Rental Showings - No One Showed Up
Julie MarquezPro Member
Investor · Skagit County, WA · Member since 2016 · 1k+ posts · 807 voteshttp://skagit.craigslist.org/apa/5753275039.html
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.
@Julie Marquez Yes, you will still get your requirements in the lease agreements. :-)
@Joe Moore You have to give the address on Zillow, and I'm amazed by the difference in people who use the two.
I've had mixed results in quality of applicants from Craigslist and Zillow. Ultimately, I leased to a Zillow lead, but I had a couple of very solid back up applicants from Craigslist. Conversely, I had some sketchy people contact me through Zillow, one of whom freaked me out so much that I brought a friend with me to the showing. He was fine, as it turns out, but was signing his emails inappropriately and I never would have rented to him.
http://skagit.craigslist.org/apa/5753275039.html
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.
RATE. You rental rate should be set at $1100 - $1150. If you set it higher, it will sit. If you can't lower it to that rate and still cash flow, you paid too much.
You've got a competing rental right down the street 3/2 leasing for $1195 and another for $1185. I also recommend the additions above. You're goal is to demonstrate that your property presents a good value for tenants.
It is much better for you to lease it quickly than lose months of rent. By leasing for $100 less, you're losing $1200 a year. By losing 3 months of lost rent, your losing $3,600.
Here are the comps on the block or within two blocks of your listing:
3003 Withers Place, Mount Vernon, WA - $1195
1704 S 30th Mount Vernon WA US - $1185
PHOTOS/CONDITION. I suggest taking better photos for your listing. All interior lights should be on. The place should be immaculately cleaned. If you have photoshop or other photo application, you can also brighten up photos that way.
Here are examples of how your listing photos should look (you can also navigate to my site to see more photos; see profile for link):
SHOWINGS. Do not provide custom appointments for prospects. Set one or two days and times per week for showings and put them on your listings. All prospects, after you PRE-SCREEN them over the phone for (1) credit score, (2) income, and (3) dogs (no aggressive breeds; violate your insurance) must go to one of those showings. Advertise listing everyone including Craigslist, Zillow, Trulia, etc. And provide address. Some people will want to drive by to see the neighborhood before calling you. To encourage prospects to complete apps, put in listing "I will waive application fee for any approved application"
You want as much traffic as possible! Leasing is a numbers game. the greater the prospects, the greater the people at showings, the greater the apps that come in.
Your ad is very well-written and starts off great but then does get a bit overwhelming. Too much info too soon. If someone asked me "why do you want to rent this house" in the listing, I would be turned off automatically. I think saying "no pets" is better than the pet fee. $1700 seems high for any rental that does not look better on the inside (i.e. dingy basement-style carpet and outdated counters etc), but maybe that's normal there. :) At least you know you aren't spending too much on aesthetics lol. But aesthetics are what bring in top dollar renters. Also, I would take out the bit about the wetlands. Doesn't have a positive connotation when you think wetlands out your back door. ;)
It depends on the market. If the rental is in a family area where everyone has a dog, you SHOULD allow pets with a pet deposit. My experience is that well-qualified tenants take care of their pets and take care of your property. Unqualified, low quality, tenants do not. So screen carefully!
FYI: I always allow pets. It's a competitive advantage in some markets. It's required, as it's the standard, in others. I get tenants in, once they provide they're quality, I get them to stay forever. It's now their home and I want them to feel that way, including having a pet.
@Jon Q. I'm very curious where you got your numbers. We own the house free and clear, bought in 1993 brand new. It was renting previously for $1495 and those people were in there since Sept. 2014. We own the smaller house right next door (3/2 1290 SF) and it rents for $1250 (below market, it's one of his maintenance man). We one another house a couple doors down and it rents for $1350, also 3/2 around 1200 SF. Of course it would rent like no problem if the rent was $1100. But it will also rent for $1700, so we will stick with that.
Yes, I know I need better pictures. I need the show to be cleaned first. Thanks for the suggestions!
Not a lot of people accept pets around here. Also, most everyone requires a one year lease, we are just month to month.
http://skagit.craigslist.org/apa/5753275039.html
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.
As others have mentioned, you put entirely too much info in your listing...I suggest revising it to the following:
DESCRIPTION
Charming 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom home with 2 car garage with a large deck off the kitchen and dining room, as well as a large living room. The house includes energy efficient LED lights, windows, water heater, and new gas furnace.
