Every rental property owner in Philadelphia wants to know what it takes to be a successful landlord. Keeping your property turnover rates low, boosting lease renewals, and striving to keep your tenants satisfied, are the keys to succeeding in the rental property business.
However, that’s the point: this is a business, and should be treated as such.
As the property owner of a highly-coveted Philadelphia rental property, there are many things you can do to keep your tenants happy. Good landlords nurture strong landlord-tenant relationships, maintain a certain level of professionalism, and seek to earn the respect of their tenants over the course of a lease term.
Keep reading to learn how to get and keep happy tenants.
Today we will share the 6 must-have traits your Philadelphia tenants are asking for when it comes to the landlord of the property they are leasing.
6 Must-Have Traits Tenants Look for in Philadelphia Landlords
Being a landlord in Philadelphia is not as easy as it looks. Experienced landlords know that there is much more to this work than cashing in on the success of your investment property.
In order to avoid being the type of landlord your tenants dislike, check out this helpful list of traits tenants are looking for when they want to lease from a high quality property owner.
1. Professionalism
As mentioned above, tenants appreciate it when their landlord acts as a business professional. Here are some of the things that may indicate to an interested tenant that you are running a professional rental property business:
- Inquiries are taken seriously, and you show you care by responding immediately
- Bookkeeping and proper documentation of all activities are a priority
- Timeliness is important, and shows your tenants that their time is just as important as yours
- You dress in a way that appears clean, neat, and businesslike
- Respect is always given in any situation, no matter who is right or wrong
If you employ a Philadelphia property management company to deal with your tenants, it is expected that they too act in a professional manner at all times.
2. Reliability
Reliability goes a long way with tenants, especially if you self-manage your rentals. Tenants want to know they can count on you for everything they need.
Making sure you answer every call, or at least respond promptly to any messages, is a great step in the right direction when it comes to establishing yourself as a reliable property owner.
No matter what you promise your tenants, make sure to always follow through so that you can earn, and keep, their trust.
3. Transparency
You should never hide anything from your tenants. If there is something wrong with your property at the time a tenant is about to move-in, make them aware.
This is especially important if the issue threatens the health or safety of those that will be residing in your property. For example, if there is a pest problem, or mold is found, your tenants have a legal right to know.
Another thing to keep in mind is that for any property located in Philadelphia that is housing a child under the age of 6, property owners are required to disclose that their property is lead free and safe.
In fact, Philadelphia law states that:
- You must certify that the property is lead free or lead safe
- You must provide your tenant with a copy of the lead safe or lead free certificate
- You must also provide the Dept. of Public Health with a copy of the certificate
In all, it is best to be upfront with your tenants about anything that may affect them, whether adversely or not.
Don’t take any chances and find yourself facing a lawsuit. Instead, be as transparent as possible.
4. Organization
Few things will get you a bad review faster than being overtly disorganized in front of a tenant.
If you wish to impress your tenants, whether they are currently residing in your property, or are just inquiring about leasing from you, make sure you have everything related to the leasing of your property in order before meeting with them.
Here are some key things to have readily available at all times:
- Lease applications
- Background check authorizations
- Receipts
- Move-in and move-out checklists
- Emergency contact information
- The actual lease agreement and added provisions
- Any documented communication between you and your tenant
- Rent collection records
As you can see, whether a potential tenant wants to begin the leasing process, or a long-term tenant wants to know that all of their rent payments have been recorded properly, organization is the key to avoiding a dispute.
Luckily, with a high-quality property manager working for you, all of these things, and more, will be handy at all times, no matter the situation.
5. Flexibility
There will come a time when a high-quality tenant wants you to budge on something.
Of course, we are not suggesting you flex on the rent collection due dates, the number of people that can live in your property without a proper background check, or the use of your property for anything besides residing in it.
Instead, we are recommending you consider leaving some wiggle room for things such as pet policies, decorating allowances, the use of a co-signer to lease from you, or the prospect of allowing roommates to reside in your rental.
Though you may seem firm at first on any one of these things, after realizing a high-quality tenant that is likely to stay in your property long-term wants a little extra bonus thrown their way, you may be more apt to give in.
Keeping that long-term tenant happy is a good thing. So is attracting more high-quality tenants just like them to your other properties, thanks to your flexibility in lease terms.
6. Appropriate Levels of Privacy
Any experienced, and successful, property owner knows that keeping a watchful eye on their rental property throughout a lease term is important.
For instance, conducting routine property inspections during the lease term is a great way to make sure your tenant is fulfilling the obligation to care for your property, as was set forth in the lease agreement.
That said, no one wants to feel like their landlord is constantly checking in on them, and making sure nothing inappropriate or downright illegal is happening.
In fact, if you feel the need to do that, you should reconsider your tenant screening process, and find better suited tenants for your property.
Try to maintain an appropriate distance when it comes to managing your rental property. Tenants enjoy feeling as if they are at home, not as if they are constantly being observed from the outside.
At Bay Management Group, we know that self-managing a rental property in Philadelphia is a large task. And, while you may have the traits tenants look for in a landlord, know that we have property managers that have them too, plus some.
With a dedication to customer service unlike any other property management company around, we can fulfill all of your tenant’s needs and manage your rental property to your liking. From rent collection to routine inspections, vacancy advertisements to 24-hour on-call maintenance requests, we guarantee that not only will your tenants be happy with any of our property managers, you will too.