Don’t Let Them Become Vacant in the First Place
If your rental property already has a tenant, you’re off on the right foot. If you have a quality renter who pays his rent (and pays on time), takes care of the property, and doesn’t do anything illegal or annoying to draw unwanted attention from the authorities or the neighbors, then this is a person you want to retain. With the progress the housing market is making, such tenants might be tempted to buy instead of continuing to rent. If someone has her mind set on making that kind of change, there may not be much you can do about it. But if she’s still on the fence, it makes a lot of sense for you to do what you can, within reason, to keep her around.
Being proactive is one of the best ways to retain great tenants. Starting 90 days out you should reach out to your tenants and ask a simple question: What can we do to keep you as a tenant? So many times we have been told that this is a bad idea. The naysayers always bring up the negative side like – what if they ask you to reduce rent? Or – What if they ask you to fix something that is wrong? Or – what if they ask you to repaint a room or clean a carpet? My response is always the same…So what? At least now you know exactly what it will take to keep that tenant and in almost every scenario those simple requests will cost less than a vacancy and prep for a new renter. And what if the repair they are asking about is minor but left unchecked could lead to something major. Is that not something you would want to fix as an owner or property manager?
Offering rental incentives to quality tenants to keep them around is one way to reduce the chance of having a vacant property. Doing so can seem a bit counter intuitive; after all, you want to bring money in, not dole it out. But if the cost of the incentives is less than the cost of the expense of dealing with a vacant property, then it can be a smart move. Whether it’s a rent reduction (for a limited time), “X” months free rent, or painting rooms and cleaning carpets or even making minor repairs that may not seem major to you, but mean something to the tenant. Incentives can let renters know you’re serious about keeping them around. This kind of incentive is a win-win: Your tenant gets something nice that positively affects her quality of life, and you get a perk for your property that can be an additional selling point to draw in future tenants. Tenants love properties that are kept up to date and don;t show signs of a ton of deferred maintenance.
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