When managing single-family rentals, you’ll experience turnover at some point. Whether you’re acquiring a new rental property or a tenant’s lease has ended, it’s essential to know how to effectively market your single-family rental when listing it.
The single-family rental market is hot, but if you don’t dedicate time to your listings, you could have an empty rental. Creating a listing for your rental property is easy, but it takes a bit more time to list it effectively.
That’s why we’ve put together the five mistakes you want to avoid when listing your single-family rental. Avoiding these five things ensures your rental property is more likely to generate leads and target your ideal tenant. Read on to learn more!
1. Not listing online
While word of mouth, for-rent signage, and referrals are still effective ways to find tenants, you’re missing out if you’re not listing your single-family rental online.
Managing rental properties means your target audience is Gen Z and Millennials, and research shows they prefer to find a home online. So, if you aren’t listing your property online, you’re losing out on potential leads.
Posting on sites like Zillow, Apartment List, Zumper, and PadMapper is an easy way to get eyes on your rental.
2. Ineffective listing description
While listing your single-family rental online is important, it’s only half the battle. If you can’t effectively describe and sell your listing, you’re not likely to benefit from listing it!
Potential tenants are unlikely to set up a showing or even inquire about the property if you have an ineffective listing description. Describing the property is vital, but simply stating it’s a “3-bedroom, 2-bathroom ranch” isn’t doing you any favors.
Think about the home’s unique features and points of interest in the area or community, and use descriptive adjectives that entice your target audience. Also, be sure to include essential information like:
- Cost of rent
- Whether it’s pet friendly
- Availability date
- Your contact information
- Whether utilities are included
- Amount of security deposit
- Any other requirements tenants need to meet
By answering important questions upfront, those who reach out are interested, high-value leads ready to sign a lease.
3. Not doing market research
Even if you list your rental property online and have a fantastic description, you may not find your ideal tenant. Why? If you haven’t thoroughly researched your market, how do you know who you’re marketing to?
If your single-family rental is located in an area with lots of outdoor space and dog parks, but you don’t allow pets—you likely won’t see many leads. Similarly, if the rent of your property exceeds the market’s average income, it will be a tough sell.
Doing basic research on your market and reviewing its demographics can help ensure that your listing targets the right audience.
4. Not using digital marketing
Hate it or love it; digital marketing is here to stay. And although posting your listing online is a crucial part of digital marketing, getting your listing off the market fast requires a plan.
That said, your digital marketing strategy doesn’t need to be intense. You can start small and begin expanding as you become more comfortable. For starters, consider:
- Posting and sharing your listing on your favorite social media platform
- Having a virtual tour available
- Sending emails out to leads
- Posting the listing on your website
- Sharing flyers or brochures online (think direct mailers in digital form!)
Once you master those steps, you can consider taking on new strategies or trying new things. It might not all work, but at least experimenting with digital marketing increases the likelihood that your listing is seen.
5. Not using a professional real estate photographer
Finally, don’t forget visuals! Completing all the above won’t be beneficial if you don’t have quality images to back up your awesome descriptions or amazing area. Although you could follow some best practices for single-family rental photography, nothing beats the eye of a professional real estate photographer.
Not only do they have the equipment needed to help your listing shine, but they can also provide advice on what works and sells well for your market.
How Virtuance can help with your rental property listing
A lot goes into listing your single-family rental, meaning mistakes are likely. But, if you focus on a digital marketing plan, research your market, and stick with a professional real estate photographer, you’ll likely avoid struggling to find your ideal tenant or end up with a property on the market for far too long.
For an easy way to get started with professional real estate photography and marketing, consider using Virtuance. We have professional photographers nationwide, trained and dedicated to making your rental property shine. We also provide a dedicated listing website and marketing tools through our Marketing Suite with every order!
It is possible to make many mistakes when listing a single-family rental property, but there are five common ones to avoid. These include not listing your property online, describing it ineffectively, doing no market research, not utilizing digital marketing, and forgoing a professional real estate photographer.
It’s very important! While there’s nothing wrong with traditional marketing methods, your ideal tenants likely shop online regularly for everything—even homes! Including professional photography in your listing or featuring the images in your digital marketing can make or break your listing’s success.
