Petty’s Reveals Five Ways to Make Your Property More Attractive to Tenants
With the increased difficulty faced by first time buyers looking to get on the property market, the rental market is booming. However presenting your property in the right way can mean securing the extra wedge of rent, making your asset more profitable.
Simon Westwell, Lettings Manager at Petty’s and Home Sale Network members gives this advice:
Whether you are looking to rent or sell your property, curb appeal really counts, a bit of weeding can mean rewards reaped in terms of renting your property quickly! Ensure both front and back gardens are neat, tidy and rubbish-free and keep lawns well-cut during the growing season.
It goes without saying that you should ensure your property is clean and tidy before showing it to potential tenants. However lingering smells such as pets or cigarettes can be a real turnoff. Open the windows to let in fresh air and purchase some fresh flowers. It may also be worth cleaning the carpets and soft furnishing with a professional cleaner to really freshen them up.
The same idea goes for the bathroom and kitchen. There’s no need to install designer fixtures and fittings, so long as they’re clean, tidy, bright and free from mould. If your kitchen is looking a little old fashioned and tatty, changing the doors and fixing on new cupboard handles will give it a lift.
Letting your property unfurnished can be a win-win situation for both landlord and tenant. The shorter the inventory at the beginning of the tenancy, the easier it is to assess excessive wear and tear at the end. By allowing the tenant to furnish the property themselves, they can create a home which reflects their own personal taste and can choose to maintain the items to the standard they prefer.
If you are supplying any electrical appliances with the property, make sure that these are in full working order to ensure tenants are kept safe and to avoid having to replace them later, causing inconvenience to both you and the tenant. By law you’ll need to check any gas appliances every 12 months anyway, but you should also get your electrical appliances checked out by a qualified electrician as faulty electrical goods pose a risk of both shock and fire.
These simple tips are small steps to making your property more desirable, which will lead to a faster rental and greater income earned. By presenting a property that is well looked after will ultimately attract a tenant who wants to keep it that way too.