TIPS TO MAXIMIZE RENTAL INCOME
1. Visualization.
Great ads have a lot of visualization. They make the renter envision what it would be like to stay in your vacation home. Which description sounds more appealing to the potential renter – “Imagine enjoying a relaxing dinner while enjoying gorgeous sunsets from our private deck on the bay” compared to “Great views of the bay”? Be sure to really stress what makes your vacation home unique. Let the reader know what you love about your property. Also, be sure to include all of your home’s amenities and features in your ad. If you have a 42 inch plasma TV, be sure it’s in your property description and not just listed as TV. Does your property have a pool, elevator, handicapped accessibility, easy beach access, etc? Be sure it is in your ad or you could be missing out on rentals. Also, just as important as the description is to include your rates and update your availability calendar.
2. Great Photos.
Make sure you have very appealing photos, especially your main photo. This is very important. There is a lot of competition and great pictures are a must to remain competitive. If you have a Deluxe membership, please be aware that your ad can have up to 30 photos. Remember the renter doesn't actually see your home until they check in so the more photos you provide them the more comfortable they will feel renting from you. Please do not have any dark photos on the ad as the renter will simply not look at your ad.
Are you thinking of painting your home? People love bright colors so you should take that into consideration. If you are not painting, then little accents with bright colors work well too.
Remember, I offer photograph services for only $75 and that includes driving to your property, taking several wide angle photos of the interior, exterior, beach shots, bay views etc. and uploading them onto your ad for you…. Feel free to contact me if would like me to update your photos.
3. Attention Grabbing Listing Title.
Try to give your listing title a catchy phrase to grab the viewer’s attention. If you are offering a discount, be sure to include it in your title. Here are a few examples “Hurry, book now and save $200”, “Enjoy Beachfront Luxury at It’s Finest”, “Affordable Beach Block Home with Pool”.
4. Add Some New Features To Your Home.
The renter is looking for a vacation where all of their “creature comforts” are provided. A few things to consider adding to your home would be:
- Wireless Internet - people cannot live without the internet anymore!
- Digital Cable or Satellite
- Library of books, movies and board games
- Video Game System with games for Playstation 2, Gamecube, Xbox, etc. (you can get the older models and games for a reasonable price)
- Boogie boards, beach chairs, umbrella and a cooler with wheels
- Beach Caddy that carries everything to the beach beach in one easy trip (I bought ours at Bed, Bath & Beyond for $40)
5. Have an “Open House”.
There are many renters that still drive down on weekends in the off-season looking for their vacation home. You may want to consider having an open house to let the potential renters see your place. Buy an Open House sign for your local hardware store and perhaps tie some balloons and streamers to the outside of your home. An added benefit of doing this is you will get to meet your renters beforehand. Be sure to have some lease copies available.
Starting now, we will have a new page on the website that will list the properties that are having an open house. To get listed, simply contact me with your town, listing id number, and the dates of your open house. There will be no other information posted on this page. Soon after, we will be sending out emails to all of the renters that inquired on properties to notify them of this page.
6. Rent Partial Weeks During the Peak Season.
There are a substantial number of renters that are just looking for a mini vacation. Their jobs or budgets may only allow them a short vacation. If you are willing to rent partial weeks/ weekends during late June to the end of August, we have a Partial Week Rental page that is included when you purchase the Special’s Package for ONLY $50 in addition to your Main Membership and this will give your property a TREMENDOUS amount of additional exposure.
7. Give Special Offers to Prior Tenants.
It is much easier to rent to a prior tenant than to get a new one. Contact your prior tenants and see if they may be interested in staying in your place again this year. It may be beneficial for you to offer a discount to try and lure them back.
8. Purchase a Special's Package.
Need a competitive edge? Supplement your ad by adding it to up to one or all of our 8 (16 including both sites) wildly famous Special's pages. You may have a vacant week coming up in the next couple of weeks or just want to post a special to give your property more exposure. You may also want to rent your property monthly in the WINTER months or seasonal in the SUMMER months. We NOW offer a Specials Package for $50 per year in addition to your main membership. This package will give your property potentially 8 (16 including both sites) times more exposure being listed on all or some of the below pages of our website. Click here to login to your account and purchase.
- Owner’s Specials
- Last Minute Specials – great for booking up those remaining summer weeks FAST!
- Summer Seasonal Rental Page
- Winter Monthly Rental Page
- Under the Age of 25 – Prom/Group Rentals
- Partial Week Rental
- Open Houses
- Property for Sale
9. Upgrade to a Deluxe Membership.
If you purchased a Standard membership and need more exposure then you should strongly consider upgrading to a Deluxe membership. A Deluxe membership gets an average of 7 times more exposure than the standard membership and you can then post up to 30 photos of your house.
Sometimes a few small changes can make a big difference in the amount of rentals you will receive! Good luck and remember we are always here to help you.
On a final note, this is the time to start getting your property looking fresh and in tip top shape. If you do not have the time or patience to do it yourself, call our friend Erik Hageman. He is a dependable, creative, very skilled and a reasonably priced PROFESSIONAL!
He does it all - Carpentry, Painting, Flooring, Decks, etc...
Call ERIK NOW!!! at 609-601-9036 or or e-mail him.
Share your secret! Do you know someone who needs help securing more rental income than ever before? Send them a copy of this email and if they sign up using your name as a referral, you will receive a discount of your next renewal.
