Of course finding a new tenant to fill your vacant rental property can be an exhausting process, cleaning the furnishings, making hap hazard repairs and digging out the advert you swore to update at the end of the last tenancy, are all hallmarks of a rental being rushed onto the market.
With online rental platforms like Rightmove and Zoopla receiving millions of visitors each and every month, either your local brick high street letting agent needs to get a much bigger window, or you can employ the services of an online letting agent to help you advertise your property for rent and find you a tenant quickly.
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Using a Property Site to Advertise Your Rental Property
Choosing the correct online portal to list your vacant property is paramount. Just as you should know how to tailor your listing toward the type of tenants you desire to rent to, listing a long term tenancy on airbnb wont yield you any results. Similarly to rental advertisements placed in shop windows being largely redundant, it’s a matter of knowing where your ideal tenants are looking for properties.
With this being said the matter does come into a grey area when trying to find new tenants using platforms such as Facebook and Gumtree. Yes, whilst these do allow you to independently list your property, maintaining control over each part of its exposure at a fraction of the cost of a high-street letting agent, they are by no means “specialist” platforms. By this we mean that we understand that as a property owner casting a wider net helps to bypass void periods and maintains the properties financial dependability, but as these places are not dedicated online renting hotspots the quality of potential tenants and safeguarding measures leaves a lot to be desired.
Whilst there are hundreds of sites that landlords are able to list their rental property on, the online space is predominantly angled towards featuring these vacant lets on Rightmove and Zoopla. As the amount of renters turning away from the traditional high street agents to advertise their rental property has increased over the last decade, the exposure granted by these portals has become invaluable. However, they are inaccessible to private landlords, meaning property owners can’t advertise their vacant lets directly on these spaces, instead online letting agents can be contacted to do this on your behalf.
But simply having a presence on these portals is not enough to make the fundamentals of listing a property redundant. Arguably the most important component in any property advertisement, the demand for professional, high quality photography has surged as online competition grew. Whilst some landlords are understandably hesitant to pursue this route, trying to highlight the character of your property on a smart phone simply isn’t enough; with the short term cash savings being far outweighed by the new wave of potential tenants a pristine showcase of your rental can provide.
With this being said, I am sure we have all fallen subject to property listings with misleading photographs, leading to a disappointing in person viewing. However, PropertyLoop has found that 95% of renters are more likely to inquire about a listing with a 3D tour. To this extent we have recognised the increasing dismissal of In-Person viewings, with our photorealistic tours meticulously recreating your property and allowing potential tenants to fully immerse themselves in the characteristics that make your rental unique.
What to Expect When Advertising Your Rental Property
With Rightmove and Zoopla receiving in excess of 150 million visitors to their sites each month, it’s fair to say that a property with enticing imagery and supporting media, detailed description and competitive rental charges for the area would receive an impressive amount of interest from online renters. Whilst it is true that high street letting agents do use these same channels to find tenants, online letting agents like PropertyLoop have a dedicated practice and model for this online space, with their expertise being well placed to utilise these portals and find landlords their ideal tenant.
Advertising your rental with PropertyLoop will not only mean that your advert is hosted on Rightmove and Zoopla, alongside our own dedicated portal, but landlords will also receive a weekly call for a personal insight into the reception their property has received, giving them a clearer picture on how renters are engaging with the let.
Of course when the offers do start flooding in, all you have to do is be ready.
How Many Prospective Tenants Should You Expect to Contact You
Of course, the interest a landlords receives in their property can be due to a number of key factors that would inform the lifestyle of the aspiring tenants, ie: location, close amenities, rental price ect. But the popularity of these platforms alongside the professional hand of an online letting agent can help broadcast your rental property across the market, but there are things property owners can do to significantly widen the appeal of their rental.
With the recent generation of renters in the UK aged under 35 arguably being the most climate conscious demographic in recent history, maintaining a property that has a high energy efficiency rating will be a huge sell for future tenants. The benefits of exceeding the minimum energy efficiency standards for a rental property don’t just end at finding a tenant, with the higher energy performance ratings dramatically reducing energy bills. These saving could either act as a bolster for the existing properties income, or can be used to reduce the rent demanded for the property, making the property even more compelling when compared to surrounding opportunities.
Allowing pets into your rental property can significantly widen the appeal of your let. Many concerns are raised by renters as to if a landlord can say no to pets, but with only 7% of private landlords currently advertising pet friendly properties, the opportunity for landlords fine with a furry friend is undeniable. However, with the introduction of the new model tenancy agreement, announced in January 2021, landlords are no longer able to take a hostile positioned blanket ban on pets. Whilst this is a step in the right direction for renting pet owners, objections can still be made, meaning the demand for pet friendly lets will still be monumental.
