Marketing Your Rental Property Part (2)
In this, the second part of our series on marketing your rental property, we turn our attention to tenant type.
Marketing 101 – who is your customer… big businesses will spend millions on identifying this. They will carry out expensive surveys and look at not only who their clients are in terms of gender, age, and demographics but, in addition, what the client does, how they feel, when they buy, why they buy and, details about their customer journey and experience. Marketing has become an art form, with talk of client avatars and psychological profiling, to really get under the skin of the customer. When a particular marketing campaign or advert feels as though it is really speaking to you personally, that’s because it is – and it means that the company has done its job well!
If you are a landlord, then your clients are tenants and it makes sense that you would want to know who they are, and what they want and need from a property, so that you can provide it for them and, so that you can phrase your advert accordingly, so that they can clearly see what is on offer and, whether this is a property that will interest them. This sounds really simple, but you would be surprised by how many landlords get this fundamental part of the process wrong.
So, let’s have a look at three very different tenant types, what requirements they may have, what will attract them to a property and what information they will need:
Students
Very often new to the area and this will not be their permanent home, it will be where they choose to live while they study. Many students will move to different properties during their study course, living with different friendship groups from one year to the next. They will vary in age and life experience from first year students, who may not have lived independently before, right through to mature students and post grads, who will be more mature and adept at living autonomously.
In terms of what they need and want:
- Close proximity to university or college
- Good transport links, its not unusual for students not to have their own transport
- Bars, cafes and entertainment nearby – so they can meet up with friends
- Local shops
- Communal space – so that they can study and socialise with their housemates
- White goods – they are unlikely to have their own
- Good wifi – they will be reliant upon this for their studies
- Help, support and patience – as this is often their first foray into independent living
- Clear guidelines, detailed information about the property, good quality management systems – see above
Working Professionals
As the name suggests, these tenants will be working, predominantly, full time. They sometimes live in HMOs (House in Multiple Occupation) but not always. They will often have their own transport and so a parking space is a definite bonus. Their expectations of the quality of accommodation will be high. Often not the first time they have lived independently , so they tend to “know the ropes” and will happily change a lightbulb, re-pressurise a boiler and know what a stop cock is. Here are some of the things that are important to them in their property choice:
- Commuting distance to employer
- Parking space
- Quality accommodation (furnishings, fittings, décor)
- Communal space
- Good wifi (working from home)
- Desks (working from home)
- May expect a cleaner, especially if an HMO
- May be new to area (new job or relocating) so local area information important
- Local amenities, healthcare, hospitality, shops
- Good transport links (may not have own transport)
- En suites and good ratios of bathrooms to number of people
Family/Single lets
The clue is in the name here with this tenant type and, get it right, and they will often stay for a long time, as they will be looking to make your property their home. The types of things that are important to them, are exactly the types of things that will be important to you in your home. Their level of emotional investment in your property may be higher, meaning that they may be prepared to do small jobs around the property and make themselves available for the maintenance man. Here is a list of the things which may be important to them, when choosing a place to live:
- A family house, with good communal areas for family living
- Good sized kitchen in which to cook family meals
- Schools and/or Nurseries nearby
- Catchment area for desirable schools and relevant Ofsted reports
- GPs, Dentists, Healthcare nearby
- Parking space
- Shops and local amenities
- Garden (especially important if there are children)
- Location of parks and green spaces
- Crime statistics
When marketing your properties, have your tenant type in mind and think about the information they will need, in order to make a decision. What will make your property desirable for them? For example, students will not care about local schools and their Ofsted reports and, the same garden which would scream bbqs and children’s games to a family, might mean fussy and unnecessary upkeep for working professionals! Know your tenant type and market your advert accordingly, pointing out all the plus points that they will expect and appreciate. If you do this, then you will attract the right tenants for your property and reap the benefits for a long time to come.
As Landlords and Investors ourselves, we can help and advise on all aspects of your portfolio. If we can help you then give us a call on 0117 440 6789 or email us here together we can make being a landlord simple, passive and stress free!
