Property investors in San Antonio often have the same issue: they need to take a step beyond management and upkeep concerns to figure out how best they can retain their tenants. While no one likes the thought of being stuck with problem tenants for the long term, it is also incumbent upon property investors to locate ideal tenants and keep them content and locked into multiple-year contracts. Pyramis Property Management has some words of advice as it relates to this topic, so be sure to focus on the following areas.
Encourage Longer Leases
If you’ve had a tenant in one of your San Antonio properties for a while and the time has come for them to renew their lease, you should have some idea of whether they’re reliable with the rent and whether they’re following the rules that you’ve set for them. Assuming you feel that they’re a suitable long-term tenant, see if they’re willing to get locked into a longer lease at a slightly reduced rate. It demonstrates to them that you value them as a tenant, and both of you get something out of the deal.
Be Proactive with Your Renewals
It’s best to reach out to your tenants at least 90 days in advance to see if they’re interested in renewing. They may not respond immediately, but at least it will get the tenant thinking about their plans. They may decide to leave and give you a decent amount of notice, in which case you can get a head start on advertising the space that will soon be available for rent again. You might even be able to line a new tenant up for right after the current one moves out, and that way you’ll likely miss out on less than a month of rent.
Know What Tenants Want
You should be aware of what residents of a particular area of San Antonio are going to want, and you ought to provide as many of those things as you can. If you’re renting apartment space and the tenant is likely to desire a live-in super, then you should have that available for them. If it’s features like central air, hardwood flooring, or stainless-steel appliances, then be sure that’s what you have for them.
If you don’t have what’s expected, then you might still have no problems finding a tenant for the space, but you probably won’t be able to charge as much. A lot of that is going to be dependent on where your property is located and the demographic that is likely to want to live there.
Pyramis Property Management knows that having reliable, well-behaved tenants is always a wonderful thing, but retaining them for years at a time is even better. The longer you have the same tenants, the better your relationship is likely to be with them if there is respect and accommodation on both sides. If you have an understanding with your tenants on critical issues, then they’re likely to stick around, and it will be mutually beneficial for everyone involved.