In Real Estate investing, there are a lot of ‘drive bys’ but not the ones like in East L.A. or downtown Detroit. The ‘no-shows’ are the potential tenants that are supposed to show up but never do leaving you waiting for hours.
Why didn’t they show?
9 times out of 10, these tenants HAVE shown up, but you never know it. They have driven up, took a glance at the property, and continued going.
These drive-bys can easily be avoided if you always think:
CURB APPEAL
Curb appeal is nothing new and I’m sure you have seen it on renovation and decorating shows but whatever your definition of curb appeal is, it’s very precise for an income property.
With these simple, inexpensive tips supplied by SuiteDesign Home Staging, you can increase your showings exponentially:
- WEED. That is, PULL out the weeds 🙂 !!! It doesn’t take a lot, but it makes a huge difference.
- PAINT – your front door a modern neutral colour. Scrape off the old paint, don’t just slap on a new coat. Many investors think a door that has just been painted doesn’t need to be re-painted. True, but if it’s a bright blue or dark red or something, your best bet is to update it.
- CLEAN OR CHANGE – the mail box and the house numbers. So many times these are rusted over and look worn out. For a few dollars you can have bright shiny numbers and a spotless new mailbox.
- REPLACE – builder front lamps. On the garage and the porch. For most investment properties there will be a maximum of three lamps to replace. And building box stores such as RONA have awesome package deals for less than 50$.
- UPDATE – the old door handle and deadbolt. One of the worst feelings a tenant can have is insecurity and that can set in the moment they touch the wobbly, old tarnished brass knob that has never been cleaned or changed. For less than $50, you can have a brand new nickel finish knob and deadbolt welcoming your tenant.
At the very least, spend a bit of time cleaning up the front area of the home, like picking up cigarette butts and strewn garbage and newspapers. It is the first impression a tenant sees and tells the story about how YOU view your investment. If you don’t care, why should they?
Once you get them inside, it’s time to show your property at its best potential and that means going the extra 15%.
My goal is to attract tenants like me, ones that I would have no trouble hanging out with. That means I have a property show the way I would want to live. It also means I STAGE every property to plant a subconscious image in a tenant’s mind about the layout of the property and, everything is spotless.
The inside of the property is obviously important and can be the subject for another post, but for the meantime, why not share your tips about how you show your properties?
If you are looking to stage your properties to make sure they rent before anyone else’s – check out SuiteDesign’s corrugated furniture specifically designed to offer full staging to investors for under $500!!!! Her website is www.suitedesign.ca