1. When and why are you moving?

Unless they provide a good reason, you should be wary of prospective tenants who are hoping to move in straight away. Most rental properties require a month’s notice from the tenant if they want to leave, so a candidate who is looking to move in immediately may have left things too late – a sign that they may be unreliable. And why are they moving? While the reasons will usually be fair and genuine, you should be looking for red flags such as evictions and disagreements with neighbours.

 

2. How long have you lived in your current residence?

There’s no better quality in a prospective tenants than reliability, and none worse than flakiness. Whether the potential tenant spent 10 problem-free years in their last rental, or has lived in six apartments in the last 12 months, you can expect their past performance to be a reliable predictor of the future.

 

3. In what capacity are you employed, and what do you earn?

If the prospective tenants enjoy stable employment in a well-paid position, you can be confident in their ability to pay rent in the long term. A good rule of thumb is if the tenant earns 2.5x the monthly rent, they should be able to afford it. Remember to combine the earnings if the application includes multiple tenants who work.

 

4. Do you agree to a credit or background check?

If they agree, you can get a good idea of the prospective tenants’ level of responsibility, both socially and financially. If they don’t, that’s as good a sign as any that they’ve got something to hide. Remember that you’ll need written consent to run these checks – a verbal agreement is not legally binding.

 

5. Do you have references?

Lying is easy, particularly for those who have a lot of practice. The best way to check the quality of a potential tenant, therefore, is not to get the information straight from the horse’s mouth, but rather to ask an (ideally independent) third party.

Ask for references from former landlords and employers. If the candidate is hesitant to hand them over, it should be a large and loudly flapping red flag. If they do offer some up, take the time to speak to the references directly, and ask probing questions regarding the tenant’s character and reliability.

 

6. Have you ever been evicted from a property?

An answer of yes shouldn’t automatically annul an application – if nothing else you can be confident that the candidate is honest! There may be extenuating circumstances that are worth listening to. It may have been through no fault of the tenant’s, or a long time ago and with no issues since. If the answer is yes, it’s not a great sign, but be sure to explore the answer further.

 

7. Will you have the bond and first month’s rent ready before you move in?

Always take receipt of the security deposit and first month’s rent before the tenant moves in – no ifs, no buts, no asterisks, no exceptions. If they can’t get the funds together in time, they’re not the tenant for you.

 

8. Who will be living in the property?

A single tenant, a couple, a family, a group of friends? As the manager of the property, you have every right to know who will be inside it. Each type of tenant will bring their own set of pros and cons – young families are stable, but toddlers see every surface as a potential canvas. Sharehouse arrangements can be profitable, but individual tenants will constantly come and go.

 

9. Are you a pet owner?

Decide from the outset whether your property is pet-friendly or not. If you institute a ‘no pets’ policy, you can happily strike any potential tenant with a pet off your list. If you choose to accept applicants with pets you’ll have access to a greater pool of candidates, but also expose yourself to greater risk – claws, teeth and bodily functions (of pets and tenants alike) can cause real and lasting damage to both the building and its furnishings.

 

10. Do you have any questions for us?

It’s important to understand that just as you’re trying to find the right tenant for your property, potential tenants are trying to find the right property for themselves. It’s important then to give them the opportunity to ask you questions so that they can identify whether or not the rental is right for them.

1. Provide incredible service to your existing customers.

Growth all starts with retention and retention starts with looking after your customers. Check out our Top 10 retention Tips.

2. Be an expert. 

Owners of investment properties will only trust you if they believe you know their situation. If your owner is a property investor then understand what numbers motivate him. Is it yield or capital gain? How leveraged is the owner?

 

3. Network with real estate agents.

Sales agents are a large source of new leads. Meeting regularly with successful agents is important.

 

4. Use Linkedin.

An online social media tool for networking with professionals and in particular real estate agents.

 

5. Ask for referrals.

Happy owners will have friends who are owners.

 

6. Ask friends and family.

Ask them to refer potential customers.

 

7. Offer prospects a deal they cannot refuse.

It’s never advisable but reducing your management fee, or other fees can secure you a deal.

 

8. Adwords.

Google search is a place that a number of owners will look when seeking a property manager.

 

9. Be the first to respond.

Owners will often be comparing companies. Be the first to respond and you will have more chance of winning.

