Top Three Ways to Torpedo Your Rental

  Here is Southern California the rental market is gaining momentum.  As a property management company here in the Antelope Valley, That is great news!  As I have said in other blogs, there are several factors that have led to the condition that the market is currently in.  I am not going to dive into that topic again, but I am going to talk about the problems that keep so many people from maximizing the potential of their rental homes.  In a market like this, you almost have to TRY to keep your home from renting.  Here are a few ways that you can be sure to LOSE as much money as possible...drum roll please...

(1) At the top of our list is the most obvious reason for the failure of a rental.  The overpriced home!  What owners need to realize is that it doesn't matter how much they love every nook and cranny of their home.  Odds are, your special nooks and crannies are not going to appeal to potential renters enough to cause them to rent your home for $200 per month more than the neighbor's home with the same floor plan.  For a more detailed explanation of the worst mistake in reasoning check out this blog..."Murder by Numbers"

(2) Counting on upgrades to justify a higher than market rent.  Don't get me wrong, I love to walk into a home and admire the granite counter tops and marble/hardwood floors.  I love it when a home has nice bronze light fixtures instead of the classic 80's brass.  Unfortunately, I am not looking for a rental.  When it comes to renters, the upgrades in your home should not be a cause for listing higher than your neighbor.  Rather, they should be the reason that the renter chooses YOUR home above the neighbor's home of the same price!  When people are looking for a home to rent, the most important thing to them is going to be the price.  If they can't afford the rent, then all the hand chiseled Italian marble toilet seats in the world aren't going to make the slightest difference.

(3) Third on the list of tragic mistakes is saying "NO" to renters with pets.  I know from experience that the quickest way to scare an owner is to tell them that an applicant has dogs.  But the reality of the situation is that MOST RENTERS DO.  If you say no to pets, you are effectively removing your listing from a HUGE portion of the rental market.  Now, would I rent a home to say...Michael Vick?  Probably not.  Would I rent a home to Michael Jackson and his Neverland petting zoo? Probably not.  Would I rent my home to someone with a couple of Boxers, Labs, Cockers, Golden Retrievers, Greyhounds, or other family pets?  Absolutely.  What I usually recommend to owners who are on the fence about pets is that they advertise as "pets considered" instead of a definite no.  That way, we can decide on a case by case basis when applicants do own pets.

Obviously, there are several other ways to cripple your chances of success in this market, but these are the top three that I have had to battle with over the past year or so.  If anyone out there has another good example of a way to sink the rental ship, feel free to chime in!