Poor Economy homes not renting - Landlord Forum thread 328836

Poor Economy homes not renting by Anonymous on December 18, 2014 @11:25

Houses in The Eastern part of the Carolinas are not renting! The city has over build homes older home are now suffering and not renting. I have too many vacancies cannot keep up with the mortgages? I had contacted BOA for loan modification but continue to get the run around! I have lower my rents and credit standards to get renters. The homes are well kept in decent areas. Please any advise we have over 20 home with 8 vacancies and 2 renting way below market value. Please share.

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Re: Poor Economy homes not renting by Anonymous on December 18, 2014 @13:05	[ Reply ]

Same problem in Inland Southern California. Plenty of applicants but nobody makes enough money. Welcome to the future of the US as more people slip from middle and lower-middle class to working poor.

Re: Poor Economy homes not renting by Lighthope on December 18, 2014 @15:28	[ Reply ]

> Please any advise we have over 20 home with 8 vacancies and > 2 renting way below market value. Sadly, it's not that they are renting below market value. It's that the market will not support the rent you want. This is the problem when you speculate and hold a mortgage on a rental. You are betting that the rental prices will always be above the mortgage. This is a very common practice. Few people can afford to buy a property outright. But it does come with risks, and you've stumbled onto one of them. Your choices are stark: 1) Rent them and absorb the loss until market rates rebound. 2) Sell and get out. 3) Improve your properties so that they will command the rent you ask for. If the homes are "well kept in decent areas," there are people who will pay for nice homes. They are hard to find, but they will come if they find value. At this time, you just have to suck it up and admit that you are not providing the value these people are looking for. I'm not saying you have slums. I'm saying you are in a buyer's market, so you have to provide even more value for the dollar than you would have to if this was a seller's market. Lighthope Pearls of Wisdom - "Remember...you fashioned these memories yourself." - Ghost of Christmas Past (Mickey's Christmas Carol)

Re: Poor Economy homes not renting by MrDan (Georgia) on December 19, 2014 @18:02	[ Reply ]

I believe you can find a solution to your rental problem. Using information from the US census; Compared to apartment dwellers, single-family renters value neighborhood features important to children, such as parks and playgrounds (65% to 71%), good schools (72% to 82%) and safe neighborhoods (97% to 98%). Most single-family tenants are older, aged 35-44 (53%) compared to 14-34 (46%) and 65+ (61%) for apartment dwellers. Single-family renters make more money and are nearly twice as likely to have children as apartment dwellers. Median income for a single-family renter is $75-100,000 (66%) versus $50,000-75000 (51%) for a multi-family tenant. Single-family households are larger; some 65 percent have three or more members compared to 32 percent of apartment households. Some 63 percent of single-family households include children; only 34 percent of apartment renters have children living with them. Older homes often have larger rooms, fenced yards, garages and are located in quiet Old/Historic neighborhoods, near schools and parks. If your homes are like this or near schools, parks or entertainment, advertise these facts. Located near great schools and parks, reach out for families to rent. Close to downtown business and entertainment areas, young couples or empty nesters are a good source. One trick I do is leave business cards in the small coffee shops or eateries located in office buildings. Other places would be to contact Human Resource Departments at near by business's. Even car Dealerships and Book Stores have been a great source. Since you have more than one property, talk to the other tenants about referring future tenants. Offer bonus to rental agents if they bring tenants or to your friends and neighbors.. If you live close to a college, work with their housing department. You've got to advertise where your market is. If there is a local neighborhood paper that everyone uses to find a rental property, advertise there. PTA associations are another source. The point is , you have to go find your tenant that fits what you have to offer. And what you offer has to fit their needs. On the other hand, your rental property should shine in comparison to other properties that prospective tenants are considering. If you don’t know what those other properties look like, you should spend a few Sundays looking at them. If your prospects think they’re getting a great deal, they’ll rent from you. Tenants know what fair rent is so if you are priced too high – the quickest way to fix it is to simply reduce your rate. However, you don’t want it too cheap either. A huge mistake many landlords make is they have a “here’s the place… take it or leave it” mentality and they wonder why they can’t rent their places out! Don’t just show a place or tell someone about it on the phone… SELL IT. Talk about the benefits to living there, the great customer service you, as the landlord, provide, and why your property is the best property on the rental market. Oh, Single family home tenants are 25 percent more likely than apartment tenants to stay in their current homes five years or longer. Offer a 13 or 15 month lease, or perhaps the 13 month free with renewal. Set yourself apart from the others and good tenants will respond. Hope this information helps, I've always been astounded by the odd places good tenants turn up from.

Re: Poor Economy homes not renting