This is a well maintained house on a quiet street with a great yard that backs up to the open wetlands. Conveniently located close to schools, shopping, dining, entertainment, and all the amenities of Mount Vernon and Skagit Valley.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[REVISE BELOW AS NEEDED]
ADDRESS: [INSERT ADDRESS]
LOCATION: [revise as needed]
● 5 min drive to great shopping , dining, entertainment
● 5 min drive to HEB Grocery Market
● 4 minute walk to [ NAME ] Park
● Quiet, low traffic neighborhood
FEATURES
● Energy efficient One level (no stairs)
● Hardwood floors
● New Kitchen Countertops (will be installed 8/15; see photo)
● New Stainless Kitchen Sink
● New Stainless Refrigerator
● New Stainless Dishwasher
● Spacious master suite with walk in closets
● Fireplace with brick hearth
● Large living space with cozy fireplace and dining area
● Master bedroom with full bath
● New stainless steel appliances
● Separate laundry room with washer/dryer connections
● Two-car garage
● Mature shade trees
● Large fenced backyard
TERMS:
● 12-month lease or longer
● Standard one-month deposit applies
● Pets are welcome conditionally with pet deposit
● No Section 8
IF YOU ARE APPROVED, I WILL REFUND YOUR APP FEE!
Please call [NAME] at [PHONE] for application criteria and viewing.
Call now, as this one will not last long!
@Jon Q. I love lists, this speaks to me. Thanks for the copy!
Only a short paragraph and bullets. No tenants are going to read through paragraphs...also, the purpose of your ad is to get them in the door. Don't bore them with details about your qualifications for them. They don't care. Just screen out the bad prospects as quickly as possible.
Remember, your listing is a SELLING TOOL. And you are selling your rental.
Your pictures do not appeal. A pic of the front entrance, a hallway and a half shot of the what..area with a fireplace?
As a renter I want to see the kitchen, livingroom, back yard. do you have a privacy fence? I think better professional pictures (which you can use again in the future) would be a great investment/
@Jim Adrian If you wanted to give me some basic front landscaping advice, I'd totally listen to you. I know it needs something under the windows at the house. What about a line of bark and shrubs along the driveway. Anything to dot the yard like a tree or shrub?
I like raised planter beds built out of retaining wall block you get from a big box store. Bricks on edge can be used as well. I would do something from the left corner of the house all the way to the driveway. Im not a fan of a mulch border stripe down the driveway. It seams to get all over the place (personal preference). A nice ornamental tree in the front would be nice with some other plantings with it. Talk to your local nursery and I bet they can do a landscape plan for you for $50 to $100. The yard needs a good mow and weedwacking. As for plants, I like perennials, buy them once and you are done! Im not an evergreen person (again personal preference). Find things that are colorful and bloom most the season. I leave places for annuals to be added. They give instant color. This lets tenants give it there personal touch.
I think your front door is odd and distracting. Its a pair of doors which is uncommon for houses. The color is off and doesn't go with anything on the exterior. I would paint the door a nice accent color to the siding. Im thinking a dark color, maybe gray? Only go 2 shades darker than the house. Even white would work. You can paint the railing the same color. If you add shutters to the house as someone suggested, use the same color. This will help tie everything together. Another option is to replace the door and put in a single door with side lights on each side.
If you are going to be making big changes I would not have posted an ad yet. Its hard to make / do work when a tenant is in place. I like to have everything 100% ready to go (again personal preference).
@Faith Woodward Thanks for the feedback! Maybe open space or greenbelt? It's a pretty dry wetland and not that scary in these parts, but I understand. We will work on the aethestics. I think I posted the ad before getting it up to snuff, and maybe after 25 years of owning it, we can do some easy update. I totally want new countertops and bathroom light fixtures!
@Mary lou L. I preemptively listed the house before it was ready. Do you think no pictures are better than bad pictures? Once it's ready I will get some good shots, I know good pictures are worth it!
@Jim Adrian Thanks for the suggestions, we will be going to the nursery this weekend to pick out plants! I'll ask them for a little advice too.
The color of the front door is "west facing weathered wood." An original. We are replacing all the railing on the deck with a white composite material, so maybe we should paint the door white too (with a weather proof, tenant proof, marine grade epoxy paint, of course). We have a busy weekend a head of us, I'm excited to get it looking good and revamp the ad.
I would get your carpets cleaned and post a new picture. I would go to Home Depot and buy 3 or 4 plants to make the front of the house look nicer. It looks like you have a nice big house but the pics look a little drab and tired.
Here is the controversial part: I use Craigslist and Zillow like you, but I use lockboxes and send the renters to the house WITHOUT me being there. I phone screen pretty hard to make sure they have the income and the rental history I am looking for. I get first and last name and where they live now. I leave applications in the house and instruct the renters to email me the application with YTD pay stubs documenting their income. I weed out a lot of people that cannot afford the house, have lousy landlord references, lousy work history, lousy rental history, etc. I then meet the renters AT THEIR CURRENT RESIDENCE. I really want to see how they live and treat their current property and landlord.
