ASK KARI: Renting Challenges

Many people merely just check postings online to see what apartments are being listed for in the general vicinity. That would be the WRONG approach. To truly know for sure if your rental units are priced comparatively, you must shop in person by visiting the competition! Pictures are not sufficient to decide if your buildings is similar. If you have ever been on a blind date and the person who shows up looks nothing like their picture... You know what I am talking about here. It is important to pay close attention to how fast people respond to your requests to tour a vacant unit and their attitude. That could be the reason someone chooses your building over one that is similar, not to mention its cleanliness! These are all factors that necessitate in-person touring by you.

To maximize your ROI, you always want to “price up.” It would also not be a bad idea to shop for an apartment that might be priced a bit higher to see if it might make sense for you to modify your units and/or make upgrades to your property. Cost analyses are helpful in deciding whether to do this. For example, if you want to upgrade the carpet in the bedrooms to laminate flooring, you need to factor in that cost and compare that to the increase you may receive in rent and how quickly your investment might be earned back. Not only will you want to make your money back, but hopefully you are able to estimate how much additional profit might be accumulated in a year due to the rent increase. This applies to upgraded appliances, new fixtures, or even adding a murphy bed to a studio!

Lastly, you will want to keep track of every market survey according to building location and characteristics, and unit type. When you update each market survey, you can look back at the previous ones for reference. You should also try to use the same market survey template every time. If you are going to use the same building competitors for comparison, make sure they still qualify as good comparable. It never hurts to double check to see if you had missed a better comparable building previously to avoid the possibility of inaccuracies in your market survey and potentially leaving “money on the table.” Conducting market surveys are vital to achieving improved ROI.

Picking the theme of your advertising might reflect your buildings’ color scheme or just overall professionalism. It would be a great idea to look up colors that evoke the mood you are trying to convey. This is where creativity can come into play but should remain cohesive. Look up examples of advertising that catches your eye or that you find memorable and investigate the “why.” Is it the structure? Content? Colors? Keep these in mind when creating your advertising’s theme.

First, make sure the content of the advertising is up to date and accurate. Being up to date and accurate helps build trust. Advertising should always be clear and concise and it should not be filled with too many words or pictures. Let your property do the talking. After all, that is what the potential tenant is interested in! Highlight the beautiful, unique features like a podcast room or wine refrigerator already installed in the kitchen. This could even include distinctive geographical features nearby such as a famous theatre or specialty shops. The key word here is “highlight.” It is unnecessary to include pictures of a smaller closet or an up-close and personal picture of the oven.