I'm having trouble finding tenants...

I'm having trouble finding tenants...

Albany, NY · Member since 2014 · 14 posts · 2 votes

Hello,

I purchased a duplex (each has 3brs/1ba) last April in a city with 5+ colleges, a university, 2 hospitals, and state offices.

I decided to rent one and live in one for the first year. I advertised the place on Craigslist's last May and had tenants within a week. They recently told me they want to renew their lease for the 2nd year.

Now I want to move and rent the one I've been living in. I've been trying to rent it for more than a month now (for the same price as the other one) to no avail. I've had around 8-10 showings. Most say that it is a very nice place, but I get no call backs.

The rent cycle here starts in June because of all the colleges.
I am getting nervous now but don't want to lower the rent price. What I am asking for it is not unreasonable, and it rented out very fast last year.

I feel like I should put more effort into renting it than simply putting it on Craigslist. What are good ways to advertise?
What are some things I could do to attract more potential renters (ie open house)?
Thank you!

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Dallas, TX · Member since 2013 · 311 posts · 94 votes
12y

Have you tried Postlets? It actually posts it on Zillow, Trulia, Hotpads, etc. for you so you don't have to do all the work of individually posting on each site.

I have been getting a lot of calls from doing that...mostly from Hotpads and Trulia....haven't gotten any responses from my Craigslist ad though.

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  • Real Estate Investor · Plymouth, MA · Member since 2014 · 29 posts · 0 votes
    11y
    Originally posted by @Pyrrha Rivers:

    @Mark Derby Thank you so much for your quick and thorough response. I will give it a try.

     Any time. I'm not on the site much these days due to my crazy life schedule but will always take time to answer direct questions. 90% of what I have learned to be successful (so far anyway) has been from people on here answering my questions and taking the time to point me in the right direction. Good luck. If you have any questions, shoot me a PM and I do what I can to help.

    Mark

  • Real Estate Investor · Plymouth, MA · Member since 2014 · 29 posts · 0 votes
    11y
    Originally posted by @Gregory Rice:

    Hi George,

    The best way to increase your marketability is price. You have to ask yourself this question: Would I rather have a vacancy for X amount of months to get X amount of rent, or would I rather rent it ASAP for lesser than i want?

    I manage hundred of rental units in New England and a price drop is always the answer. What you obtained last year for rent is irrelevant. Your unit is only worth what someone is willing to pay. Craigslist is where we find 90% of our tenants. I am very comfortable saying that the amount of inquiries you get from craigslist tells you if your unit is worth what you are asking. If you are having showings with no call backs it is likely that your advertisement is not detailed enough (plenty of pictures, explanation of features, neighborhood, etc.) You want to make sure your advertisement is a mirror image of the unit. I also find that a thorough pre-screening conversation also saves you time and gives you the ability to explain the unit in better detail. You are competing with thousands of other units in that area; you have to provide a VALUE!

    It is all about price, matching, and details! Hope this helps!

     My strategy is to keep my rent BELOW market value. Lower rent than the competition and a good screening process makes for happy tenants that are less likely to bust your chops over the minor things. Nothing like being called out once a week to oil squeaky hinges and crap like that…

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