Being a landlord isn't something folks openly admit to. These days, renters call them parasites and leeches. Posting your property rental success story online may draw a lot more scorn than praise.
The deck is stacked against you with your tenants. Bitter feelings such as the above can cause excellent tenants to decide against renewing their lease. It's every landlord's worst nightmare to lose a golden tenant over hard feelings.
You need to lease renewal strategies to retain tenants that you like. In this guide, we take a look at a few methods to ensure they renew a lease.
Reconsider Steep Rent Increases
Rent increases aren't just for profit motives. Many landlords increase rent to keep pace with property taxes and insurance, or to remain competitive. One of the primary reasons people decide not to renew is because of said rent increases.
Tenant retention is a lot easier when rent increases are reasonable. Tenants do expect their rent to go up, but it sours their perception of you when it's by an exponential amount.
Think of things in the long term. Future tenants could be the nightmare sort that cost you money because of damages and late payments.
Instead, retain tenants who have a proven track record of making payments and behaving well. This makes for a solid, long-term investment.
Be Friendly and Helpful
The relationship with your tenant can and should be amicable and productive. After all, they are paying for your services. In return, you should provide happy, prompt customer service like any other business.
So, keep in touch and ask how they're doing. Ask if they need something, or if they have any questions. Offer your assistance to help promptly.
In particular, take their maintenance requests very seriously. Tenants hate it when nothing gets fixed despite repeated, ignored requests. It shows that you don't care about them, and drives them to look elsewhere for housing.
Make Your Rental Enticing
People will want to live on your property longer if it's worth their while. Make an effort to provide incentives that make your rental better than the competition. You could try things like the following:
- Allowing pets
- Eliminating late fees
- Doing renovations
- Offering free furnishings and amenities
- Reducing rent
- Offering a free month of rent
Try to see things from your tenant's perspective. Would you want to live on your property if there were other options? If the answer is no, you have some work to do.
It's not difficult to be a good landlord in the current market. Many are neglectful, uncooperative, and difficult to reach. If you can be better than that, then tenant management will be miles easier.
Get More Lease Renewal Strategies at PMI
Lease renewal strategies make sure your golden tenants never even think about skipping the lease renewal. Be cautious about raising rent, and find worthwhile incentives to keep your tenants living there. Be a friendly landlord who is approachable, helpful, and considerate.
PMI in Tampa makes renting a breeze. Get started with a free rental analysis and check out our property management services.