It is a similarly divisive subject of whether or not to advertise your rental property with a “No DSS” notice. Whilst ultimately landlords that do not wish to let out their property to a tenant receiving financial support are thinking to the future, being financially cautious and not wishing to dig a deeper hole for the tenant through mounting rental arrears; again a large number of potential tenants are being excluded from your search. Whilst it is of course up to the discretion of the landlord as to if they accept tenants that claim benefits, a UK housing survey over 2018-19 found that almost two in every five households had an occupant that claimed benefits; and with the pandemic causing redundancy to sore accepting DSS tenants could be extremely opportune.
Tenant Referencing
Essentially tenant referencing is a way in which potential tenants are vetted by a landlord or letting agent as to assess if they would be a good fit for the rental. The screening process is essential, typically evaluating a tenant’s credit history, employment status, their right to rent status and a reference from their last landlord alongside an affordability check.
Typically, if a tenant fails any of the aforementioned checks they may be prevented from progressing with the tenancy agreement. This could be due to a poor credit history, a sour relationship with a previous landlord or false information being given.
Unlike most high street letting agents and their online counterparts, Property loop are not content with a single reference from a tenants most recent landlord. Of course, this does give an indication of their character as a renter, but certainly does provide a comprehensive picture of who could be moving into your rental property. When your property is advertised with PropertyLoop you can enjoy unrestricted freedom in referencing your tenants as we do not charge additional costs for each reference. Landlords are also provided with a review of potential tenants unrivalled in the market, showing a full history of a person’s renting background and a reference of each previous landlord they have rented with, affording you the ease of no surprises late into your tenancy period.
Advertise Your Rental Property With PropertyLoop
Advertising your rental with PropertyLoop provides landlords and property owners with comprehensive support and expertise throughout the entirety of the rental process. Our intent is to not simply stop at finding a tenant for your rental; instead PropertyLoop is connecting rental owners and tenants, curating a trusted community where transparency and simplicity are upheld. We have recognised the shortfalls of the traditional high street letting agency and the wider industries reluctance to offer a more progressive, fair and clear approach to renting for all parties. Because of this when advertising your rental through PropertyLoop, we make sure that the property owners are paid first! There are no upfront costs, hidden fees or charges on essential services.
Using the PropertyLoop dashboard, landlords have access to a secure channel of direct communication with their tenants. Whilst also finding offers made for their properties, messages, important deadlines and documents, alongside performance evaluations for their adverts all in one immediately accessible place, making managing even the broadest of portfolios simple and efficient.
We recognise the importance of advertising your rental property online and know what it takes to make your listing stand out. When a property is advertised with PropertyLoop we provide the latest in industry leading property media that shows your rental in a hyper realistic, dimensionally accurate way, giving renters an unprecedented viewing experience. Our photorealistic 3D tours fully recreate your property in a digital environment, allowing potential tenants to fully experience and interact with the rental in a time and place most convenient for them. Alongside this our cinematic 4K HD Video tours showcase each property in magnificent detail, giving tenants a stunning guide through each property and being professionally curated by experienced directors. Fully verified and unedited images of each property are also updated every 90 days, alongside 2D and 3D floor plans to give tenants the richest perspective of your rental.
The PropertyLoop Guarantee
PropertyLoop puts connecting renters and landlords first, offering a support network for when property owners and their tenants need it most. We endeavour to exceed the shortcomings of traditional letting agents, providing genuine protection to landlords. To this end not only is signing up and listing a rental property completely free, but we ensure that landlords are paid first! Only taking a 5% charge once your tenant has moved in.
But for those months where no rental payment arrives, landlords can rest assured that they will still receive payment through our rental protection. This removes the unpredictability of hostile financial climates, ensuring that landlords will receive a rental payment every single month, even if the tenant doesn’t pay. If these rental arrears continue to accumulate we will also pursue tenants to recover any outstanding balance due.
We know that whilst it isn’t a regular occurrence for all property owners, problem tenants can arise and for those instances the PropertyLoop guarantee will cover the cost of any legal expenses up to £100,000. We will also oversee the full eviction process for squatters or tenants in breach of their tenancy agreement, again managing the legal proceedings, leaving you to your properties and other tenants. For those particularly rough tenancies, PropertyLoop will also be there to obtain payment for damage exceeding £1000, with the associated legal costs also being covered.
Why continue paying thousands each year in commission to let your property? With 97% of landlords recommending our services, and with over 50,000 tenants joining our rental community in the last year alone PropertyLoop is welcoming a new era of renting.
The PropertyLoop platform establishes the trust, transparency and personal service that has been lost from the renting sector. We are anything but another faceless corporation looking to profit from your investment, but a community founded on expertise and ambition.
We offer landlords complete clarity on available specialists through a landlord controlled rating and review system, giving users complete confidence of your PropertyPro’s proven results in finding owner’s ideal tenants faster.
With PropertyLoop landlords will have everything they need to let out their rental from start to finish, with no hidden fees, financial barriers or catches; only a revolutionary new way to let.
