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During the pandemic, rental prices in Toronto and the GTA dropped for the first time in years as people moved out of the city. With all the things that make urban living so special forced to close down, people saw less value in city rental prices and opted to hole up in physically larger homes with backyards instead of small units in downtown locations.
While that is starting to change, it could help to know a few ways to attract tenants.
1. Be Transparent in Your Posting
Tenants looking at many online postings a day get tired quickly of wondering what the landlord isn’t telling them. Make sure to cover all bases and be honest and upfront about the terms of the rental.
For example, if the monthly rent excludes the cost of utilities, provide the approximate monthly cost in the post. Let renters know what they’re getting into before they sign up. For help creating the post or getting your listing seen in the right places, hire a company like Property Management Toronto to create the perfect advertisement and amplify it using their offline contacts and network of websites and social media feeds.
2. Invest in the Long-Term
Some landlords don’t put money into the core aspects of their rental properties, preferring to cut corners and hope future tenants don’t notice. Investing more money upfront in appliances helps tenants feel like they will live in a real home, rather than someone else’s get-rich-quick scheme.
Plus, having higher-grade appliances reduces headaches down the road — they’re less likely to break down, so you’ll spend less money and energy on repairs.
3. Make Rent Reasonable
Just because someone else is charging an obscene rate for rent doesn’t mean you have to. Sure, if you set the rent too low, it could attract people who turn the property into a party home.
But you don’t need to charge the highest rate possible, either. You want your rental property to seem like a home for your tenants — offering a reasonable rental rate keeps them in place for the long term. Securing a good tenant who respects your property and pays on time is every landlord’s dream.
If you try to make rent too steep, you’re liable to push away some incredible tenants.
4. Keep it Clean and Safe
Some landlords are too distant from their property and don’t do enough to their units between tenants to keep them safe and clean. Is their old, faulty wiring still? Do the stairs have old creaky handrails?
Be sure to check in on your property after a tenant leaves and ready it for the next one by doing any necessary cleaning or upgrades.
If you have a rental property in need of a tenant, consider yourself lucky! There are many people looking to live somewhere clean and charming. Just keep the above tips in mind, and you’ll find one sooner than later, and they’ll resign their lease year after year, too.