Is my Rental Price to high?!?

Question

Hello,

I am having a bit of trouble renting one of my units and I was looking for opinions on proper rental price. My current tenants frequently express how nice and big their similar units are comparatively to what they have seen in the market. However, this vacancy has been posted for almost a month and while I have had multiple viewings and even a couple applicants I do not feel any closer to renting it out.  Additionally it is priced competitively for the market, but maybe I might be over valuing my property because I want it to be more than what it actually is.

Below is the link to my posting.

https://www.zillow.com/homes/for_rent/Saint-Louis-...

Any advice or guidance is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Joe

Joseph Mcvey · Answer

@Patrice Penda,@Kyle J.,@Omar Khan, @Bo Kim, and @Donald Shaver

Thank you all very much for your opinions and guidance. This weekend was somewhat fruitful. About half of the scheduled viewers came to see the unit and luckily I was able to find applicants who passed all the screening criteria, for this unit and one more that will be ready by the 1st!

Peter MacKercher · Answer

@Joseph Mcvey The best place to start asking that question is by comparing your property to what else is available. Patrice is on the exact right track there. If you know that your property is heads and shoulders better than what else is available currently then you are right in pricing your unit higher. If people with very similar finishes are asking less, then that can be tough.

Secondly, the photos on the listing make the unit look dirty. It's most noticeable in the living room, and it's likely partly because of the texture on the walls. Try to take higher resolution photos when there's more sunlight so you can avoid getting shadows on the walls. You also have some panoramas in there; I'd suggest keeping them in but trying to to rely on them for a room's photo. If you take more photos so that people get a sense of what the unit is like walking through that might help too.

Donald S. · Answer

@Bo Kim and @Kyle J. while your points are valid, I can tell you that in StL, every street can differ. So seeing 650-700 for a similar quality property a few blocks away, might mean nothing if that property is on the wrong side of say Gravois (for example). @Joseph Mcvey I think you've got a few things going against you, 1 is the time of year, 2 is the pictures do make the place look dingy like Peter said. I would take better photos, try to clean the baseboards and walls in the living room 1st, and hold firm for another month or so if you can, or take it down in 25$ increments.

Good luck

Cheers!

Bo Kim · Answer

@Joseph Mcvey I see a couple SFR that are in $750s but hey are not as nicely rehabbed as yours. On the apartments side, I see a ton of available $675-750.

Not really familiar with that area so its hard to say, but Ive experienced that rental apps will start to heat up in Feb after the holidays of late Nov-early Jan.

I personally like my PM's strategy of listing it $25-50 under market (my rentals are nicely rehabbed like yours) hoping for a wider pool, quicker lease up. Every month not leased is an opportunity cost for me..

Joseph Mcvey · Answer

I am currently marketing on Zillow, Trulia, Craigslist, hotpads, Cozy.co(which feeds to multiple), and GoSection 8. Yes there is a lot of competition in the city, however specific areas draw more attention and different types of people. This is especially true in St. Louis where crossing into certain areas completely changes the environment.

I have compared my property to similar properties in the area and I offer the same amenities. The price on the west side of Gravois Ave(East side gets a little sketchy) for a 2/1 +1000 sqft has increased to $800-900 and the closer you get to the park the price continues to increase.

I had similar thoughts about the photos. I was considering hiring a photographer.

If I reduce the rent should I take the posting down and let it rest for a couple day/a week before re-posting?

Do local realtors specialize in filling vacancies? I do not want to pay for a property manager to completely manage the property at this time. It may cost me money in the  short run, but the education I am receiving managing it myself is worth the lose to me right now.

I am showing it this weekend to 6 more potential tenants. If I do not get the right applicant I'll probably reduce the price.

Omar Khan · Answer

@Joseph Mcvey Going off rentometer and hotpad data, you're actually under priced relative to the median. How aggressively are you marketing this and how many sources? You could contract this out to a local realtor and pay them a fee to take this problem off your hands.

Kyle J. · Answer

I don't know your market at all but it looks like there are a TON of other rentals available around yours:

That's a lot of competition for you, and a lot of other rentals for potential applicants to choose from.  Also, applicants in that price range and for that type of property (2/1) are often very price conscious.  A quick search revealed there's a property just a couple blocks from yours with the same number of bdrms/baths and similar square footage (actually 40sf larger than yours) that's available for only $695: https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/2927-Magnolia-Avenue-FL-2ND-Saint-Louis-MO-63118/2091592652_zpid/?fullpage=true.  Again, I don't know your area, but I would think that would make it hard to rent yours for $850.

Just my two cents.

Patrice Penda · Answer

Alright, I haven't checked the zillow link in great detailsBut if you are not getting any offer, it is probably because of the price.My guess is It is relatively too expensive for what people can rent at this time of the year in your area.I was going to say maybe it is a demand issue, but it is not since you have people showing up to see it.

Rather than guessing, reach out to the people who came to see and ask them for feedback AND why they didn't rent it out. You'll see a trend emerging.

Is my Rental Price to high?!?

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