As a property manager, one of your most important goals should be drawing in the best rental tenants. While there are tons of potential tenants out there, it’s important that you find the best of the best to ensure your property is treated with care and respect. Many people rent in order to save money so that they can buy a home. Reliable, responsible tenants can help you save money by reducing your costs and staying in your property for a longer period of time.

Property management isn’t easy, but with a few tips, you can attract trustworthy tenants. Here’s how you can bring in better tenants for your rental.

Check Their Backgrounds

It’s not always easy to see who is the best tenant by the rental applications alone. While they may be required to provide information like job history and previous locations, basic information can’t always help you choose the ideal tenants. A landlord credit check can help you look into prospective tenants’ pasts and determine whether or not they’re an eligible candidate. A credit check can tell you about the financial responsibility of your potential tenants while a background check can help you verify information given on the application like criminal records and employment.

You’ll also want to make sure they haven’t been evicted before, and if they have, you’ll want to learn why. Perhaps they were evicted because they played their music on their sound system too loudly even after multiple noise violations, something that can be a nuisance to your other tenants. Consider what evictions you’ll still consider and what types you’ll reject the candidate for, like failing to pay rent several times.

Gather Reviews from Tenants

Ask your current tenants to leave you a review on Google. If you’ve been doing your best to ensure the happiness of your tenants by attending to their needs in a timely manner, most of your tenants will provide you with a quality review that can help you attract new tenants. With good reviews, you may be able to draw in better applicants in the first place, improving your pool of prospective renters.

Regular Maintenance

Make sure that you have a system for maintenance in place that addresses your current tenants’ concerns in a timely manner. Remember, word of mouth advertising is key to helping you bring in better renters. A good tenant who is happy with the way you do business will tell their dates, friends, and family members about their great rental. That word will spread, helping you passively find great tenants.

Similarly, your tenants will be having guests. By ensuring that everything in the rental is in proper working order and looks great, you’re essentially having your tenants show tours of their home. Renters are always interested in keeping an eye out for bigger and better living opportunities, so it’s important to put your unit’s best face forward.

Advertise

Advertising your rental property is the best way to find many new tenants. Make sure your apartment complex or rental property is available on websites and apps that renters use to find rental properties. Make sure that anywhere you place an ad, you share details about how to apply and what requirements prospective tenants will need to get approved. Your listing must be compelling enough to make people want to schedule a tour or call to learn more about the rentals you offer.

Be Flexible

The best tenants have regular income, which means they’re likely at work from 9-5 or later. This means that you’ll have to be flexible when showing the apartment. Many people will only be able to come tour a property after work or on weekends, which means you must be available for them if you’re looking for those who have regular jobs.

You should also consider other sources of income when it comes to tenants. Many people work from home or for themselves. This shouldn’t make you not want to consider them as tenants because their income is less easily verified. Instead, provide them with other ways to verify their income so that they feel welcome to apply.

With these tips in mind you can improve your strategy for finding and vetting renters, hopefully for a better experience for everyone involved.