Investing in my rental

When looking for new tenants, it can be difficult to separate the good from the bad. You can make your search a lot easier for yourself by optimising your property for high-quality tenants. What does this mean? It means investing.
If you invest in improving your rental property then it is likely going to attract tenants who also care about maintaining its quality. This means

• making sure your rental complies with legal requirements and also
• going the extra mile to renovate and upgrade parts of the property that could increase its quality and therefore, the rent.

By regularly taking the time and money to invest in and improve your rental property, you’re going to attract tenants that can afford to spend a little more on rent to live in a high-quality property. More often than not, these people are going to be the tenants that care about their property, and are going to look after it.

How can I invest in my property?

• Make sure it meets legal standards. With the Healthy Homes Guarantee Act coming into action this year, it is important that you regularly check that your property is up to standard. Insulation, heating, ventilation, etc. All of these aspects contribute to your homes legal status.
• Make sure it is warm. Insulation sorted, but still hearing complaints about the cold? A warm home is a high-quality home. If you’ve sorted insulation but your property remains on the cold-side then it might be wise to invest in a heat pump, double-glazed windows, or another method of maintaining efficient heat in your home. A cold home is not just off-putting, but the icy temperatures could lead to issues with dampness and eventually mold which will heavily decrease your rental’s value.
• Be a great landlord. When issues arise at your rental, be efficient with your response, and always do more than the bare minimum. Often landlords who dismiss the small problems end up with the biggest ones. Do not forget to act on issues when they arise and ensure you fix or replace appliances – or other things – that could be causing them. You should also be willing to upgrade areas of the property even if they’re currently doing their jobs. If the carpet covers the floor but is a little worn in places, or the washing machine still works but sometimes stops mid-spin – consider an upgrade. If you’re willing to do more than the bare minimum for your rental, and your tenants, then you are more likely to keep great tenants and attract high-quality ones. Although upgrades can be costly, keep in mind that they increase the value of your property and can also justify an increase in rent.

There are plenty of little things that you can do to increase the quality and therefore the value of your rental. For more info on this, click here.

What will it mean for me in the long-term?

There’s no way to avoid it, investing in your property is going to cost you money in the short-term. But, in the long-term, by investing in your property, you’re setting yourself up for higher returns. A well-insulated, modern and well-maintained rental property is going to earn you a lot more rent than a run-down, cold and damp rental.
Not only will you be justified in charging a higher rent price, but you’ll also probably have tenants that want to stick around for longer, meaning you spend less time with an empty property. The less time that you have an empty property, the more time your property is earning rent.

Spending huge amounts of money on your property for things that aren’t necessities obviously isn’t essential, but it helps to increase the quality of your property and will make it more likely that your property is more attractive to high-quality tenants. And with high-quality tenants, you can be pretty sure that they’re going to stick around and look after your property.  
Featured photo by Breather on Unsplash