Once you’ve taken the time to make sure your property is ready to show and you’ve written a great rental ad the next step is to screen the prospective tenants that call you.
Many people are content to exchange emails with potential tenants to set up viewing times and I have seen others that encourage text messages. You can do that, but you are missing out on a great opportunity to screen your tenants and you will absolutely waste time going to show your property for the wrong people or people that do not show up.
We’ve learned that if someone won’t pick up the phone to speak with us to set up a time to view the property, they really aren’t that committed or interested in the rental property. These are the folks that will email you to set up a time to see the place and then never actually show up or call to tell you they aren’t coming. And when they show up, a good percentage of the time, we would not rent to them because they want a shorter lease, too many people are going to live in the property, they don’t have jobs or there is some other challenge that we could have covered quickly on the phone and saved us all the trip.
My recommendation – get your potential tenants on the phone before you get up off your comfy couch and show your property. It’s up to you … but it’s been a much more effective way of handling tenant showings for us. But, what do you ask the tenants when you get them on the phone? I’m glad you asked … I shot a video to help you with just that very question:
Tenant Screening Questions to Ask Before You Waste Time Showing Your Property to the Wrong People:
When you are asking questions you’re listening for things that might be a yellow or red light. Not sure what I mean, check out this video Dave shot for you on our simple screening tenant screening process:
When you do get set up a time to show the property, here’s how to get ready:
Finally, if you aren’t sure how the whole rental process works, here’s 5 Steps to Rent Out Your Property and Handling Tenants Who Break Their Lease (prevention is the best medicine). Tenants are your customers. You will not be a successful real estate investor without them. However, you need to find the right ones for you and your property to minimize the stress and strain you can feel. It takes work but a little effort finding the right people will go a long way! Good luck.
If you want more help on picking great tenants for your property, grab a copy of More than Cashflow. There’s an entire chapter dedicated to finding great tenants – plus the whole book will help you understand why you get bad tenants and how to prevent them.
