Leasing Homes in a Competitive Market

We have all read articles and research on how to lease your home in a market with more homes than there are renters. What we don’t read much about is how to lease your rental in a market where there are more renters than homes and how to make sure you get the best resident possible. 

With the real estate market going crazy with low inventory and high demand, it has pushed  many potential home buyers into renting longer. We are also seeing many 20–25-year-old recent college grads moving out of the home due to the pandemic and entering the rental market. This is a great situation for rental owners, as we are seeing low vacancy and high rents, but how do we as rental owners ensure we are getting the best residents out there? Below are some simple things you can do to address the situation.

First, establish your screening process. Setting this process up sounds simple but being able to screen every applicant the same way is vital to you being able keep the process streamlined and replicable. Establishing how you get credit checks, eviction checks, and criminal checks in a timely manner  is vital to being able to quickly weed out applicants that don’t match your criteria. The Last thing you want to do is take a week to process an application and miss out on that dream resident.

Second, try and meet your residents prior to renting to them. Setting up that tour allows you to be able to interact with your resident in person, to interview them, and get to know them prior to an application. You are entering into a relationship with these people so  getting to know them live is vital.. This is also a great time to learn their communication style and why they want to move into your rental the first place.

Third, when you get multiple applications for the same unit, you need to determine who gets the rental. When your  applicants check all the right boxes and pass all the screenings, you need to decide who to rent to.  At Atlas, we allow for a two-week window past the availability date. So, if an applicant can move in during that time frame, then that applicant  will get the home. If multiple applicants qualify and can all move in during the same time frame, then  the first to put deposit money down  gets the rental.  This eliminates any threat of discrimination and allows you to get the home filled quickly.

 Screening correctly and getting your rental home filled quickly is always top priority, but  having a good feeling about your residents and working effectively with them holds a close second.