For a lot of property managers throughout the world one of the biggest headaches can be dealing with vacant units. This is a common problem not only in commercial buildings but also in residential strata’s as well.
The ideal situation that most Vancouver property managers would love to be in, is to have a tenant waiting list. With space at a premium in most downtown cores such as Vancouver, Seattle, Toronto and New York, buildings usually have a new tenant instantly. But for those areas that do not have a tenant waiting list many property managers need cost effective ways to advertise vacancies.
One of the most cost effective ways for a Vancouver property manager to advertise a vacancy is through their network and by word of mouth. Now a day’s social media plays a huge role in recruiting tenants for vacancies and the best part is it’s free. However sometimes that may not be enough, and investing in some form of advertising may be inevitable.
Numerous property management companies will offer new tenant signing bonuses, free or discounted rent for a portion of time, or even a tenant improvement budget, which allows the new tenant the opportunity to have work done on the unit. Tenant improvement incentives are more common in the commercial side of real estate, and are a great incentive to prospective users.
Getting a new tenant quickly is always preferred but Vancouver property managers should always screen prospective tenants. As trustworthy as a new tenant may seem taking their word on financial information and references is never a good idea. Good property managers always check income, credit, references and employment. For many property managers in the US and in areas such as Seattle, Phoenix, Los Angeles and New York the AAOA provides an easy way to screen tenants.
As with any business it is valuable for property managers to be knowledgeable about local housing or landlord & tenant laws. They would also want to insure that all contracts are specific to any local, provincial/state or federal laws. With the ever changing commercial and residential real estate market property managers would benefit greatly from continuing education and workshops.
About the author:
Brendan Huff is the Co-Founder of ServiceGems.com and is the resident property management and real estate expert. Bringing his 8 years of experience along with advice from industry experts, Brendan’s blogs are both informative to those who work in the industry as well as to home owners. Brendan Huff is also a Vancouver Luxury real estate expert and is passionate about the local market. If you have any questions or comments feel free to email him at brendan.huff@servicegems.com or visit www.brendanhuff.com.