 

10. Partner with local businesses

Running a shared promotion e.g. an Investor evening with a property developer or a coffee group with at a cafe can be beneficial to all involved.

 

11. Join BNI

A proven effective strategy for growing your rent roll (but do have to get up early)

 

12. Promote your listings exceptionally.

Owners will be looking to see what properties are renting for in their neighbourhood. If your listing (online or in-store) stand out and look professional then that will attract new owners to you.

 

13. Email marketing.

Buy a list of owners in your region and send them emails promoting your service.

 

14. Facebook ads

No better way to target your specific audience.

 

15. Hunt competitor clients.

Find out who they are and find out what would get them to change to you.

 

16. Join the school PTA.

Schools are a fantastic source of leads and networking opportunities.

 

17. Stage your properties for inspections.

Beautiful inspection pics show your owner that they care and attracts good tenants.

 

18. Partner with tax agents and accountants.

Become their preferred provider of property management services.

19. Attend industry events.

Be a guest speaker at a property investor event.

 

20. Try bricks and mortar advertising tactics.

You can run an ad in the local newspaper, send out flyers, billboards etc

 

21. Have a beautiful office.

A retail office space with frontage or space for signage will attract customers.

 

22. Sign a written vehicle.

One of the best value for money things you can do is sign write your car. Everywhere you go on an average day you will be promoting your business.

Obtain individual testimonials from as many clients as you can. These are great to show potential clients to help you win trust. Below is a template you can use when emailing clients for testimonials.

{Date}
Dear [Client]
Thank you so much for your valued business, I do hope that our working relationship can continue for quite some time.

As you know my position in the company is all about new potential clients that are introduced to {company name}, As I value you as a client, I would appreciate your feedback that I can pass onto them. I would like to use your comments as a testimonial to help convince future clients that they can benefit from working with {Company name}.

To help you get started, I’ve included a few questions, but please feel free to write whatever you would like.

1. Before you started working with {Company Name}, what concerns might have prevented you from engaging our services?
2. After you started working with {Company Name}, what has pleased you the most about our services, or stood out the most?
3. Would you recommend our service, and if so, why?

Thank you for your time, and thanks again for your business. Please let me know if there’s anything further I can do for you.

Looking forward to hearing back from you soon.
Kind regards,
{Name}
{Position}
{Company Name}

On your website

Add these testimonials on your website homepage. Then use them as content on your social media.

Referrals

If you have prospects that have similar needs to a previous client (who has written a testimonial) and then refer them to that client testimonial and better still allow them to speak with them directly.

Facebook reviews

On Facebook people can give you a star rating. For clients that write a positive testimonial and are on Facebook then ask them to rate you on Facebook.

Google reviews

When you get a google review for your office, Google recognises this and places a flag on the Google map when people are doing a search. For example, if you do a search for Real Estate Perth in Australia, the below comes up. Companies with a review or even just a Google+ account will come up first. The company with the most reviews will be placed with a higher ranking.

 

Rent roll growth is difficult and to build a successful property management company takes time. One strategy discussed in a previous blog is have a information evening. After the evening is over and you’ve collected the contact details of all attendees, it is important to follow up with attendees. There are a number of ways to collect contact details but one we suggest is to run a contest giving away a prize. If you have sponsors then you can include giveaways and prizes from them. The next day (or within the next week) you should follow up by calling them. the following is a suggested procedure:

1) Check what their position is related to your company and organise to visit them at their place of work.
2) If they are interested then send through a copy of any video or photos that were taken on the night.
3) Once you have selected the winner then announce it in your newsletter, and social media and contact the winners directly.
4) Don’t forget to connect with them via social media and add them to your newsletters and CRM.

It is important to schedule some future activity, for example, a personal email, call, or message. It often takes more than 5 or 6 contacts with an individual prospect before they make a decision to purchase.

One of the rent roll growth strategies that you can establish is making what we call “love calls.” These calls are made outside the realm of managing the property. Calls that an owner may not be expecting so we can place a happy vibe to them. If the door opens for you to ask them if they know anyone else that has an investment, have your offer ready for them, you may have a refer a friend and receive offer going.

– Christmas call

– Easter call

– Anniversary call

– Improvements call

– Lease is coming up call

– Promotional night call (invitations)