Special offer

Thinking outside the box

By
Real Estate Agent with Hansen Real Estate Group Inc.
Thinking outside the box

Writing a personal letter to a prospective landlord isn't common in my area, but it's something I have every one of my prospective tenants do.

Thinking outside of BoxWhy? A personal letter is just that, personal, an introduction to who they are.

How many landlords base their decision solely on credit reports and deposits? I can tell you a lot.

So how is a person with horrible credit and/or little money suppose to find a home? Over the years I've placed countless clients into a rental home due in part to the personal letter they wrote.

A letter that introduced them, a letter that explained why their credit wasn't perfect, a letter explaining why they short saled their home or claimed bankruptcy.

I have found landlords will look past the numbers on the paper and focus more on the person, IF the person takes the time to introduce themselves.

If you are working with a prospective tenant
regardless of how they appear on paper I highly recommend including a personal letter with their offer, it can go along way.

Photo courtesy of Jscreationzs

Posted by
About the Author:
Michelle Gibson is a full-time Realtor with the Hansen Real Estate Group Inc. She has been specializing in residential real estate throughout Palm Beach County Florida since 2001. Specific areas of expertise include; Wellington, Lake Worth, Royal Palm Beach, West Palm Beach, Boynton Beach, Loxahatchee, Greenacres, Lake Clarke Shores, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, Delray Beach, and Jupiter.
 
Whether you're looking to buy, sell or rent Michelle will be able to walk you through your entire real estate transaction from start to finish.
 
Connect with Michelle:

Comments (22)

Robert The Earl of Real Estate
St Pete LUXE Living Group - Saint Petersburg, FL
The Earl of Real Estate

The touch of a letter has help many a buyer that we work with get their contracts considered and accepted.

Oak Hill VA, USA

Aug 09, 2010 02:41 PM
Robert Vegas Bob Swetz
Las Vegas, NV

Hello Michelle and VB agrees with the others and a wonderful letter I might add!

Aug 09, 2010 02:47 PM
Mary Kay Hopkins
Mary Kay Hopkins, LLC e-PRO, GRI, CRS, CRB - Lake Charles, LA
e-PRO,GRI,CRS

Michelle, there is a wonderful and true story locally about a young man wanting to move back into the neighborhood where he spent his youth.  Wanted to raise his son in the same neighborhood.

There were 2 offers.  

The seller took $20,000 less to help the young man achieve his goal!

Aug 09, 2010 03:00 PM
Liz and Bill Spear
Transaction Alliance 513.520.5305 www.LizTour.com - Mason, OH
Transaction Alliance Cincinnati & Dayton suburbs

Michelle, Great job on taking care of your clients!

Aug 09, 2010 03:08 PM
Elizabeth Bolton
RE/MAX Destiny Real Estate Cambridge, MA - Cambridge, MA
Cambridge MA Realtor

Hi Michelle ~ That's an excellent idea!  I do if for sales but never thought of it for rentals. I don't do rentals (though I did my first four months in real estate) but as a  landlord I know this would carry some weight with me. Even the prospective tenants who replied to my craigslist posting with a decent email caught my attention.

Liz

Aug 09, 2010 03:18 PM
Josh & Dawn McKinley
Peoria, AZ

That's a really interesting approach, and I'm glad to hear it's working. Have you seen if there's a significant difference in responses between letters that are typed and those that are handwritten?

Aug 09, 2010 03:41 PM
Randy Ostrander
Lake and Lodge Realty LLC - Big Rapids, MI
Real Estate Broker, Serving Big Rapids and West Central MI

I would think a good personal letter could be the deciding factor and may just tilt the scales enough to get them a home. Good call Michelle.

Aug 09, 2010 04:24 PM
Tony & Darcy Cannon
Aubrey and Associates Realty - Layton, UT
The C Team

Michelle, that is a great suggestion!  There are so many people in this position right now, you really can't only look at the numbers.

