How You Can Increase The Rents Of Your Rentals
As a Landlord or person who owns rental units, the likely reason to own these is for cash flow and passive income, as well as many other tax benefits. Obviously, you’ll want to make sure your units are as profitable as they can be and one of the most effective ways to boost your profits is to raise your rents. With that said, there’s a happy medium to higher rents because if you can’t find tenants for your rental properties, than you’re not making anything at all and that property is costing you money.
Here are a few things you can do if you want to raise the rents on your properties:
Upgrade The Kitchen
People spend tons of time in the kitchen. It’s where people prepare all of their meals, and it’s typically also a room that people use when entertaining. In many cases, the kitchen is the hub of the household. If your property has a dated kitchen with 25-year-old appliances and old linoleum flooring, upgrading the kitchen will definitely raise its value. While kitchen renovations can be expensive, they tend to be worth paying for when you make the right kinds of upgrades. A nice, clean, newly renovated kitchen will attract tenants that are willing to pay more.
Improve The Bathroom
Are there any issues with the bathrooms in your property? Bathrooms are a place where cleanliness is important – even minor problems can be a big turn off and cause people not to want to rent your place. Make sure the place is super clean and there’s no minor issues.
In terms of upgrades, you don’t necessarily have to change your bathrooms in a dramatic way but maybe a few minor changes. Adding a backsplash behind the tub adds a nice touch that looks expensive but is actually pretty cheap. Other features like a rain showerhead or soft-closing toilet lid sound pretty mundane but are actually pretty convenient.
Add Another Bedroom
Expanding a property isn’t easy, but adding more space will allow you to charge much more in rent. People are willing to pay much more for a three or four bedroom than they would for a one or two bedroom property, and it’s easy to understand why. It’s only natural that people would pay higher rents for more living space. In addition, you’re looking at renting to families when you have more bedrooms and typically, that mean a higher quality tenant.
Places you may be able to add a bedroom are finishing the attic or the basement and converting it into a bedroom. This is especially true for split-level homes where the basement may only be a few steps down, rather than a full flight of stairs. Depending on the layout, these are prime opportunities to add an extra bedroom.
Put In Hardwood Floors
The days of rental property and carpet flooring is coming to an end. You should think about tearing out that old carpeting and adding hardwood floors or at least adding a laminate flooring that looks like hardwood.
Over the last few decades, carpeting has been out’ed that is needs replaced too frequently and is costing owners too much money. Well-maintained hardwood floors can last for decades. It’s easier to clean, easier to maintain, easier to replace small portions of the flooring instead of entire rooms, and it’s doesn’t “hide the mess” that carpeting does. And if you allow your renters to have pets, a sturdy flooring won’t get ripped up or absorb the pet dander as much as carpeting.
If your property doesn’t have solid flooring, then it’s definitely something you should think about adding. Here’s a great conversation about carpeting vs hardwood in rental properties.
Add A Fresh Coat Of Paint
Painting is one of the most important things to do for your rental properties. A fresh coat of paint can make an old and dingy house look new again. It’s a great way to highlight some of the details in a home like the wood trim. You’ll want to stick to neutral colors, such as white, beige, or gray and be consistent across ALL your rental properties. It makes it easier on you and “buying too much paint” doesn’t really happen since you’ll constantly be using it on new real estate investment units you acquire.
Install A Washer And Dryer
Paying to use a laundromat can be a huge expense and it can also be a hassle for your tenants. I remember when I first moved out of my college house into my first apartment, the apartment I chose had in-unit washer and dryer. It was THE REASON I chose that company’s rental property over the others. I was willing and others are willing to pay more per month to have a washer and dryer where they live. The time and monetary convenience is invaluable to them.
If it’s possible to install a washer and dryer combo in your rental unit, you should absolutely do that. You don’t have to spring from premium appliances; even a small stackable unit would be acceptable. Be clear with the renters what can and cannot be put in them (no giant comforters) and make sure you have a good rental contract in place to protect your investment property.
Conclusion
It’s clear that there are quite a few steps you can take if you want to charge more in rent. If you work to make your properties attractive, modernizing your homes to be pleasant to live in, you won’t struggle to find tenants, even if your rents are a lot higher.
If you have a rental property and are looking to sell, we buy houses as-is in Columbus and none of the upgrades mentioned above need to be completed. We’ll complete the renovations so you don’t have to come out of pocket for those expenses. Give us a call or fill out the form on our homepage.