When you own or acquire a rental property in Indianapolis, marketing the property correctly will help you get the most out of your investment. Be prepared to market the home wisely and aggressively.
First, you need to have a well maintained investment. Too often, owners will acquire a property and simply want to put a tenant in there with the home in its current condition. Sometimes, the condition of the home is great, but other times work needs to be done. We call that type of work an upgrade.
To know whether your property needs to be upgraded and what to upgrade, you need to know what the competition is doing. So it’s important to check and see what the other rentals look like in the market. Attend open houses, schedule showings, pretend to be a tenant and go to the apartment communities. Most times, landlords ignore this.
You might not think of apartments as being your competition, but apartments often set the standard for single family homes. Know what those apartments offer because it will influence what you can charge for rent.
Next, decide on the amount of security deposit to set for your property. That can range anywhere from a few hundred dollars, like the apartments charge, or several times the monthly rent. We recommend you require a security deposit that is equal to one month’s rent.
Before you market your property, you’ll also need to settle on a pet policy. Determine whether you will allow pets and whether you will be okay with more than one pet. You’ll also want to consider breed restrictions with dogs.
Plan on where you will list the property for rent. There are over 75 sites, including Craigslist. The choice is yours, and we suggest that you determine which ones to use by going to sites yourself. Take a look at how the properties are presented and think about which sites are a good match for your rental home. We also recommend you avoid Craigslist. There are too many scams and it can be risky for landlords.
Finally, you need to conduct tenant screening. Make sure your process is compliant with fair housing laws. Do a full background check on potential tenants, including credit, criminal, eviction and sex offender checks.
If you have any questions about marketing your rental property, contact us at ES Property Management in Indianapolis.