Aug 09, 2010 06:27 PM
Michelle Gibson
Hansen Real Estate Group Inc. - Wellington, FL
REALTOR

Kristen - There are so many sellers and landlords that do have an emotional attachment to their home and getting to know the person who wants to purchase or rent the home can be a deciding factor.  Great story!

Jenna -  Here too, we have a lot of people in short sale situations that need to find a new home and rentals are really their only option.

Robert - I haven't done it with a purchase it

VB - It definitely doesn't hurt

Mary Kay - Great story! I can't count how many of my sellers are emotionally attached to their home and care who gets it.

Liz & Bill - Thanks!

Liz - I have yet to do it with a sale since a majority of my clients are purchasing short sales and bank owned homes.

Dawn - I've had clients do both, typed and handwritten and both ways have worked every time, but I personally think handwritten might go a little further with some.

Randy - It's always worked for my clients even in multiple offer situations where they weren't the best on paper.

Tony - We have a ton of people in this situation and I've found it's the only way to get them into a home that they want.

Aug 10, 2010 02:22 AM
Leesa Finley
RED Properties - Wake Forest, NC
RED Properties - Raleigh NC Real Estate

Okay - I have to admit that 25 years ago I did that for ME!  I was renting my first apartment and I wrote a letter to the landlord - it WORKED.  I ended up staying in that apartment for 10 years and had a super fantastic relationship with the landlord.  It really does work, Michelle and so glad to see you being such an advocate for your clients!

Wake Forest NC House Chick

Aug 10, 2010 03:15 AM
Sheldon Neal
Bergen County, NJ - RE/MAX Real Estate Limited - Maywood, NJ
That British Agent Bergen County NJ

This is BRILLIANT Michelle ! I love this concept ! ... duly noted and will look to incorporate that into my renters procedure !

Aug 10, 2010 11:02 AM
Michelle Gibson
Hansen Real Estate Group Inc. - Wellington, FL
REALTOR

Leesa - It's so simple and works miracles, yet I never receive on any of my rental listings.

Sheldon - It has worked extremely well for all of my clients.

Aug 10, 2010 12:00 PM
John Cannata
214-728-0449 http://TexasLoanGuy.com - Frisco, TX
Texas Home Mortgage - Purchase or Refinance

Thats a Great Great idea Michelle! I think that Landlords have become use to working with people that do not have 'stellar' credit, so that little bit extra would certainly make a difference to me if I were renting a home. Great advice!

Aug 10, 2010 01:42 PM
Michelle Gibson
Hansen Real Estate Group Inc. - Wellington, FL
REALTOR

John - Thank You

Aug 10, 2010 02:59 PM
Patricia Kennedy
RLAH@Properties - Washington, DC
Home in the Capital

Michelle, this is a really good idea.  I think that personalizing offers, either to buy or lease, make it easier to get them through.

Aug 10, 2010 03:28 PM
Shirley Parks
Sands Realty 210-414-0966 - San Antonio, TX
Broker, 210-414-0966, San Antonio TX Real Estate

This is a great idea, Michelle.  I would like to reblog this post since I have been getting a lot of calls for rentals lately.

Aug 10, 2010 03:28 PM
Michelle Gibson
Hansen Real Estate Group Inc. - Wellington, FL
REALTOR

Pat - I agree, especially if the owner has an attachment to the home.

Shirley - Thanks for re-blogging!

Aug 11, 2010 02:34 AM
Ty Lacroix
Envelope Real Estate Brokerage Inc - London, ON

Michelle, what a great idea and something I will implement

Ty

Sep 21, 2010 10:43 PM
Michelle Gibson
Hansen Real Estate Group Inc. - Wellington, FL
REALTOR

Ty - Thanks

Sep 22, 2010 01:49 AM
Tonia Rahming
RMS Realty, St Lucie, Martin and Palm Beach Counties - Saint Lucie West, FL
Relocation Specialist
Still good info! Just stumbled across this 3 years later
May 01, 2013 09:50 PM