The clock is ticking. The deadline is nearing. The push is on… Here at MoveZen Property Management, Inc, we are working day and night to fill all vacant rentals before August 15th. I bet you never thought of August 15th as a deadline – but for us it is as important as April 15th. But why is August 15th so important when it comes to renting out properties in Wilmington and Raleigh? UPDATE! With year around schools becoming more common, we now view 8/1 as being most important.
Right now we are in the middle of summer vacation – that brief interval when all the kids are out of school. If you had a family and needed to move, when would be the best time to move? Wouldn’t it be during summer vacation? Absolutely! This is especially true if the move is going to put their children in a new school. It is much easier on children to start attending a new school at the start of the year rather than stepping in during the middle of a school term.This means that two plus bedroom vacant rentals, especially houses, are in high demand. The last two weeks in July, and the first two weeks in August are the busiest time of year in the property management business. We are working hard to take advantage of this flurry of activity to fill all our vacant rentals while getting the highest market price.
If a vacant rental cannot be filled before mid August, the owner is in for a hard pull. Because renters want to be settled into their new homes before school starts around September 1st, there is little demand for rental properties after that date. Historical analysis and personal experience show that after mid-August, you will always see the market fall off a cliff. Inventory builds up due to a lack of demand. This drives down rents which lead to more vacancies as many landlords chase the market down.
What Can You Do to Fill Your Vacant Rentals?
The first step landlords should take is to work with a skilled, experienced, and highly motivated property management team. Here at MoveZen Property Management, Inc. we understand how the market works and we are prepared to work harder during June through August to fill all your vacant rentals.It is also important to stay current on the market rents. This is another reason why a good property management team is critical. If the asking rent is too high, then that unit will be the last to go. You will run the risk of not getting it leased out before the season runs out of steam. If rents are too low, then you run the risk of losing valuable income that you deserve. Our team carefully evaluates the market before we enter the rental rush to make sure that all of our vacant rentals are aggressively priced.
How to Prepare to Fill Your Vacant Rentals?
Another important step is to carefully time your lease renewals. Landlords have a hard time controlling when a tenant will move out. But we can control when a lease expires. We want our leases to expire before the rental season peaks. For example, we do not want a lease to expire in October or November. So depending on when a tenant moves in we will either make the lease last less than a year or greater than a year so that the renewal happen in the late spring. This will give us time to make any needed repairs or upgrades and still catch the high season. So, landlords what does this mean for you? If you have any properties that need management, now is the time to get them under contract. If a tenant is talking about having to move, you need to encourage them to move now. If you have a vacant rental, the attention needs to be focused on renting it out before mid-August. If you want to improve your marketing, check out our article entitled “Whatever you do, make sure all your vacant rentals are leased out by the end of August.
