Would a fridge make my house easier to rent?

Question

Houses in my market are split about 50/50 with/without fridges. Ive left my without a fridge because if a new tenant were to bring their own I could save a little money and I don't have a place to store it if they want to use their own. My house has been listed for 2 weeks and I haven't received a single applicant although several have asked for applications.  2 - 3 weeks is the average in the area with a rare few staying vacant for 2 months. So should I get a fridge?

Steve Rozenberg · Answer

Just as many people have said in this post, there are many great ways to skin this cat. I think calling back the people that have already viewed your home and getting some feedback is a great idea since you already paid the marketing cost to get that lead. I also think conveying that in future marketing that you can supply a fridge (color their choice) or possibly give them credit off their rent for supplying their own.

I would look at what my competition is doing in the area, if they are all supplying fridges then that might be the problem. If no one else is and your not getting any luck then maybe it is price of the rental or possibly something wrong with the product.

Normally if you are not getting any calls then I would suggest either it is not priced right or the marketing message needs to be tweaked to be made a little more enticing...  Just a thought

Graeme Ford · Answer

This seems crazy that 50% of rentals in your area don't have fridges in the units. Why would anyone want to rent somewhere they have to bring their own fridge in? Very strange to say the least haha

Michael Jones · Answer

For a couple of hundred dollars or less you can probably have a fridge delivered today by someone off craigslist etc........

Why slow down on a rental when the potential problem could be solved that quick? Chop the tree and move on.

Besides, I am not sure that I would want tenants bringing in their own fridge because it may have an ice maker (make sure the one you buy and place does not have an ice maker) and they can be notorious for leaking. If that happens all the money you saved on a fridge upfront will be spent on repairing the floor.

John Thedford · Answer

I would tell all applicants that you are buying them a fridge at move-in. I have only had one case where tenants wanted to bring their own.

Matt K. · Answer

Most people aren't brining their own fridge nor they likely to want to go buy one while having to pay first last and sec deposit.

Tom R. · Answer

I've called my prospects. One said the bread winner of the family passed away one decided the house was out of her budget and the others didn't answer the phone. I have also updated the listing. I cant show the kitchen which is a big seller without showing the area where the fridge would be so I took a picture of a fridge wrote on it that a fridge can be provided if needed. We will see if that has an effect.

Jennifer T. · Answer

I bought a slightly used fridge for one of my units from a CL person who was moving out the house she rented.  I was really surprised and asked her about it, because I didn't think that was very typical in my area.  She said her LL had provided the stove, but she had to provide the fridge.  The place she was moving to already had a fridge, hence why she was selling that one.

As a previous renter, a place would have to have had a really discounted rent to get over the hump of having to provide my own fridge.  My guess is that is one reason it is turning people off, even if it does run 50/50 in your area.  Though I also like the idea of offering to provide a fridge or take a bit off the rent if they supply their own.

A decent, used fridge in my area runs $200-$300.

I have one tenant who moved in with their own fridge.  But I already had one, so they just put it in the living room.  Which is tiled, so that was okay with me.  They're a 5 person family and appear to use both anyway.

Would a fridge make my house easier to rent?

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