If you’re a landlord or thinking of becoming one, it’s important to put yourself in your potential tenant’s shoes. After all, when you’re looking for a home, it’s a serious business; right? Even if someone’s just looking to rent, they still want to see that it’s a place they could call home – at least temporarily. So when you’re showing around potential tenants – or an estate agent’s doing it for you, there are a few tips and tricks to follow in order to attract them to your property and to seal the deal.
Presentation
Imagine you walk into a property and it doesn’t smell good and is dirty. Would YOU want to live there? Probably not. While this may seem obvious, it’s easy to be unaware of off-putting factors when tenants come to view properties. It’s important to clean properly and air out the rooms so they’re fresh and ready to be occupied. As well as this, make sure all of the surfaces are efficiently clean and that there are no bad smells – perhaps from pets or cooking. If you buy an air freshener, this should help. As well as this, think of the little things: a pot of flowers, a wall print, a mirror on the mantelpiece. The main objective here is in line with the earlier notion of making prospective tenants feel at home and comfortable. As a result, the entire moving-home process will seem like “a piece of cake”.
Timing
Timing is always something to be considered. If you’re looking to get tenants in by a set date, it is a good period to start showing them around six to eight weeks before that date. This allows time for proper advertisement and to screen tenants effectively. It is no news to anyone that the London market moves fast, especially more so now than ever, so you have to make sure you’re prepared in advance for flexible viewings and that you’re ready to accommodate your tenants whenever they’re ready. If you’ve already got tenants, make sure they’re briefed about moving out, the process during the time the notice to vacate has been given and the subsequent move-out date (i.e. viewings, advertising, etc.). Of course, should you choose us to manage your property, we will also have the above covered for you.
Legislation
It’s important to be up to date with the latest legislation – although, if you’ve got a good agent they’ll make sure everything’s up to date for you. Things to consider are: fire and furnishing regulations; gas safety regulations; electrical safety certificates; deposit protection schemes; contractual clauses; general admin and many more.