Mint Condition = Mint Tenants

Whether you are letting your property for the first time or running a successful property portfolio, you are always faced with the same dilemma: should you spend money on your property before each letting?  It's certainly a conversation we have with our Landlords all of the time, here's what we tell them.

Nice presentation breeds nice behaviour

It's a very simple notion and once the penny drops with our Landlords they view their rental property entirely differently.

If you offer to let a property with chipped woodwork, peeling emulsion and worn carpets you will either fail to attract a tenant or you will attract the kind of tenant that will treat the property as they find it: badly.  Conversely if you offer an exceptional refurbished property to let you will attract a tenant who will be far more likely to look after it.  It therefore makes complete sense to provide your property in the best possible condition so that you can achieve the best possible tenants.

Well maintained properties need less money spent on them

Pro-active maintenance always has and always will cost Landlords less than reactive maintenance.  Fact.  Think of it at its extreme: if you ignore a leaking roof it will eventually cave in. The cost of replacing the roof and the contents below it is going to far outweigh what you would have spent on replacing a few loose tiles.  Don't mistake thriftiness with stinginess: it is you that will pay eventually, it's simply up to you how much and when.

Void periods cost money

Properties in a state of disrepair are harder to let.  The harder a property is to let, the longer the void periods, the longer the void period the more the property costs the Landlord.

Happy Tenants stay longer

The best a long term Landlord can ever ask for is a long term Tenant.  Tenants that renew every year will save you tenant find fees, void periods and, ultimately as you don't have a re-let on your hands every year, refurbishment costs!

A good letting agent will minimise your costs

A good letting agent will have fantastic contacts and can source you contractors that don't charge the earth.  Some (like us) even have in-house contractors so they don't levy commissions on contractor charges, you pay exactly what you would had you sourced the works for yourself.

Avoid Colour

Colour palettes are a very personal thing and as such you are never going to be able to please everyone so don't try!  Stick to creams, beiges, light greys and whites when decorating and avoid wallpaper wherever possible as it is easy to damage and costly to replace.

Anticipate Children

If you are renting a property that is close to good schools and child friendly then do anticipate their arrival by laying carpets that won't show every mark but do clean easily.  There are many great, hard wearing products out there, take some good advice on them so that you aren't changing flooring regularly (ask us, we have some great contractors we can put you in touch with).

Keep your Appliances Serviced

Guaranteeing and servicing of appliances will result in less nasty surprise large purchases being required.

As you can see, keeping your property in a good state of repair will mean that your career as a Landlord will be more lucrative and less stressful in the long run.  So if you have a property to rent and want the best possible outcome for it, get it ship shape before advertising it.  If you would like any help or advice on doing a good job of that without spending a fortune please drop us an email on greetings@sachascott.com or call 01737 887 674.

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