Why I love Rentals

For those of you who are maddened by why I still handle rentals when I loathe them so much, there are a few rays of sunshine. Such as:

1. I like to help people. Most agents don't handle rentals for the reasons I mentioned prior (plus a million others I didn't mention). However, there is nothing like a "Thank you, nobody else would return our call," from a grateful family. This grateful family tends to come back time and time again. They have friends too. All of their friends also need places to live. I have on more than one occasion helped a grateful family, got several referrals and then helped that same family buy a home. All because I was willing to drive over to a home one evening and open the door when six other agents wouldn't even return a phone call.

2. Free advertising! I just took a rental listing last Friday. My sign is proudly displayed in front of this cute home. My phone number is on the sign. So is my e-mail address.

3. Prospects: I am holding my rental listing open next week. Only one family can rent it. But there may be a few who can buy instead. There are also neighbors who will show up, wanting to know if I can help them. I have had pretty good success with this method. Two hours of open house has bought a lot of gallons of milk for Buckaroo and Polly. It also helped a few people buy their dream home a few months later.

4. When all goes well, it is easy work. What does all going well look like? First, the prospective and truthful tenants actually do believe the market is hot and there are multiple applications for properties. Second--and this is a biggie--the agent who listed the property actually CALLS ME BACK! Seriously, I want to reach out to some of these landlords and say, "You know the guy YOU HIRED to rent out your home? Did you know he doesn't work Friday through Tuesday? How many prospective tenants did you miss out on because he is too busy to answer a text message/phone call/e-mail?" Third, the prospective tenants don't need to see 16 homes but realize the market is limited. That helps. A lot.

5. When I don't have any other sales going on, it is better than nothing.

So, though I belly ache, I handle rentals because it is part of the business. I would like to think, that when I help others Karma will help me out with the rest.