you can take note of cues they give you. Perhaps they’re nitpicking every aspect of the rental, or they dragged mud into the rental.

When an open house gets busy, it’s hard to see and hear everything. You might just be looking at a stack of applications at the end with little idea of who is who.

But what if the open house gets too crazy?

If there’s a huge demand in your market and you don’t have time for anything but an open house… here’s what you do. Showing Rental Property To Tenants

Charge an application fee to run a background check. This fee can be collected as a check or you can make it known the renter will pay directly for the background check.

If you make this known in the initial pre-screening interview, you will weed out a lot of tire kickers.

It all depends on the demand in your market. If it’s very high, you can make this information know earlier on.

Filling vacancies can be a very hard task, especially for beginner property managers.

You need to market the vacant property for rent, pre-screen interested prospects that contact you to see if they would be a good fit and arrange a property showing.

Showing rental property to prospective tenants is actually one of the key roles of a property management company.

Rental property showings are a great opportunity to show your client’s property in its best light and attract the best tenants.

Normally, the best rental applicants want a rental property that is in pristine condition. And since it’s the first time you are meeting the potential tenants, you want to make a great first impression.

Showing Rental Property to Prospective Tenants: 10 Best Tips

1. Fix Any Needed Repairs

The first step to showing rental units is to get them in a rentable condition. This means that you need to fix any repairs before you show them.

It’s hard for a potential tenant to see the positive features of a rental property if it looks dilapidated and in need of maintenance.

Also, make sure that all appliances are working properly. Depending on your agreement with the rental property owner, be sure to run any major repairs and their costs by the owner before moving forward.

2. Do a Thorough Cleaning

Another crucial tip for showing rental property to prospective tenants is to do a thorough cleaning. Nothing can turn a prospective renter away like a dirty and smelly house or apartment.

If you are showing a rental property with tenants, inspect the property prior to the showing to make sure that its cleanliness meets the required standards.

You can hire a professional cleaning service to clean their unit if necessary.

3. Improve Curb Appeal

The exterior of a rental property is what prospective tenants see first from the street when they pull up. Therefore, it should give a great first impression. You can boost curb appeal in the following ways:

• Clean the gutters
• Create a flower bed
• Take care of the lawn
• Repaint the front door
• Install outdoor lighting
• Do a mailbox makeover
• Design a clear path to the front door

4. Stage the Rental Property

Prospective tenants should be able to visualize themselves living in the rental unit you are showing.

Therefore, before they view the unit, make sure that it is strategically furnished and decorated. You can even use rented furniture.

Moreover, you should get rid of personal items like family photos if you’re showing a rental property with tenants.

When staging for rent, the house should also have an appropriate temperature and enough lighting.

5. Be Informed

Providing information about a rental property is a key aspect of showing rental property to prospective tenants. You should be prepared to answer any questions they might have.

Prior to the property showing, make sure you have the general information about the rental property.

This includes:

• Square footage,
• Number of bedrooms and bathrooms,
• Additional amenities,
• Application fee,
• Monthly rent,
• Security deposit amounts,
• Nearby social amenities, and
• Public transportation, etc.

Making a prospective tenant feel well informed about the rental unit and the neighborhood can go a long way in securing a lease agreement.

6. Conduct Individual Showings 

A property manager can show a rental property in different ways.

While a rental open house can save you a lot of time and create a sense of demand for the rental, it has some drawbacks and may not always be ideal.

First, it makes it difficult for you to highlight the property’s features. It’s also hard to effectively attend to all prospective tenants.

We recommend that, whenever possible, you should schedule individual showings.

Individual rental property showings will not only give prospective tenants a better experience but also allow you to learn more about them.

In some cases, virtual showings may be ideal.

For instance, during this COVID-19 outbreak,. Virtually showing the rental property can minimize personal contact and alleviate the potential transmission of the infectious virus.

7. Be Professional

Another strategy that can give you great success when showing a rental property is showcasing that you are a kind and helpful professional.

Dress well, be on time, and greet potential tenants warmly and with a smile. You want to give the best impression of not only the rental property but also of yourself.

It’s important that you treat everyone as though they are the best tenant.

You can never know who will apply. Furthermore, since you are yet to run a background check, you still don’t know who the ideal tenant is.

8. Show the Property When Current Tenants Are Not There

Showing a rental property with tenants can be quite challenging. Both the current and prospective tenants are likely to be uncomfortable with the whole process.

As a property manager, it can be worrying since you don’t have full control over how the property will look.

The best way to handle this situation is to agree with the current tenants on the ideal time to schedule a property showing.

To avoid an invasion of their personal space, this should be a time when they are not around, perhaps during their working hours.

Remember, you should do it politely and give them a notice at least 24 hours ahead of time.

9. Know Your Selling Points

If you are showing rental property to prospective tenants, you will not achieve much success if you just sit back and let them wander through the property.

You should know the important features to highlight beforehand. You need to show them how they can benefit from living there. You’ll do this by pointing out the best features of the rental unit.

These selling points can influence a potential tenant to lease your property management client’s rental They could include storage space, updated appliances, beautiful views, walk-in closets, pool, roof deck, etc.

10. Avoid Steering Prospective Tenants

When showing rental property to prospective tenants, you should also avoid steering them.

They should be able to see all parts of the rental unit unless it’s their decision to skip a particular area.

This is more helpful to them and will also help you avoid any liability claims.

Conclusion: Showing Rental Property to Prospective Tenants

Showing rental property to prospective tenants doesn’t have to be stressful.

Just keep in mind that what you do before and during the rental property showing will determine how the prospects see the property.

If you follow these tips, you will be able to win over the most qualified potential tenants.

You can then move onto the next step, which is requesting them to fill and submit a rental application. Read More Here

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