"We Bring Owners and Renters Together!"
Visualization.
Great ads have a lot of visualization. They make the renter envision what it would be like to stay in your vacation home. Which description sounds more appealing to the potential renter – “Imagine enjoying a relaxing dinner while enjoying gorgeous sunsets from our private deck on the bay” compared to “Great views of the bay”? Be sure to really stress what makes your vacation home unique. Let the reader know what you love about your property. Also, be sure to include all of your home’s amenities and features in your ad. If you have a 42 inch plasma TV, be sure it’s in your property description and not just listed as TV. Does your property have a pool, elevator, handicapped accessibility, easy beach access, etc? Be sure it is in your ad or you could be missing out on rentals. Also, just as important as the description is to include your rates and update your availability calendar.
2. Great Photos.
Make sure you have very appealing photos, especially your main photo. This is very important. There is a lot of competition and great pictures are a must to remain competitive. If you have a Deluxe membership, please be aware that your ad can have up to 30 photos. Remember the renter doesn't actually see your home until they check in so the more photos you provide them the more comfortable they will feel renting from you. Please do not have any dark photos on the ad as the renter will simply not look at your ad.
Are you thinking of painting your home? People love bright colors so you should take that into consideration. If you are not painting, then little accents with bright colors work well too.
Remember, I offer photograph services for only $75 and that includes driving to your property, taking several wide angle photos of the interior, exterior, beach shots, bay views etc. and uploading them onto your ad for you…. Feel free to contact me if would like me to update your photos.
3. Attention Grabbing Listing Title.
Try to give your listing title a catchy phrase to grab the viewer’s attention. If you are offering a discount, be sure to include it in your title. Here are a few examples “Hurry, book now and save $200”, “Enjoy Beachfront Luxury at It’s Finest”, “Affordable Beach Block Home with Pool”.
4. Add Some New Features To Your Home.
The renter is looking for a vacation where all of their “creature comforts” are provided. A few things to consider adding to your home would be:
- Wireless Internet - people cannot live without the internet anymore!
- Digital Cable or Satellite
- Library of books, movies and board games
- Video Game System with games for Playstation 2, Gamecube, Xbox, etc. (you can get the older models and games for a reasonable price)
- Boogie boards, beach chairs, umbrella and a cooler with wheels
- Beach Caddy that carries everything to the beach beach in one easy trip (I bought ours at Bed, Bath & Beyond for $40)
5. Have an “Open House”.
There are many renters that still drive down on weekends in the off-season looking for their vacation home. You may want to consider having an open house to let the potential renters see your place. Buy an Open House sign for your local hardware store and perhaps tie some balloons and streamers to the outside of your home. An added benefit of doing this is you will get to meet your renters beforehand. Be sure to have some lease copies available.
Starting now, we will have a new page on the website that will list the properties that are having an open house. To get listed, simply contact me with your town, listing id number, and the dates of your open house. There will be no other information posted on this page. Soon after, we will be sending out emails to all of the renters that inquired on properties to notify them of this page.
6. Rent Partial Weeks During the Peak Season.
There are a substantial number of renters that are just looking for a mini vacation. Their jobs or budgets may only allow them a short vacation. If you are willing to rent partial weeks/ weekends during late June to the end of August, we have a Partial Week Rental page that is included when you purchase the Special’s Package for ONLY $50 in addition to your Main Membership and this will give your property a TREMENDOUS amount of additional exposure.
7. Give Special Offers to Prior Tenants.
It is much easier to rent to a prior tenant than to get a new one. Contact your prior tenants and see if they may be interested in staying in your place again this year. It may be beneficial for you to offer a discount to try and lure them back.
8. Purchase a Special's Package.
Need a competitive edge? Supplement your ad by adding it to up to one or all of our 8 (16 including both sites) wildly famous Special's pages. You may have a vacant week coming up in the next couple of weeks or just want to post a special to give your property more exposure. You may also want to rent your property monthly in the WINTER months or seasonal in the SUMMER months. We NOW offer a Specials Package for $50 per year in addition to your main membership. This package will give your property potentially 8 (16 including both sites) times more exposure being listed on all or some of the below pages of our website. Click here to login to your account and purchase.
- Owner’s Specials
- Last Minute Specials – great for booking up those remaining summer weeks FAST!
- Summer Seasonal Rental Page
- Winter Monthly Rental Page
- Under the Age of 25 – Prom/Group Rentals
- Partial Week Rental
- Open Houses
- Property for Sale
9. Upgrade to a Deluxe Membership.
If you purchased a Standard membership and need more exposure then you should strongly consider upgrading to a Deluxe membership. A Deluxe membership gets an average of 7 times more exposure than the standard membership and you can then post up to 30 photos of your house.
Sometimes a few small changes can make a big difference in the amount of rentals you will receive! Good luck and remember we are always here to help you.
On a final note, this is the time to start getting your property looking fresh and in tip top shape. If you do not have the time or patience to do it yourself, call our friend Erik Hageman. He is a dependable, creative, very skilled and a reasonably priced PROFESSIONAL!
He does it all - Carpentry, Painting, Flooring, Decks, etc...
Call ERIK NOW!!! at 609-601-9036 or or e-mail him.
Share your secret! Do you know someone who needs help securing more rental income than ever before? Send them a copy of this email and if they sign up using your name as a referral, you will receive a discount of your next renewal.
"We Bring Owners and Renters Together!"
