more appealing; not only will this increase your odds of getting it rented, but it will also help you find good, responsible tenants. Part of your preparation should involve ensuring the property shows well and is comfortable. For example, strange odors, inappropriate indoor temperature, and lack of decent and appealing lighting can all turn tenants off without them even realizing it. For example, if it’s winter and you don’t have the heat on, or if it’s hot outside and the air conditioner isn’t running, people looking at your home might feel uncomfortable and think, “I don’t want to live here.”
STEP 2: PUT YOUR PROPERTY ON THE MARKET
When you put your property on the market, you first need to determine the amount for monthly rent and the security deposit. It’s important to set a fair market price for your area, so you’ll need to do the appropriate research to get this right. It’s more than just covering your mortgage payment (and a percentage higher so you can make a profit)—you need a fair market price. This means you need to research rental property prices for similar-style homes with similar features in your area. Find out what other homeowners/landlords are charging for rent and what others have been able to charge. You want to see any closed transactions that have been rented and have gone through, and the amounts those properties were rented for. Next, you want to look at how strong (or weak) the rental market is. Find out if homes are renting very quickly with multiple applications and plenty of phone calls, or if they’re renting slowly, taking several months, with few applications and phone calls. If you have a hot, fast-moving renting market, you can potentially charge more money for rent. If you have a steady market where homes are steadily renting (a balanced market), you can charge competitive prices, or maybe a bit less. But if you have a slow
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