Who doesn’t love the holiday season! December brings lots of great things, however, would-be homebuyers is not often one of them. New agents don’t need to panic—seasonal highs and lows are a normal part of the real estate market. The real estate industry is dynamic and always changing, after all! But, agents of all levels need to be thoughtful about how they spend the extra time during the slow homesales season. Here at Rental Beast, we want you feel ready to take on every part of the market, so, earlier this week we discussed the ways you can stay productive during the slow season.
Related: 9 Ways to Stay Productive in December
If you’re pressed for time, we’ll summarize a couple of main points: reassess your marketing schemes, analyze your performance, and take a little bit of time to enjoy the holiday season. One great way to stay productive while you wait for the home sales market to hit its seasonal peak in March is to work with winter renters. See why working with apartment-hunters hoping to ring in the new year in a new unit is a great idea!
1. Rentals always matter!
Here at Rental Beast, we believe in the staying power of rentals. Here’s some stats. A third of Americans, almost half of the US adult population, rent rather than buy homes; the rental market has $12 billion dollars in possible leasing commissions; 57% of all eventual buyers seriously considered renting, while 50% of all eventual renters considered buying. These numbers suggest that rentals can be an important part of an agent’s business, and that current renters are likely to become future homebuyers. The rental market is more secure than the home sales market, and rentals are important all year round. Although there will be fewer renters looking to make a move in the winter months, there’s still renters during the slow home sales season. It’s never too late to start working with rentals to generate income quicker and build a pipeline of future homebuyers. Get started this winter!
2. Winter renters are serious renters
Also, because of the urgency to move during the slow homesales season, renters hoping to find a new unit in the winter months will often be serious about finding a place to move (and fast!) If you’ve been burnt by unreliable clients before, you’ll know just how important it is to have a serious renter. Being stood up at showings is never fun; your client telling you that they really want to move in six months is not helpful. More serious renters are less likely to put you in uncomfortable situations like these or waste your time. Of course, you’ll still need to qualify your clients. Make sure to figure out your client’s correct budget, their move-in timeline, if they’ll be able to fill out an application, and if they’re already working with a real estate agent. Once you establish this, you’re ready to find them a home.
3. Build your book of clients, secure your income for next winter (and for a few more winters to come!)
The hard work you put during this December into generating leads, working with clients, and finding places they love will pay massive dividends next year. Set yourself up for sustainable success by working with rental clients this December. If they end up signing a year-long lease, next December, you can use an outreach scheme, and, if your client is ready to move, fill your pocket (again!) during the slow homes sales season. And, because renters hoping to find a new unit in the winter are often serious about getting into a new place, these are likely clients that you can establish important and lasting relationships with. Working with rentals is a great way to build a pipeline of first time homebuyers; get started this December.
4. With move-in specials, get your client into a home quickly
A huge benefit of working with rentals is that transactions happen at a much more quick pace than homes sales. Selling a home can take months, but rentals take place in a manner of days, putting money right in your pocket. Many landlords offer specials and discounted rental prices to entice the limited number of winter renters into their units. If you have a past client, or current client, let them know that these low prices won’t last long, and it would be prudent to act now during the the slow homesales season while seasonality keeps costs low.
5. Remember— there’s some big benefits to working with more limited inventory!
There will be less rental inventory in the winter. However, there’s some potential benefits to working with fewer rental units. Too much choice can be frustrating, and could potentially overwhelm you and your client. Limited inventory presents a known quantity that you can get acquainted with and be ready to match up with a client.
Remember, be clear with your client. Let them know that there’s limited renting inventory and that they might have to adjust their expectations accordingly. Clients hoping to move quickly will be able to compromise.
6. Brush up your outreach schemes
Does it sound like working with rentals this upcoming winter slow homesales season will feature into your business plan? Get ready to capture their business by brushing up your outreach schemes! It’s great to send an email letting your client know that you’re ready to help them with their next move, but don’t forget the benefits of using a personal touch. Try hand written cards, little seasonally appropriate gifts, or emails with some choice details to show that their business is personal to you.
Ready to start working with rentals? Rental Beast is the end-to-end leasing platform ready to simplify the whole leasing process and empower agents to make money with rentals. Rental Beast offers a database of over 7 million off-MLS listings, a full CRM, an easy rental application engine that processes credit scores in minutes. With our easy lead generation tools, you can mine your sphere of influence, and our lead qualification questionnaires make sure you only work with client you want to.
To learn more about the Rental Beast platform or to request a no-obligation demo visit Rental Beast for Real Estate Agents.