It’s typical for rental vacancies to be harder to fill in fall and winter. During these times of the year, many renters are already settled into their leases or not wanting to look for a new place due to preoccupation with the holidays.

However, there are always those in search of a new place. Your task is to use marketing strategies that will find these prospective tenants and keep your vacancies to a minimum.

Here are a few ways you can market for attracting your ideal tenants, even during a rental lull:

1. List your rental online everywhere you can

The vast majority of today’s renters go to the internet for listings. It is absolutely essential to have an online presence for your property listing if you want to limit your vacancies to a minimum.

Plenty of online listing sites are out there waiting for you, from Apartments.com to Zillow. You can even post rental listings on Craigslist. There is no excuse not to have an effective online presence with how easy it is to showcase your property online.

2. Build an effective listing

Ensure your online listing is up-to-date wherever it’s posted. This is especially easy with services like Zillow Rental Manager, which save all your data from your past property listings.

Now, make sure all the most attractive features of your property are highlighted in your listing. You want to describe what local attractions or businesses are nearby, as well as amenities that will draw in prospective tenants looking to be close to center schools or employment hubs. Don’t leave anything out that might be a selling point for an interested off-season renter.

3. Take high-quality photos

Your online listings aren’t complete without a suite of high-quality photos that show your property in the best possible light, pun intended.

Lighting is essential in taking effective photographs. Open all your blinds and turn on all the lights: well-lit rooms will make any home feel larger and more inviting.

Then, if possible, rent furniture for staging. A nicely furnished property will help prospective tenants imagine themselves in your property, encouraging them to give you a call and pay a visit, even in the dead of winter.

4. Expand your market

You can broaden your market of interested renters by adjusting your options and allowances. Two ways you can do this are by allowing pets in the property and creating short-term lease options.

Allowing pets is essential in expanding your marketing base. Reportedly, almost half of renters have pets—this is a demographic you can’t afford to lock out. While it’s true that pets can cost you in damages, allowing them also gives you the opportunity to charge a pet deposit and pet rent, potentially expanding your rental income while negating any occurred damages.

Similarly, short-term lease options allow interested renters the freedom and mobility they might need to make a rental commitment. Prospective renters could be students or military personnel that need more temporary housing situations. Catering to different needs gives you the opportunities you need to keep vacancies and lost rent to a minimum.

5. Include time-sensitive offers

To further incentivize prospective renters, consider offering discounts that they won’t want to pass up.

An offer for a discount on the first month’s rent or security deposit if the interested renter signs a lease by a certain date will give them the financial fluidity they might need to commit to your property during times of high financial pressure like the holidays. You obviously don’t want to go too low on these discounts that they might cut into needed profits, but offering an incentive of $100 off or so could be enough to end your vacancy turn a loss into a gain.

Minimize vacancies through effective preparation

Being prepared with strategies like these will allow you to minimize vacancies and the loss of rental income that comes with them. Quality online listings are a must. Then expanding your market of interested renters and creating incentives will all but guarantee a signed lease, even during a slow season.

For more information on minimizing vacancies and maximizing rental income, contact 208.properties today.