Happy tenants have long-term tenancies. They stay longer in your property and are only too happy to meet their financial obligations and take care of their responsibilities.
Conversely, unhappy, dissatisfied tenants can end up breaking your lease contract, filing complaints against you or even sabotaging your property. The thing is, unhappy tenants are not necessarily bad tenants, but they could resort to unpleasant things when they feel that their satisfaction or rights are being disregarded.
So, if you want happy tenants, it’s important to not only be clear about property management rules and regulations but also to do your part as the landlord.
In the Eastern Suburbs and the Inner West, for example, we know that many householders are also pet owners so they’ll love a pet-friendly home. They tend to have higher incomes and find extras like fresh paint, new flooring, included appliances like a dishwasher or washing machine appealing when they view homes for rent.
How to retain good tenants
It’s important to keep your tenants happy not only to have security in your lease but also to avoid loss of income during lengthy vacancy periods. Otherwise, you'll have to budget for marketing and advertising and to wait until you find your ideal tenants.
To avoid such scenarios, it’s better to work on what you already have: good tenants. It doesn’t take a lot to keep them happy and ensure they stay for the long term. To help you with this, below are some rental property management tips you can implement with the help of your trusted property manager.
1. Maintain regular, open communication with tenants
Strive to build a positive relationship with your tenants by ensuring your property manager reaches out to them once in a while, not just when there are complaints. It’s easy to have a one-minute chat when you see your tenant out somewhere on your property, too.
You can even ask your property manager to send your tenants monthly check-in emails on your behalf.
During the pandemic, we saw some landlords drop their rent to retain good tenants. Tenants immediately felt more loyalty towards the property owner and stayed in the homes or units instead of moving to cheaper areas.
2. Treat all complaints as urgent
This doesn’t mean that the moment a complaint is reported, you’ll be at your tenant’s door. What’s important here is to acknowledge the communication and give an assurance that the matter will be looked into ASAP.
So, whether it’s a maintenance or repair issue, or a complaint about someone leaving their trash in a common area, at least respond to their call or email and then follow through.
3. Offer amenities that tenants want in an inner-Sydney residence
Significant improvements such as offering high-speed internet or upgrading the air-conditioning can make a big difference in how your tenants perceive you as a landlord. By providing such conveniences, you’re giving them more incentives to stay longer and be happy tenants, too.
Even minor factors like using laminate instead of marble flooring or installing hard-wearing floors and using semi-gloss or satin paint that’s easier to clean show the thought behind such decisions. These indicate that you care about making their lives easier as they live on your property.
4. Be a good landlord
When you’re a good landlord, everything else follows.
You’ll know how to reward good tenants by making necessary upgrades to their unit without being told to and by letting them know way ahead of time (e.g. 90 days before the lease is over) that you’re interested in renewing their lease. You can also encourage good tenants to stay by not increasing the rent or by keeping the increase lower than expected.
As a good landlord, you’ll be treating all your tenants fairly and keep their safety and welfare a priority. You’ll also be mindful of your legal obligations as a landlord and strike a balance between fulfilling your rental yield objectives and charging your tenants fair and just rents.
Happy tenants = happy landlord
Tenants aren’t a complicated lot. All you need to do is to put yourself in their shoes and imagine what factors make a great rental ‒ and a great landlord as well.
After all, when tenants are happy, you’ll be happy, too. Your investment property will keep generating income for as long as everyone is content.
Need help managing your property in the Eastern Suburbs or Inner West?
Please contact us. We can help keep your tenants happy and your property profitable for years to come.
