Here's my rental listing, originally posted on Saturday morning. I also posted it on Zillow. I got a lot of response, maybe 10 -12 people through craigslist and 3 - 4 people on Zillow. All decent prospects. So I called them back and set up six appointments from 5:30 - 8:30 on Tuesday evening. No one showed up. Some people cancelled in advance, some cancelled last minute, and most just didn't show.
I will try again on Saturday afternoon, maybe the weekend works better for people. There isn't a lot on the market around here, and I believe my price is fair. The front exterior porch and lawn look a little tired, so we are going to fix that up. Once Saturday rolls around, it will be presentable (last night the house was still messy and dirty from the previous tenants).
That's my experience. I know there are a lot of posts about this topic and best practices. I'm learning trial and error, and BP of course. I just wanted to share my first experience with this house, and I post more on how it goes.
I was curious if move-in expenses were typically that high in your area. If you have a dog it looks like you need to bring $3700 at the lease signing for a house that rents at $1700/month. That may be normal for your area, but it seems high to me.
I hate that!! I've started doing more prescreening in advance, making sure they meet the income requirement, understanding why they're moving. It weeds out some of the people that will waste your time.
Definitely pre-screen on the phone, prior to making the appointment. And you should also call them in advance, to confirm they are going to show up, prior to heading over to the appointment. I have experienced "no shows" in the past and it is sooooo rude!
First of all, I am amazed how much house one gets for the money up north :)
I also think that lawns naturally look a bit tired at the end of summer, even in Washington.
No shows and cancellations seem to be par for the course, so I've started to confirm appointments the day prior. Once I started confirmations, I had no more no-shows. Cancellations, but no no-shows.
I'll be curious to hear where you get most of your traffic. I rent out a condo and Craigslist was by far the most traffic generator. I paid a service for one month that posts to their own site and a number of others and that did not generate any traffic. Hotpads is second.
I was curious if move-in expenses were typically that high in your area. If you have a dog it looks like you need to bring $3700 at the lease signing for a house that rents at $1700/month. That may be normal for your area, but it seems high to me.
@Julie Marquez That happened to me recently. I set up 4 appointments for a Tuesday evening and only one showed. Here is what I found: on Zillow, people push a button and it automatically sends a message stating that they want to see your place. They may just be shopping around, kicking tires. Don't set an appointment with a Zillow lead until there has been some back and forth exchange.
Second, set your appointments closer together so people overlap. You want to create urgency. No more than 15 minutes between appointments.
Once I got my price point right, the ads generated enough interest. I set up two overlapping appointments during my lunch hour on a Friday an six appointments over 1.5 hours the next day (12:30-2). Of those, 4 were clamoring for the place, 3 would have qualified and I found my tenant.
Also, you need more pictures of your place in your ads. I would want to see the interior and if there are no pictures, I'd be afraid of what it looked like.
Finally, don't be surprised if you get little interest this weekend. I doubt many people want to spend their labor day looking for a new home.
"(last night the house was still messy and dirty from the previous tenants)."
Maybe it's good no one did, sounds like you weren't ready.
Your ad is too much, judgemental statements like "this home is not a mechanics shop" need to go.
@Todd Plambeck I don't know if her fees are too much, they just don't need to be delineated. Why not make it a flat $1700 security deposit and additional $500 pet deposit? If they move out and the carpets need to be cleaned, then you take that from the deposit.
@Todd Plambeck I don't know if her fees are too much, they just don't need to be delineated. Why not make it a flat $1700 security deposit and additional $500 pet deposit? If they move out and the carpets need to be cleaned, then you take that from the deposit.
That was the point I was trying to make, obviously not as elegantly as you did.
@Anthony G Thanks for the sympathy! I thought all these people would make excellent potential tenants, oh well.
@Judy Parker I think my problem was that I let them know that I will be there all night doing a lot of showings. I need to make an exact appointment and make it a big deal about meeting them.
@Account Closed Thanks for the suggestions! If you knew my dad, he likes to talk and talk and talk about his rentals and policies, so that definitely came across in the ad. He's actually a nice reasonable guy, so I'll change up the wording some.
This happens a lot. Unfortunately, tenants aren't known for their timeliness or communication, or concern for other people's time. So instead of canceling, they just won't show.
But the question is, to me if someone sets an appointment with me, and then doesn't show, or waits until the last minute to cancel. I have just prescreened a bad tenant and I can move on to someone that shows better interpersonal skills, and concern for other people's time.
