However, with a vacant property, you are making no money. In fact, you are losing money.
Unfortunately, vacancies are a part of the rental property business. At one point or another, your rental home will be empty and you will need to replace your old tenants with fresh new ones.
In order to remain competitive in the surrounding market (after all, your property is not likely to be the only vacant property around), you must make your vacancy known to potential tenants. One great way that both property owners and property management companies in Montgomery County do this is through advertisements.
There are several different ways to advertise your vacant property. For instance, you can:
- Use a sign indicating a vacancy
- Email friends and family
- Send postcards to neighbors
- Put up flyers near local stores and high-traffic locations
- Host a social at your rental
These are just some of the creative ways you can market your vacant rental home in the hopes of finding a high-quality tenant quickly.
But sometimes sticking to the tried-and-true practices will bring the most success in filling your vacant rental. The reliable strategy we are talking about is creating an ad.
Today we are going to take a look at some of the best tips for generating interest in your vacant rental property using different property listing advertisements.
Vacancy Ad Tips for Your Montgomery County Rental Property
Most property owners or their property managers have a solid idea of how to write successful vacancy ads. However, you may need a refresher so let’s review the basics:
- Use catchy headlines and unique descriptions. The goal here is to make your listing stand out from all of the others competing for tenants. Make sure you focus on the selling points of the rental, include powerful language, and cater to what most tenants are looking for in a quality rental property.
- Include pictures. Even if you only have the ones snapped off your smartphone (which is not recommended, but is better than nothing), make sure you have images for interested tenants. No one will want to lease a home without first seeing some pictures.
- Exercise accuracy. It is tempting to want to spice up your advertisement with catchy phrases such as “newly upgraded” or “luxury,” regardless of how far that may be from the truth. However, misrepresenting your rental home will not only anger an interested tenant upon finding out you lied, but word will get out in the community and harm your reputation as a property owner.
These are just some of the basic things to consider when writing a vacancy ad for your rental home. Of course, there are plenty of other things to be mindful of such as using proper grammar, avoiding housing discrimination, and including details about the home, location, monthly rate, and required deposits.
Let’s take these basic ideas further and focus on vacancy ad marketing tips. If you follow some, or better yet all, of these excellent tips, you will be well on your way to edging out the rest of the Montgomery County rental home competition.
1. Utilize Craigslist
Some property owners feel the need to avoid the sometimes troublesome Craigslist when it comes to advertising their rental property. However, recent research has shown that there are currently over 1.5 million United States rental listings available on Craigslist.
Sure, some spam-filled listings are not on Craigslist for the right reasons and many people do not want to tangle with those. However, the truth is that many people are still using Craigslist as their go-to resource when seeking a rental property.
The good news for you is if you employ Maryland’s leading property management company, Bay Management Group, anytime your Montgomery County rental becomes vacant, Craigslist will be used as one of several advertisement platforms.
2. Try the Online Classifieds Section
Check your local city’s online newspaper for a classified section and find out how you can advertise your vacant property on their website. By paying what is typically a small fee to list your ad for a specific amount of time, you will find that the traffic your vacancy ad receives will be well worth the one-time fee.
3. Create a Dedicated Website
Nowadays, thanks to content management systems such as WordPress, building a website dedicated to your Montgomery County properties is easier than ever. Consider showcasing your properties via a one-page website and offering options such as property walkthroughs that can be scheduled right from your website.
You can also include:
- Stunning image galleries of your properties
- Detailed information regarding the property that can be updated as needed
- A virtual tour video of the property
- A simple contact form so interested tenants can easily get in touch with you
Just remember to include target keywords such as “rental home,” “Montgomery County,” and “house for rent” to draw traffic to your website from popular search engines like Google.
4. Make a Video
Make sure you include the target keywords mentioned above in all images’ tags to draw traffic to your video. In addition, you can offer links to your official Craigslist ad or website so that interested tenants can gather more information about the property and easily get in touch with you or your Montgomery County property management company to inquire about the vacancy.
5. Employ a Property Management Company
It’s no secret that being a property owner can be an overwhelming and time-consuming job.
However, there are ways to alleviate some of the duties required of property owners leasing their investment properties. By enlisting a suitable property management company to manage your Montgomery County properties, most property-related tasks such as vacancy advertisements are assigned to the property manager.
If you have a Montgomery County rental property that is need of new tenants, and employing a property manager to handle the vacancy ad sounds like a good idea to you, contact Bay Management Group today.
As a leader in property management, Bay Management Group effectively markets all vacant properties using various means. We target popular search engines, craft high-quality online classified ads, and even conduct direct mail campaigns to get the word out that your property is vacant and available. More so, we will place your property on platforms like the MLS, Craigslist, HotPads, and other websites to boost your property’s exposure.
Lastly, Bay Management Group takes care of everything property-related, not just vacancy ads. With knowledgeable staff, a 24/7 maintenance service, efficient rent collection procedures, and regular property inspections, you can rest assured your Montgomery County investment property will be leased quickly and cared for over the course of the lease term.