When you are renting a property, keep in mind the old expression “penny wise and pound foolish.” If there are plenty of comparable properties available, your property needs to be appealing enough to attract renters.
Listed below are some steps:
Step 1
Move out all the furniture and personal belongings that you don’t absolutely need. Throw away, give away or sell anything you don’t want, and if necessary, rent a storage bin/area for any of the things you want to keep. Leaving them will make the house appear smaller, and you won’t be able to do a good job cleaning it while your things are still there.
Step 2
Clean the house and empty it of trash. This includes wiping down walls, washing floors, cleaning appliances–including the oven, shampooing carpets, washing the windows/window sills and cleaning the bathrooms. If there are bugs, get rid of them. If a toilet seat is cracked or stained, it should be replaced. Lime removal products can take out stains in the toilet bowl or bathtub.
Step 3
Make repairs. Leaving behind needed repairs sends a message to the tenants: you don’t care if the house is damaged. In that case, they won’t either. So tighten screws, patch holes, remove stains, replace cracked and broken glass, sweep out the garage, make sure there are no roof leaks, fix any water leaks and paint if necessary. All appliances should be in good working condition.
Step 4
Tidy up the yard. The yard is the first impression that renters see. You don’t need to landscape, but sweep the sidewalk and make sure the lawn is green, mowed, trimmed around the edges and free of toys, trash and debris. A pot of flowers by the door is nice, but not necessary.
Step 5
Photograph everything and make a walk-though checklist for your reference. At SPACE we will come in and do up an Entry Condition Report of your property as well as taking photos to put on the web. Once your tenants come in they will sign off on this Entry Condition Report which helps when your tenants move out.
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