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Top Ways to Improve Resident Retention and Reduce Turnover

A rental property tenant sits comfortably on a couch in a stylish living room.
As a rental property owner, you’re aware that renter retention is critical for long-term success. Not only do high turnover rates increase costs, but they also compromise the stability of your investment property. Therefore, resident retention should be a primary priority for landlords and rental property owners. Fortunately, several simple and effective strategies can significantly influence keeping residents content and happy to renew their leases year after year. Here are our top methods for boosting resident retention and ensuring your properties stay profitable and thriving.

Strengthen Landlord-Tenant Relationships

Building a strong relationship with your residents involves more than just effective communication; it’s about establishing trust. This trust is essential for long-term retention, as it makes your renters feel valued and understood.

As a property owner, you can foster a strong relationship with your residents by consistently and positively engaging with them, creating open channels of communication, promptly addressing their requests, and checking in with them from time to time. While you don’t want to be overbearing, being responsive to your renter can help them feel like you care about their well-being and encourage them to stay in their rental home.

Routine Maintenance to Improve Appeal

Another key aspect of improving retention rates is maintaining your property. A well-maintained property not only keeps your renters happy but also reduces turnover by providing a comfortable living environment. Poor property upkeep is among the top reasons why renters leave, especially if their maintenance requests have been overlooked. Additionally, proactive maintenance can reduce costs by avoiding costly emergency repairs and showing your renter that you want them to live in a well-maintained property. This may encourage them to take good care of the property, which also preserves the value of your property.

Prioritize Quality Tenant Screening

Of course, finding renters who will take good care of your property is easier said than done. However, you can thoroughly screen your applicants before leasing. This screening process is not just important; it provides a sense of security, helping to determine if a potential renter is trustworthy, responsible, and a good match for your property. A quality screening should give a detailed overview of your renter’s finances, credit history, and rental history and alert you to any past issues. Make sure to ask for and verify their references, including previous landlords, any criminal history in your state, and any states where they’ve previously resided.

Incentives to Encourage Lease Renewals

A great way to encourage lease renewals is to incentivize your current resident. Unfortunately, many rental property owners exploit the lease renewal to increase their rental rate or impose restrictions that make their renter unhappy or unwilling to renew. While a rental rate increase may sometimes be unavoidable, it should be reasonable and supported by a description of the value the tenant will receive in return. For example, highlight recent property improvements, such as new appliances, enhanced amenities, or better security features. Consider offering your resident a small discount for renewing early, a free carpet cleaning, or even a minor unit upgrade, such as fresh paint or new fixtures. Even a small incentive can greatly contribute to making your resident feel valued and maintaining a sense of trust.

When to Call the Experts

These proven strategies can significantly improve resident retention, lower turnover costs, enhance property values, and create more stable, long-term tenants. Of course, managing a rental property and tenant relationships can be challenging and time-consuming.

 

At Real Property Management Viking, we understand that resident satisfaction is crucial for success. That’s why we use various strategies to boost resident retention. For expert assistance in Eden Prairie and nearby areas, please contact us or call 612-230-3953. Our team is ready to help you maximize your rental properties.

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