Three Ways to Help Your Tenant Save Money

 If you read the title and wondered how helping your tenant to save money would benefit you as the landlord/investor, you’re not alone. After all, this is supposed …

 If you read the title and wondered how helping your tenant to save money would benefit you as the landlord/investor, you’re not alone. After all, this is supposed to be about ways to best help real estate investors and landlords successfully maintain and/or invest in rental properties. 

However, when everything is spelled out, you cannot make a monthly income from your rental property if your tenants don’t have the financial means to pay. Therefore by finding easy methods to help them save money can increase your chances of receiving your rent on time and in full. Now that I’ve gotten you a bit more interested in the subject matter, let’s get right into finding savings.

1.  Include Utilities in the Rent

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Let’s say that on average the cost of hot water for your rental property is around $50 per month. Instead of leaving this expense to your tenants (especially since it’s a small monthly expense), you can simply cover these costs for the tenant. If you really have room in the budget, another utility that is popular to include would be the heat. Heat can really add up over the course of a winter season and therefore taking this burden off your tenant’s hands means they’ll have the financial means to pay you timely. This is not only a great way to help ensure your tenant pays on time, but it also looks attractive in a rental advertisement to get tenants interested in your unit.

If you’ve priced your rent on the lower end and really need the money from it to survive or invest in other areas, then there are other options that still allow the tenants to save on their utilities. For instance, if you’re in one of the states that have the “power to choose” their own electricity service provider, then you might bring this information to your tenant so that they can compare rates and save money each month. Localelectricitycompanies.com is a website that provides further information on the Power of Choice and why this may be beneficial to your tenant.

2.  Keep Up with Maintenance

Many new landlords (or very cheap landlords) don’t realize the significance of keeping up with the maintenance on the home and appliances within the unit. Waiting until your tenant reaches out to you with a concern can often mean that the issue is well beyond a few bucks to fix. Therefore, when it comes to various systems throughout the house or appliances make sure that you are timely in having them serviced on the annual basis to prevent the need for an expensive replacement or repair. Better Homes and Gardens provides a detailed list of the various things in the home that need to be maintained.

3.  Offer Incentives

If you’re really looking for a great way to motivate your tenants to pay their rent in a timely fashion, then the best way to do that is to offer little incentives. It doesn’t have to be anything major, but tenants love to take advantage of a deal. For instance, maybe every December if your tenant has paid their rent timely throughout the year, you could give them $100 off their rent at the end of the year. The holidays are usually the hardest times of year for tenants and landlords (as tenants often use rent money to purchase gifts, etc.). This incentive will be greatly appreciated, and if you’ve chosen a tenant with a great rental history, this may also be a great incentive to keep them in your rental property long term (which of course means continual income for you).

So there you have it…three ways in which you can save your tenant a little money that will ultimately end up back in your pocket. Sometimes the key to a long term tenant is developing a relationship that extends beyond the monthly contact for payment of rent. Whether you decide to implement one or all three of the above ideas, you’ll find that your tenant appreciates you just a bit more, and in turn will do what is required to maintain tenancy for the long haul. 

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