5 Things That Will Make Your Rental More Attractive to Tenants

5 Areas Where You Can Improve the Desirability of Your Rental Property

The first thing any prospective tenant will see when viewing your property is your entry way or front door. Ensuring that the main entry to your rental property is in good condition is one of the easiest ways to improve desirability for your property. Make sure that the front door is in good shape and not covered in scratches or chipping paint, and if it is, put a fresh coat of paint on the door as soon as possible! Additionally, make sure the entryway is clear of debris such as leaf litter and cobwebs. While some debris is inevitable from wind and foot traffic, a fresh cleaning can do wonders for the experience of entering the property for the first time. Lastly, check for any structural damage in the surrounding door frame and exterior structure. Fixing light cosmetic damage to the frame or external structure is an inexpensive way to further elevate the entryway.

Following the same logic of focusing on the entryway, the general curb appeal of a property is critical to getting potential tenants interested in the property so that they view and apply for your property. Curb appeal can make the difference between properties sitting on the market for a week or for 3 months in real estate, and this is especially true in the rental property market where every day a rental property is vacant is money out of your pocket. While curb appeal can be difficult to control in condos and multifamily units, it is a huge benefit for single-family homes and townhomes. A few straightforward ways to improve curb appeal include having well-maintained landscape (even in a desert like Las Vegas), making sure all front-facing blinds are in good shape, keeping a clean driveway at properties that have one (no oil stains, debris, etc.), ensuring property address numbers are visible, and other similar tasks.

Inside the property, the first thing most prospective tenants will notice is the flooring. In today’s market, carpet actually reduces the desirability of your property. Carpet is okay in bedrooms, but throughout the rest of the property, most tenants prefer laminate, faux wood, ceramic tile, and other flooring options. With tile floors, grout is also a major factor. Dirty grout will bring the beauty of the whole property down, so it is important to keep the floor maintained. Prospective tenants also tend to notice the baseboards at a property. Having clean baseboards shows the property is well-maintained and cleaned by professionals during turnover, making prospective tenants more likely to sign a lease with that landlord or property manager. Everyone wants to feel like they are taken care of and treated well, even by their landlords.

Another area that is commonly overlooked during rental turnover is the bathrooms. If tenants are touring a property, enter the bathroom, and see dirty tubs/showers, sinks covered in build-up, old faucets, toilets with loose seats, dirty mirrors, or any other things that are generally only cosmetic issues, they are left with a sour taste in their mouth. Any of the things listed above, except faucets, and usually pretty easy fixes that only require a little bit of elbow grease. And in regards to faucets and other fixtures, they do not need to be brand new or state-of-the-art, they just need to be clean and have all their parts (stoppers, handles, etc.). Some fixes in bathrooms require more effort such as stained counters, chipping sinks/tubs, cracked mirrors, can require some work, but will make the property much more presentable to prospective tenants.

Lastly, the one room in a rental property that will drive the most interest from prospective tenants is the kitchen. In the kitchen, you can combine the advice mentioned above about flooring and the bathroom in terms of presenting a clean and well-maintained kitchen, but the biggest focus is on the big-ticket items: appliances. While getting new appliances is by far the most expensive option on this list, it does wonders for a property. New or upgraded appliances make for a great marketing, while also improving the general appeal of the property. You may not make an immediate return on the investment from increased rent ($25 - $100 based on how nice the appliances are), the increased from having less days on market at turnover will help in the long-term. Outside of appliances, upgrades such as fixtures, backsplash, and countertops will only make your rental property more desirable.