5 Rental Home Features That Attract Good Tenants

When looking into rental properties, there are many factors that lead to whether it will be a profitable venture or not. Unlike a private residence, there are more important features to a property than whether you like the look of it or not. Price, neighborhood, condition, and functionality are all at play here, along with many other factors.

A rental property greatly differs from a private residence. For starters, a rental property needs to hold up to greater wear and tear than a regular home. Rental properties are somebody’s temporary home and will be treated as such, so expensive features are not necessary here.

While these homes are generally only temporary to most tenants, there are several features that can help draw in better quality, high caliber tenants. Homes with these five features not only have a higher appeal to clients, but tend to keep tenants longer and see shorter periods of vacancy than homes lacking these qualities.

Safety

Crime rate is one thing you should always verify before purchasing a rental property. Not only can the crime rate in the area affect your rental fees and housing appreciation, but it can affect your insurance premiums, maintenance fees, and even the type of tenants you are able to find.

Rental homes in areas of high crime rate often have a revolving door of tenants, especially if vandalism and theft is a popular method of crime. In addition, houses in these areas see longer periods of vacancy as the rental demand is not high in these locales.

Proximity to Employment

Rental properties need to have an appeal to a larger quantity of people than a private residence. While you may not mind commuting, the majority of tenants looking for a rental home may not enjoy the idea. To avoid being stuck with a low pool of tenant options, consider purchasing a rental property in an area that has a sustainable and healthy employment market.

When purchasing a rental property, try to stay away from remote areas that are distanced far away from hospitals, car dealerships, schools, shops, etcetera. Having a property close to the local amenities will give your property a higher rental demand, as people generally want to live close to where they work and play.

School Quality

Unless you are renting an apartment or a one-bedroom home, chances are you will be drawing a majority of your tenants from a pool of families. When it comes to the most common rental type—a 3-bedroom single family home—the most common type of tenant is a family unit, generally with small children. As this is likely to be the majority of your potential tenants, you want to keep that in mind and look for properties in popular, high quality school zones.

For most parents, the make or break decision on where to move depends on a school rating. If the home is zoned for a school with low test scores and poor overall ratings, they are more likely to pass on it for a property in a better school zone. With the increase in ability to access this information, thanks to the addition of school ratings onto sites like Zillow or Homes.com, many parents won’t even take the time to look at the home if it appears to be in a less than desirable school zone.

Another reason to look at school ratings is because they are a great indicator of the condition of the neighborhood. Neighborhoods with higher employment rates, lower crime rates, and greater appreciation values are likely to have better school ratings as the funding to those schools will most likely be better than less attractive neighborhoods.

Parking

Believe it or not, parking is an invaluable feature for those wanting to find a quality rental home, particularly for those in urban areas. If a property only has street parking, fighting with neighbors and their guests for spots can be a hassle. Avoid properties with small, cramped, or steep driveways. Remember that most tenants will have at least two cars on average and take into consideration how the parking could affect those with multiple cars. Steep driveways can be difficult for those with small children, elderly residents, or those with low-sitting cars (most sports or luxury cars).

Storage

Even renters want a property with a decent amount of storage! When looking at available properties, keep storage options in mind. Does it have a garage? Attic space? How about a basement? Are the closets substantially sized or are they small with little shelf room?

In addition to being appealing for tenants, storage can actually be beneficial when it comes to maintenance of the home. As rental properties are often treated as temporary homes by the tenants, a property that provides little to no storage is even less likely to be maintained as a property that has ample storage options for tenants.

[bctt tweet=”Finding a rental property is only half the battle—keeping good quality tenants with little vacancy periods is the real struggle” username=”StrategyProps”]

While finding properties that contain these features may be a little difficult, it is important to think of these as part of your investment. Finding a rental property is only half the battle—keeping good quality tenants with little vacancy periods is the real struggle. Ensuring you have the most favorable of features in your rental property at the beginning will go a long way when it comes to having a successful investment venture.