The Science of Advertising

If it is time to market your rental there are many ways to make your rental home stand out and get rented quickly. Here are 5 concepts to consider about marketing your rental property.

Timing
Once you know when your rental will be available, it’s best to list your home about 45 days before it’s ready. This will capture those who have a little time as well as those who need something quickly. If a tenant gets a 90 day notice to sell or some variation, a renter is going to start their search immediately. You may find that the tenant will want to then move out earlier.

That may or may not be in the landlords best interest but it’s best to be flexible if possible. It’s ok if the tenants are still in place. They may try to challenge your ability to show but if you schedule showings for multiple people to view at the same time, that usually will make everyone happy. There is no good reason that a tenant would deny any requests to show a home unless there is a health problem or personal emergency. Just make sure to serve proper notice to enter.

Pricing
Checking rental listings of similar homes and looking at their photos and prices should give an idea of what homes are renting for in the same area as your rental. If they are priced high and sitting on the market for over 30 days, that is an indicator the price isn’t justified by the property and something could be wrong or not suitable such as lack of parking. It may be possible that a potential tenant backed out. Finding the median price and then reducing the amount to bring it just below the competitors price should find a renter sooner. If other properties are renting at $2000 to $2200, pricing a rental at $1999 would bring plenty of potential renters.

The Ad
Renters look at pricing first, their considerations for their budget is what they have in mind as a priority. Then they look at photos. If the photos show furniture in them, it’s better to have staged or desirable furnishings rather than renters belongings. It’s always best to feature photos of the vacant space, or most people assume that the rental may be furnished. Staged homes with professional photography may bring in higher rents. However, it’s a break even point if the additional income is spent on staging and professional photography.

Photos Matter
While on the subject of photos, it’s always best to have your primary photo as the front facade of the property. Features such as views will make people think there is something to hide. Taking photos as though it’s a still shot tour is the best layout. Photos such as garage space and laundry could be placed at the end. The view photos should be placed after the room or area that it seen from has been featured. You want to acclimate the viewer to the property. Also, taking a video of the home goes a long way although not so easy to upload on all platforms online.

Describing Your Rental
The description is always viewed last if at all. It’s best to confirm that the inquiring person confirms they have read and understood the description of the home. Especially if there is anything specific they should know such as the property having any shared space or comes furnished. That will reduce time wasted on scheduling showings to renters who aren’t flexible. Including the move in costs, utilities that may be included, and who is responsible for yard-work is favorable to those looking as they might end up skipping over it if they know what to expect from the beginning.

Saving your time during the process of renting a property is important since just fielding inquiries and scheduling showings can become burdensome if there is a lot of activity on your rental. If you are struggling to keep up and can’t make time to show the property yourself, it’s always a good idea to find a professional to assist you.

Being a third generation property manager, I have extensive knowledge and understanding of how renters think and cost saving ways to maintain rental properties.  

Holly Furen is a licensed real estate broker and property manager with LynnMac Commercial, LLC specializing in residential rental property management and sales. Contact Holly at (206) 599-9298 or holly@lynnmaccommercial.com. Visit her website at hollyfuren.com.

The views expressed in this article are solely that of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of RHAWA.