Any Advice on our site and how we do things?

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Thats our site for our rentals. We used to have a application fee of $40 just to run their application after they apply then we schedule a tour and if they like it they would let us know and we would then charge send them a background check/credit check for another $40 to do. Then We had complaints of people having to pay before seeing the property but still worked out decent. So we decide to do away with the application fee and schedule tours with anyone who applies. I'm back to where i was before. A lot of wasted time with tours and emails. We also post with zillow with our link cozy our facebook page and craigslist. Seems like a lot of wasted time with everything going on again and keeping up with it. How does are system look? I'm thinking about adding the fee after they apply like before. So once payed we reach out to them. Trying to make this as easy on my wife and me as possible. Any advice would be helpful. Thank you

Paul Sandhu · Answer

@Joshua D. If your communication style with potential renters is similar to the post you made, it is difficult for me to follow the line of conversation and the direction it is going as I read it.  It is probably difficult for your potential tenants to understand as well.

Ken Latchers · Answer

This is really odd. I don't show my places. And I certainly wouldn't have a fee to do so. And two of my places are off the charts historically

JD Martin · Answer

I think your method is counterproductive unless you have a really hot market with very low vacancies and high demand.

Showings: we batch them. This reduces appearances from helter-skelter to two/three days per week for a couple of hours, during which time minor things can get done or one can play solitaire on the phone. Someone should be checking regular on vacant properties anyway, and if it's not vacant you should be batching to reduce aggravation for your current tenant. Also, batched showings often mean a little bit of overlap, which helps create a buzz ("Wow - look at all these people here looking at this place, we better get our butts moving").

Applications: we have a free one to pre-qualify the individual. No point in having them pay for a background check or other information if they have 5 cats or have had a job for 2 weeks. If they meet that and they've viewed the house we invite them to complete the pay application/background/credit check (3rd party).

Lastly: RE can be reasonably easy but showing the property and finding good tenants is part of your "job". If you don't like that part, you should just hand the thing off to a property manager. Done - no calls, no showings, no e-mails. Of course, there's a cost for that. If you want to self-manage, you should consider the work you put in finding good tenants part of your cost of doing business.

Chris Gottshall · Answer

The way we operate, everyone who wants a showing must apply and pay the application fee (including background and credit check) before we will schedule anything in person. This way, when they show up, they have the option to secure the property on the spot by paying a deposit amount. This only really works as well as it does because we have professional photographs and 3D virtual tours available so there's truly no surprise about the layout, configuration, etc. (a couple folks have said it felt *bigger* in person, otherwise everyone has said it is "just like online"). I highly recommend this approach to anyone thinking about it. While some people are miffed about needing to pay and apply up front, I explain it using the logic that we value OUR tenants and do not disturb them for showings unless it is a serious prospect, just as we wouldn't disturb YOU if you were living there. Most people get that; and if they don't, I don't need them as tenants.

Yes, this means that only about 3-5% of all leads actually turn into showings, but I've never had to do more than 3 showings for any of my properties before I had someone sign a lease. All of my time gets eaten up by emails & phone calls up front, not in fruitless showings.

Any Advice on our site and how we do things?

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