Sometimes landlords need to use incentives to keep their tenants happy, or in the case of a bad rental market, to attract new tenants. A few of the ideas I’ve read about in our forums are:
Keep ‘em happy ideas:
- New A/C Units
- New Fans
- Upgraded hardware like towel bars and knobs
- Starbucks/Blockbuster gift cards
- Small gifts on the holidays
Ideas for attracting new tenants:
- Free High-Speed Internet (cable/dsl)
- First month of rent for free
- Washer/Dryer Unit in the unit
- Paying moving expenses or moving truck fees
- Discounting first month’s rent
- Paying utilities, etc.
- Free renters insurance.
- Free Wi-Fi
While others may believe that “keep ‘em happy” gifts are a waste, I think its always a nice gesture of goodwill. If a great tenant is considering leaving, perhaps offering one of these incentives will work to keep them. One of the most important things to remember is that landlords are in business, and must treat it as so. What tenants basically want is a landlord who takes care of things and leaves them alone.
The main reason to use these incentives is to get people in the door and to occupy your vacant units. If you’re unable to attract tenants because of a slow rental market, maybe these ideas can help you to either bring in people who weren’t considering the unit in the first place or attract people deciding between someone else’s apartment and yours.
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Joshua DorkinJoshua has written 539 articles for us.
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The keep ‘em happy approach to attracting tenets has a lot of merit depending on what else your property has going for it. I have found these types of incentives to be very useful if the property is priced above the market, or is older and less desirable than the competition. Vacancy rates also factor into the decision to incentivise tenants.
-Barrett N.
4MySales.com A Simple System for Real Estate Agents
I agree — spending a little money here and there on keeping the place in good repair, and keeping the tenants happy is definitely worth it when you consider how much work (and expense) advertising, tenant screening, and turning over the apartment adds up to. A bird in the hand is definitely worth keeping. (Provided that they’re a good tenant, that is.)
If lanlords give away too many free gifts it becomes expected. It’s best to provide timely upgrades to items like AC units and refrigirators. Being timely and providing quality service speaks volumes about the landlord. Using lesser quality paints and providing new “used” items says a lot in the opposite direction.
I think a gift or two should be given every now and then to let your tenants know that you appreciate them. If your tenants are well behaved and give you no problems a few gifts of gratitude are fine. It’s just a way of helping things move a little smoother and it creates a better relationship. High-speed internet is a great way to let your tenant know that they’re appreciated. It helps them be more productive and eases stress in their lives.