Dec 09
1
by Julie Broad
Well – it’s that time once again! Each month we select one of the questions we receive from one of our real estate newsletter readers and feature it for everyone to learn from. And – as a thank you to the person that submitted the question we send them a Rev N You with Real Estate T-Shirt.
This month’s question is from Joan in Philadelphia.
So here’s the real estate investing question on renting a vacant unit:
Any feedback on this is appreciated. I have a property in Suburban Philadelphia and have not had a unit empty for awhile. I now have studio apt that is empty and have never had to wait this long to get a tenant. It has been a little over one month. Also seems that less prospects respond to the ads for apts. Is it just my imagination or is this the way it is now? – Joan
Here’s my quick response:
Hi Joan,
Thanks for your email. Without knowing all the details about your property or the market area here’s some resources I can offer to help you out:
Here’s an article we wrote on renting properties out – basically spells out what was on short podcast on “How to Find Great Tenants for Your Rental Property“:
5 Steps to Rent Out Your Property
Because you’re having trouble renting it – and you never did in the past – I would ask:
1. Are you getting many people calling or looking? If not, then your marketing needs to be improved. Maybe you need to advertise in more places and possibly your rent price needs to be lowered a bit. Better to get $15 – $25 less a month than have it sit vacant for a month or two. In most places, online marketing is the most effective. If your target market is seniors then the newspapers are a must but generally people are searching online sites for the rentals. There are different markets for people looking for an apartment versus people looking for a house … some people seek the amenities of a home or of an apartment. Once again since you weren’t having problems renting in the past then I would be asking yourself what’s changed and what you need to do to adapt to the change. What’s your competition offering that you’re not?
2. Are people looking at your property but not renting it out? If you’re getting calls and showing the unit but you’re not getting good applicants then you either need to make the place more appealing or reduce the rent rate. Once again… what’s your competition charging? And what are they offering that you aren’t?
Hope this helps!
Julie Broad
Rev N You with Real Estate
