How to Advertise Your Pittsburgh Rental Property Successful

As a landlord, your rental property is bound to be vacant at some point. And vacancies can be costly to your bottom line, especially over several months. You may be forced to look for funds elsewhere to pay for expenses such as property taxes, repairs and maintenance costs, and mortgage payments. 

When renting out your property for the first time or after a tenant’s lease has expired, you’ll want to start the marketing process as early as possible to minimize the vacancy period. 

Using yard signs only won’t be enough to give you great results. You may have a quality property, but the only way it’ll be able to attract long-term tenants is if you market it extensively. You’ll need to use a multitude of strategies to reach prospective tenants. 

A great marketing strategy is one that is able to attract a large pool of prospective tenants. When you have a large tenant pool, you’ll be able to maximize your chances of finding the most qualified tenant for your property. 

In today’s article, we’ll walk you through 4 tips on how to advertise your rental property successfully!

1. Take Great Photos

Over the years it has been proven that online listings with photos fare better than those without. And this is unsurprising, seeing that prospective tenants are more interested in seeing how a home looks prior to making a decision about renting it. 

But for the photos to be effective, you need to invest some time and effort into preparing the property and taking high-quality shots. 

But how do you start? Begin the process by staging the home. This will help prospective tenants envision themselves living in the property. To stage your home, consider the following: 

• Clean the home thoroughly 
• Remove all debris 
• De-personalize the space
• Spruce up the curb appeal 
• Repaint tired-looking walls 
• Wipe all windows so they are clear 

Once you’ve prepped the home, think about how you will take the photos. You should ideally work with a great camera but smartphone cameras, when used correctly, can also get the job done. If you’re planning on investing in a high-resolution camera, make sure you work with one that has a minimum resolution of 72 pixels.

Once you know what you’ll be taking the photos on, have the plan to stay organized. Consider the following:

Is the Lighting Right? 

You should take photos during the day when there is maximum natural light. If the weather isn’t too great during that day, then make use of the property’s lights. The goal is to make sure that the photos you take are going to be clear and free of harsh shadows. 

What Angles are You Going to Take the Photos From? 

Angles can also have an impact on the quality of photos you take. Take the photos from a corner for the widest vantage point. You don’t want to room to look too closed-in or warped. The photo needs to be an accurate representation of the scale of the room. 

What Rooms are You Going to Take Photos of? 

Have a shot list that includes all important rooms such as the bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen and appliances, dining room, living room, and outdoor area. You’ll also want to add any special amenities that you offer to the list.

2. Write Informative Ad Copy

Once you have some quality photos, match them with a well-thought-out description. Make the description accurate and engaging to capture the reader’s attention. 

Ad copy breaks into two different but equally important sections. The first section is the headline. This is the first thing that prospective tenant interacts with when they view a rental ad. If it doesn’t offer the right information, the prospect will keep on scrolling to another ad. 

The following is basic information that a headline must contain for it to be effective in attracting tenants: 

• Rental amount
• Number of bedrooms
• Number of bathrooms
• Property type
• Rental location
• One great selling point

This information will immediately tell a potential tenant whether or not the home fits their criteria. 

The other important section of a rental ad is the summary description. This section allows a landlord to finish telling their story. The following are some of the things that you can include here: 

• Unique features of the property 
• What the neighborhood is like 
• Important policies on pets, subletting, and smoking 
• The available utilities 
• The amount of the security deposit

Providing prospective tenants with such information will ensure that only people who are truly interested in renting your home fill out an application. 

3. Distribute the Rental Ad

Consider how prospective tenants are going to find the listing. If they are going to be looking online, then focus more of your attention on online advertising. Use sites like Redfin, HotPads, Zillow, Trulia, and Zumper. You can also post on social media if you’re looking to rent to younger tenants. 

If your target tenant demographic is likely to be looking offline, then focus on using yard signs, local bulletins, flyers, and posters. Next, monitor the performance of the ads. If calls from prospective tenants aren’t coming in, re-strategize your distribution process.

4. Hire a Property Management Company 

A reputable property management company can help create great ads that attract a large prospective pool for you to choose from. They’ll also be able to help with tenant screenings, rent collection, property maintenance and so much more. 

Bottom Line

As a landlord in Pittsburgh, you need to have great marketing skills to keep vacancy rates low. You need to prepare the space for tenants, take quality photos, draft engaging ad copy and maximize the distribution of your listing. 

If you still find this process daunting, DeSantis Property Management can help. We’re a quality full-service property management company in Pittsburg. Get in touch today to learn about our services!