7 Simple Tips On How to Make Your House Rent Ready

Looking to make a little passive income? Owning property is an amazing investment as it can always make money for you even without you having to do anything. You can simply sit back and enjoy yourself while your smart choices make the money for you. One of the best ways to utilize your property is by renting it out, which is something that countless Americans are currently doing.

But private renting your property is not as easy as it sounds. There are a lot of preparatory steps required before you can successfully rent out your property and have it ready for your future tenants. By taking these maintenance steps, not only do you increase the chances of renting it out, but also have the opportunity to increase your price and keep your occupants satisfied throughout their stay.

1. Book a Home Inspector

Why You Should Hire a Home Inspector

One of the easiest things you can do to ensure that your property is ready for rent is to hire a home inspector. These are professionals who specialize in finding all the faults and malfunctioning elements in your home, big or small. If there’s a problem or a potential one, they’ll let you know for sure. This should be the fundamental step in your process of preparing to lease an apartment or house.

Hire a home inspector and let them come in and survey your home inside and out. They will mark down whatever it is that concerns them or whatever could potentially become a problem. Once they have given you a full report of every possible issue that your property may have come across, it’s up to you to get everything in order — most likely with the help of other professionals. 

2. Mowing the Lawn

How a Tidy Lawn Boosts Curb Appeal

To you, it’s just a patch of grass, but to your potential tenants, the condition of your lawn is a demonstration of how much you care about your rental property. By leaving the lawn unattended and rugged, you’re showing your future tenants that you don’t really mind if your property is not properly taken care of. This can not only make it harder for you to find tenants but also may signal to them that they shouldn’t take proper care of your property either.

Doing something as simple as cutting the grass makes your home look more appealing and at its core; that is what you should be striving for. Not only is it pleasant to look at, but it also shows everyone that you care enough about your property to take good care of every inch of it. So get your lawnmower out and get to cutting, because even something as small as properly cut grass is going to leave a great impression.

3. Replace All the Lightbulbs

Why It’s Important to Replace Lightbulbs Before Renting Out Property

Talk about an embarrassing moment when you’re giving a potential tenant a lay of the land when you go into a room and the lightbulb doesn’t work. It’s a very small but noticeable error many landlords tend to make — and not a pleasant way to introduce your property to the person who’ll be living there for a while.

Sure, a burned-out light bulb is not too big of a deal and takes a minute to replace. But the point here is attention to detail. If homeowners can’t be more attentive to these kinds of minor problems, how can they expect the tenants to do the same? Go through all your rooms, every small closet, and every little nook in the basement or attic and check the light fixtures. Make sure they’re functioning properly and replace any burned-out lightbulbs that you find. 

4. Deep Cleaning the Interior

Why Deep Cleaning Is Crucial to Successfully Renting Out Apartment

This is by far one of the most time-consuming tasks is deep cleaning the entire interior of your home. Deep cleaning goes beyond simply doing it out of obligation — there’s nothing worse than looking through a home only to find a tiny bit of dirt somewhere. It can really put off tenants and make them question their deal with you. Even your home’s exterior may need an outdoor house cleaning if you live in an area with a lot of wind and rain.

Also, much like how you’d expect a hotel room to provide you with clean bedsheets and towels, a rented property should be the same. Your new tenants should find a completely clean home waiting for them, with no traces of previous occupants. This way they have a completely fresh start and feel at home the very second they set their foot into your property. 

5. Brighten Up the Lighting

The Benefits of a Bright Interior

Replacing burned-out lightbulbs is not the only lighting-related task you have as a homeowner preparing their property for new tenants. People have different preferences when it comes to lighting. Some people like their home to be dimmer as it helps them relax. But it is generally advised that it’s better to keep your home’s interior (and even exterior if possible) as bright as possible.

This has several key advantages. First, humans naturally react more positively to light. Of course, not everyone enjoys living in brightly-lit interiors and prefer the more subdued comfort of dim lights or no lights at all. But having bright lights can really help to set a more positive mood within your home. Secondly, there’s the matter of allowing your tenants to see what they’re going to rent. With bright lighting, your potential tenants can see all the subtle details of your home and gain a better sense of what they’re renting. So, if you really want to show off your home’s interior or exterior design, then keep the lights bright.

6. Paint Touch Ups

Why You Should Focus On the Tiny Details of Your Paint

Even the smallest chips in the walls are noticeable. Your walls may be in absolutely pristine condition with the paint looking fresh and newly done. But if there is even a tiny crack, chip, or smear on the wall, it will pop out, especially if you have bright walls. If you’re looking for an easy way to increase your monthly house rental price, then even these little touch-ups will go a long way.

A paint touch-up is a very simple DIY project that you can finish within a few hours. The one problem that you may come across is finding the right paint. Even if you have the exact same buckets of paint which you used to originally used, it is likely that the paint on the walls has become more muted; and by touching up the wall, the difference between the fresh and old paint will be quite noticeable. In this case, it would be a good idea to contact a professional painter as they know their way around touch-ups that are not as noticeable. 

7. Replace the Air Filters

How to Freshen Up the Interior by Replacing Air Filters

The air filters of your HVAC system are key to creating a comfortable environment for your tenants. Bad odors, dusty interiors, and other air-related complications can be a real nuisance, especially for tenants that don’t know who previously lived there and what the condition of the home was prior to them settling in. So, it’s important to ensure the air quality of your home is clean and ready to greet the new tenants.

Right before they come in, you can open up a few windows and let some fresh air clean out any odors or smells from your interior. But for a more long-term solution, changing the air filters is an effective way to make your home feel fresh and clean. It is generally recommended to change your filters biannually at the very least. But if you have new tenants who are ready to settle into your property, then changing it right before their arrival is a great way to prepare your home. Regardless of how busy the interior of your home is — be it a completely empty house or a fully furnished apartment for rent — the air must be clean for the full comfort of your tenants.