Keeping Your Tenants During Property Slow Down

Whilst we start to see the effects of the credit crunch, keeping your property let is crucial. With falling sales figures, homesellers are opting to rent their property for the short term, which has made it harder for letting agents to find tenants. Areas that were hotspots are now becoming over whelmed with rental property, which is causing rents to decline. Landlords who fail to price their property according to the market are seeing longer void periods.

Here are a few suggestions to keep your tenants as changing tenants can be very costly in a market where rents are only just covering basic costs such as the mortgage and building insurance.

Firstly speak with your tenants and ask if there are any maintenance issues that need attention. If your property is well maintained throughout the tenancy your tenants will be more inclined to renew when the time comes.

Replace a large item of the property once a year confirms your tenants thoughts that the property will be well maintained over the period of their tenancy, for example once your carpets look like they have had better days start replacing them over a period of months. This way tenants feel as if the property is being well maintained and it allows you to spread the cost. Other items such as washing machines or fridges can be slightly more expensive but new ones make a real difference to your tenant. Replacing them at your convenience may also save you costly repair bills if they break down unexpectedly.

Reassure your tenants that rents will not increase dramatically if at all. If you continually push rent rises at your tenants, you will find they will eventually move out into a property more competitivly priced.

Forgive a late rent payment once, as everyone has misfortunes. Do make your tenant know that further late rent payments are not acceptable and that you also have to make a payment and are not given any grace from your mortgage provider.

Sometimes tenants wish to redecorate to make the property feel more like home. Offer to pay for the materials as way of compensation for them completing the work themselves. Make sure you clearly documentate what permission you have given to the tenant, for example what rooms the tenants are allowed to decorate. Be sure to also state costs involved should the job not be finished or if other fixtures or fitting get damaged along the way.

Some properties are high maintenance. If yours falls into this category try to arrange for a local handyman to visit the property once in a while to fix problems before they become a hassle. For example heavily planted gardens quickly grow and need to be maintained. If your garden is high maintenance your tenants may not have the time to keep it upogether, which will eventually cost you more money when bringing the property back into its original condition. Once your tenants feel the property has too much upkeep they will soon look to find a property with lower maintenance gardens etc.

Some of these ideas may sound as if it will cost you all of your monthly profits to put in place. However you don't need to provide every aspect to your tenants, as by simply adopting one or two of these suggestions your tenants will be more inclined to continue renting your property, ultimately saving you lost income on re letting.