Tumwater rental properties keep investment property owners busy most of the year; however, you could have a looser schedule during the rental market’s slow season. While it may be inviting to put everything on autopilot for a short while, it may not be the best use of your time. The slow season affords a chance to address a couple of important but often overlooked tasks. By managing your slow season effectively, you can be better prepared for the busy stages and optimize the potential of your investment property.
Develop a Marketing Plan
The slow season is suitable for developing a great marketing strategy if you don’t currently have one. With more effective marketing, you can surely attract great tenants and keep your rental property occupied year-round. At a minimum, your marketing strategy must consist of things like a great newspaper or classified ad for each property you own, knowing all the finest places to post your ad online, and how to handle social media to attract applicants. With your marketing prepared and ready to go, it’s one less thing you’ll need to worry about when things get busy.
Ask for Online Reviews
Besides effective marketing, it is vital to develop a positive online presence. In today’s digital world, prospective renters will research to see what past tenants have said about their interaction with you and your rental home. You can assure that what they read is positive by asking your tenants to leave you reviews on the internet. Through platforms like Google, Yelp, and social media, you can request tenants to leave feedback. Make it easy for them by sending them a link, and don’t let the fear of a bad review demoralize you. People who rely on reviews understand that the periodic negative review exists and don’t allow it to impact their final decision.
Re-Work Your Budget
If it has been some time since you updated your operating budget, the slow season is the best time to do so. The rental market, just like your rental properties and tenants, is continually in motion, and your budget should be updated regularly to account for recent changes. Initially, you need to go through your expense items and update any out-of-date numbers. After that, recompute things like your vacancy rate and capital improvements, revising the numbers when needed. Having an accurate budget can assist you with making more confident decisions about your rental properties throughout the year.
Get Your Paperwork In Shape
The slow season is also a perfect time to get your paperwork in order – primarily if you’ve been shelving a couple of tasks, such as gathering all the invoices for replacements or upgrades to the property, tax records, reconciling accounts, or auditing your books. It can be a challenge to keep up with smaller tasks like monthly bookkeeping and bank reconciliations when your timetable is full. And then there are the important annual tasks, such as tax document preparation and auditing. Maximizing the slow season to manage things like these can streamline your schedule and retain your focus where it ought to be.
Plan Your Next Investment
Lastly, perhaps the ideal time to evaluate your investment strategy and make preparations to expand to your portfolio of rental homes is when things are a bit slow. Regardless of whether your aim is to hold and rent a single property for future use or to build a large, lucrative portfolio, using the slow season to make arrangements is a great use of your time. Then when things heat up, you will be able to take those next steps with assurance.
If you notice that your busy schedule is causing you to overlook these and other tasks, it may be best to seek professional property managers to help. At Real Property Management Imagine, we are doing most of the day-to-day work of owning rental properties for you, freeing up your time for more necessary activities. To learn more about the range of services we offer, contact us online.
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