There is more than one way to improve the curb appeal of a rental property. But making sure your curb appeal is maintained is another matter. This is especially true if your property is being rented by a long-term tenant. To help keep the curb appeal strong, it’s best to get your tenant involved. They could pitch in for the good of the Jefferson rental property. After all, it would benefit them as well. Keeping your property in good condition relies heavily on the tenants residing in the property. The best thing for you is to have tenants that want to live in a home that is in tip-top condition. This way, both of you are interested in maintaining the home’s condition. So, with the help of good communication and implementing some simple strategies, you’ll be well on your way to increasing and maintaining your Jefferson property’s curb appeal — one tenant at a time.
Start with Your Lease
Clear communication begins with the lease documents. It’s in these documents that you write down your expectations about property maintenance. All rental property owners would be happy to have a tenant that would care for their property. However, even though you think that’s the kind of tenant you have, make sure to have those expectations explained in writing, and make sure it’s written in a clear and easily understandable manner. Many landlords would stipulate that they want any messes the tenant makes to be cleaned up right away. But what if you could have stopped those messes before they made them? Let’s say you have a tenant that parks their vehicle in the driveway and does vehicle maintenance there. If they changed the oil there, they would be leaving some oil stains behind. That would really look bad in your driveway. However, if you can discourage them from doing messy jobs like oil changes on the driveway, then you could prevent those oil stains from forming in the first place. This would make sure that the front exterior of your property will remain clean and pleasing to look at. So, by making clear which tenant activities are okay and which are prohibited, you can start off your tenant-landlord relationship on the right foot.
Encourage Cooperation
You can encourage your tenant’s cooperation in maintaining the property in other ways. Get to know your tenant more. You may see that they have a skill that could help you. For example, they could be tapped to help with your property’s landscaping. If you discover that your tenant has the natural skill for landscaping and landscape maintenance, you can enlist them to help spruce up the front yard. They could also use their green thumb on the other areas of the property. They may appreciate the chance to have a say in the appearance of the rental house. And since they have more investment in it, they’ll be happy to put in some extra effort to keep it looking great.
Offer Incentives
Another way to encourage your tenant to help you increase your property’s appeal is to propose different forms of incentives. If your tenant is handy, then you could give them an offer. They could do the basic maintenance for the property in exchange for a slightly lower rental rate. Or, consider the alternative: for a bit higher rent, offer to have a professional do the work instead. Depending on who your tenant is, they may prefer to pay more to avoid the work. They may think that not having to do the tasks of weeding flower beds or mowing the lawn each week are worth the higher amount.
No matter how you choose to go about it, always be on the lookout for exterior maintenance problems that are starting to develop. Then encourage and help your tenant before they become an issue. Have positive and frequent communication with your tenant. This can help alert you if maintenance tasks were not done.
Finally, remember that the best way to encourage someone is to first model that behavior. Show your tenant that you care about the property and they will be encouraged to take care of it too. Scheduling regular maintenance and updates and answer repair requests right away does a lot to motivate your tenant to help keep your property’s appeal strong.
Would you want to know more about developing your property’s curb appeal? Give Real Property Management Stellar a call at 706-864-5456! Our Jefferson property management professionals can offer suggestions and assistance with everything from property maintenance to tenant relations. Contact us today!
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