But the best way is to just give an hour window. So if you have to drive to your unit, worst case scenario you are out an hour, instead of 3.
@Gabe G. So true, I just weeded out a half dozen potential tenants. We only live a few minutes from the house, and luckily we had a little bit of work to do while waiting, but still.
The house needs to be move-in ready before you can show the place unless its still occupied. You need interior pictures. Prove to me this is a well maintained house with pictures. I always hate when there are no pictures. It tells me they are hiding something so I cross the house off the list. In your add remove "Cat or dog under 20 lbs allowed with an additional $400 deposit and $25 a month pet rent." Simply say "pet deposit required". Discuss the details in person. I would shot for 3x the rent. The house lacks curb appeal. Consider only one application fee for a family not per person. Use a per person when its joint tenants.
@Jim Adrian All very good suggestions, thank you! I want pictures too, but it doesn't look good yet. And probably good that no one showed up to the showings last night. Some of the well maintained things like new hot water heater, new furnace, new siding, LED lightbulbs, etc, don't photograph that well anyway. It will look nice and clean when ready. Do tenants even care about those other little maintenance things?
I love the suggestions to dial down the details of the ad. No need to scare them right out of the gate. My dad has a long, detailed page of information they can read when they get to the house. Many of our tenants are multi-family or in roommate situations, but we can explain the application process later too.
I don't think tenants care to much about those things as they are not buying the house. Look at some other ads on cl and find ones you like and tailor them in the same way. When you explain things in person they don't come across harsh. Tone of voice is lost in ads which makes a big difference.
I've read a whole lot of books waiting for "no shows"! (right now, ironically, I'm reading "Evicted"). It happens. Heck; I've gotten folks who have called me at 1 pm, scheduled to see a house at 5 the same day and never bothered to show up or call. Just plain rude.
Inside pictures would be helpful. You might change your ad to say "energy efficient heat, lighting, hot water". I doubt they care about siding.
And the weekend might have more folks showing up. I had an "open house" a couple of times on a Saturday for a rental; didn't schedule appointments but told interested applicants I'd be there from 11 am to 2 pm to show the rental. Brought along a hose and some soap and washed my truck during the "down" times between showing the place to make the time go by.
@Julie Marquez If there is demand for your property, then people will come during the early evening hours of the week and also during the weekends. I've done both successfully. I'd avoid Fridays and Mondays.
Here would be my suggestions:
1. House lacks curb appeal. Landscaping can be done inexpensively adding some color against all the white or beige siding? Shudders on the front in a red, green or brown would be a cheap investment. $800 spent on the above items would make it look a lot more "homey".
2. Ad is way to busy. You want to get their attention to get them to come to the house. Example: "Small pet considered" is what I say in my ad. Tell them when they are there you charge an additional pet security deposit. Eliminate how much your credit check cost as well as your requirements for 2.5 times rent (I would go with 3 times)
3. Until a house is 99% done I never show a house. Most people cannot visualize what you are telling them you are going to do to the house and how great it will look when it is done. All they will see is a typical slumlord rental - they have heard that before that it will be "fixed up"...never happens.
4. I do all of my showings thru open houses. I got tired of killing a hour or two waiting for the people that just had to see the rental right now...and never showed up. I do Wednesday 6 - 7 pm and Sunday 1 - 2 pm. Only 1 hour will do. Having multiple people viewing your house at one time creates excitement and more importantly a sense of urgency. "Look at all these people. I better put my application in now." I would suggest having another person with you to show the house in case you get busy. The trick to having a bunch of prospects at one time is to be able to size them up quickly. They tell you they just filed bankruptcy and want to tell how it all happened...sorry I have help this couple over here. Oh, you have St. Bernard? Sorry I only consider small pets. Move on to the next prospect.
Now some members will probably criticize me for eliminating some of the info in your ad. I.e. pet size, income requirement, etc. If they come and don't meet your requirements think of it this way. Them being there while someone else is there creates a feeding frenzy helping you accomplish your goal - to rent the house. Hope this helps and good luck!
A couple things I've learned in the past is to not show the property until it's completely ready. Also after having the same issue of no shows a few times I've started to only offer showings in groups. I tell people I'm showing it on x day at x time. That has worked far better for myself and saved a lot of time. If they are serious they will show.