Your properties amenities are one of the driving forces behind the rental rate, so it is important that anyone looking at the property knows they are there. While even great in-house ammenities won’t save a house or apartment in a poor location, you can use your knowledge of local amenities to get the maximum rental price for your unit. These tips from local Kirkland property management professionals will get you started.
Know the Local Amenities
It is important that you know everything about the area. If you have to pay for a tour guide, do it. You want to know how far away public transport is, local eateries, schools in the district, the reputations of schools, nearby parks, shopping centers, local events, and anything else you can use to market the home. This is especially important if you have more than one unit in the area. If you hire a property manager, you want to hire a local Kirkland property management company that can bring that kind of local knowledge to your home.
Know the Home
Even if you don’t know anything about property, you have to show the apartment to prospective tenants and you have to know how to upsell it. What are the trends? If your home has an open kitchen and that’s what’s hot, you know what to mention. One easy way to see what to market is to pay for a buyer’s inspection. They’ll highlight all of the pros and cons for you, so you know what to fix before a tenant comes in, and what to highlight.
Make a List
Make a list of everything that’s great about your property. Local amenities, location, and interior amenities and recent upgrades. You’ll want to work as many of these as possible into your online and newspaper ads, without sounding spammy. For example:
“Two-bedroom apartment with recently refurbished kitchen, nearby to three schools, within walking distance of parks, eateries, and shopping”
For online ads, you can get much more specific and mention local parking, the neighborhood’s reputation, and much more.
Making the Pitch
Creating a pitch based around amenities is important, but you have to do it with care. If you’re talking with tenants, be realistic, don’t exaggerate, and if the property has issues, mention it. You’ll also want tenants to know when something affects the price. For example, if the property is within walking distance of a middle school, you can charge more for the rent and lease it to a family with middle schoolers. If you’re charging more rent because the entire interior was recently refurbished, they should know that as well. Tenants will be comparing multiple homes, so it’s best that you let them know why your prices may be higher or lower than competing rentals.
Marketing your property can take months on the normal market, so be prepared to show your units or house multiple times. If you want to rent faster, and with less effort, you can hire a Kirkland property management company like SJA Property Management, who can rent your unit quickly, using a pre-existing marketing network. Want to know more? Contact us for information or a free quote.