I have never had a theft or an issue with lockboxes. Good renters typically have jobs and will visit the property after work or on the weekend. They appreciate the chance to look at the house at their convenience. I always make sure the house is in move in condition before I let anyone look at it.
I alert the neighbors to what I am doing and I will drive by every couple of days and I instruct my contractor to also drive by, so the house just doesn't sit there for a week.
By the time I actually meet my renters, I am down to the two or 3 finalists that I think are pretty good. I have 40 rentals, so vacancies are a fact of life. This is a great business, but it will wear you down if you don't look for ways to save time. I do not charge for credit reports; I only run credit on the folks that pass all the other screening criteria.
Good Luck
Have your ever thought about doing an open house type showing. That way serious...and yes some tire kickers show up. Everyone is there at once. Saves you and them time. My experience with doing appts. is that half the people dont show up and the other half are late. Big waste of time.
Have a 1-2hr window. If they are serious, they show up. If not, oh well.
For those that reply, you might suggest that they drive by and take a look. Then you can follow up and if they are still interested, set an appointment to show the inside. I like the suggestion from @Jennifer L. about overlapping appointments. Its amazing how a little competition gets things moving.
Good luck with everything
@GARY MOBERLY Very interesting system that you use. Going to their current home is an awesome idea, then you can see how they treat the home and all. We live a whole 4 minutes from the house, so getting there is not the problem. That's great that you've never had any issues with the lock-box. I think tenants would find that a great idea so they can view on their own time and make their own judgments without meeting the landlord.
Carpets are being cleaned as we speak, and this weekend will include picking up some plants, replacing the front and back deck railings (which you'll never see the wear in the pictures, but the paint is peeling and things are loose), and taking good pictures.
@Laurice Mccoy Open house is what we are going to try this weekend.
@Brian Erlich My dad does that a lot. And then he asks them what color is the house, to quiz them and insure that they actually drove by.
@Joseph Rios I like the email responses I've gotten from them, I'd like to think it weeds some out before I ever have to talk to them. But I know it is an odd request.
@Jim Adrian Thanks for the suggestions, we will be going to the nursery this weekend to pick out plants! I'll ask them for a little advice too.
The color of the front door is "west facing weathered wood." An original. We are replacing all the railing on the deck with a white composite material, so maybe we should paint the door white too (with a weather proof, tenant proof, marine grade epoxy paint, of course). We have a busy weekend a head of us, I'm excited to get it looking good and revamp the ad.
fyi... Epoxy paint yellows due to UV light. Great for the first coat but then top coat it with a polyurethane.
@Jon Q. Thanks for that. Most houses on the street are single level 3/2 and no more than 1300 SF. What are the sizes of the comps you are pulling? I think it will "sell" much better after we fix the curb appeal and get some good pictures
@Jim Adrian I didn't know that about the yellowing, thanks. I was kind of kidding, just naming the most durable paint I could think of. With all the sun the front of the house gets, I'll definitely coat the paint so it doesn't yellow.
Just a few things: Put in a picture of the kitchen and the back yard.
2. Delete the last paragraph of the ad. They dont need to give you this info until they fill out an application. You are making it difficult to see the house since they need to give you a paragraph on their current living situation and why they want your house which they dont even know if they like, because they haven't seen it.
Make sure you also post on trulia and zillow. These are free and get a lot of applicants.
Although I post on craigslist too, I only get about 1 tenant from there vs 50+ from the other sources
@Jon Q. Thanks for that. Most houses on the street are single level 3/2 and no more than 1300 SF. What are the sizes of the comps you are pulling? I think it will "sell" much better after we fix the curb appeal and get some good pictures
@Jim Adrian I didn't know that about the yellowing, thanks. I was kind of kidding, just naming the most durable paint I could think of. With all the sun the front of the house gets, I'll definitely coat the paint so it doesn't yellow.
People care mostly about kitchens, bathrooms, and bedrooms... If you call it a bedroom, it must legally have a closet. Yes, square footage is important, but if it's significantly larger than comps, make sure your photos demonstrate that. You are trying to sell against 3 other properties that are also 4 bedroom houses.
The purpose of your ad is to get prospects excited enough to come look at it, so I'd focus on making your listing appear that's its providing a good value to prospects. At $1,700, even if it had 200-300 more sq ft, I still would look at the others @ $1495 first. Most will also.
Having more sq footage may or may not get people to come look at it versus other rentals that are $200 less a month.
I could be all wrong about this, but I've been doing this for over 14 years.