6 Steps To Renting Out Your Own Property
6 steps to renting out your property! From advertising your rental to finding a tenant, signing a lease & more.
Simple Steps That Will Help You Master The Rental Process
There are six definitive steps that you can follow that will guide you through the rental process. These steps will guide you to success!
1. Advertise
When?
Start preparing the advertisement of your rental property 4-6 weeks before vacancy.
What?
Draft & publish your ad. You can find tips on taking photos of your property here.
2. Select
When?
As prospective tenants enquire, you will need to select a tenant that suits you.
Here are some tips on selecting the right tenant.
What?
a) Property Inspections
A great way to get to know prospective tenants is through conducting property inspections. You want to be sure that you are comfortable with the tenants you select, and that they are reliable. We have compiled a checklist that can be followed when conducting a property inspection that can be found here.
b) Conduct reference checks using the National Tenancy Database. You can run a tenant check through RentBetter.com.au for only $18. You can find more information on this here.
3. Contract
When?
As you move closer to the on-boarding process and your tenant has been approved after running the NTD check, you will need to start preparing the relevant documents.
What?
It's finally time to familiarise yourself with 'The Big 4'!
a) Guide: A guide or checklist provides the tenant with a range of helpful items that they should know or understand before signing a lease.
b) Lease Agreement: A residential tenancy agreement (or lease) is the legal contract and terms and conditions between the owner and the tenant.
c) Bond: A rental bond is a security deposit a tenant pays at the start of a tenancy which is then lodged with the state government agency.
d) Condition Report: This report records the general condition of the property, on a room by room basis, and is signed within the first 7 days of the lease by both the owner and tenant. Click here to watch how to easily create a condition report
It's also important to note that different states may have different requirements dependant on the government agency. You can find a state-by-state guide in our blog about 'The Big 4'.
4. Onboard
When?
Once the lease agreement is signed, it's time to onboard your tenant!
What?
At the beginning of the on-boarding process, it is very important to establish a positive relationship between you and your tenant. This will set you up for a smooth ride.
a) Be clear and concise when communicating with your tenant
b) Hand over the keys
c) Establish a payment schedule
d) Be open, and make sure your tenant knows what to do if something goes wrong or needs maintenance.
5. Manage
When?
After the lease date has commenced.
What?
a) Track and collect rental payments
When collecting rent, most owners will request a direct debit transfer into their bank account, or an automated payment schedule from bank to bank. While this can be very effective, there are two things it cannot solve:
i) If the tenant misses a payment, or pays an incomplete amount, you will need to be on top of bank transfers and payments to be aware this has happened.
ii) There is no agreed record of payment between landlord and tenant including a ledger and receipts for payment.
To track rental payments, it is often helpful to create receipts or a ledger to ensure that you keep a record of all collected payments. This way, you can be on top of outstanding payments.
b) Manage maintenance requests
It’s most likely that you will not be the one directly fixing the problem, and so identifying the right person to help solve it is the first step. Develop a relationship with reliable trade workers in the area of your investment property so that they are available upon request to solve problems quickly.
We recommend responding to tenant requests as quickly as possible so they immediately see how much you care about their wellbeing and your property. Act quickly and you will see the benefits.
c) Insurance
We recommend you to take out landlord insurance. It can cover you when the tenants do not pay, or if something happens to your property.
6. Complete
When?
At the end of the lease.
What?
a) Final routine inspection.
For information on how to conduct a routine inspection, you can follow this guide.
b) Bond return.
For more information on handling the rental bond, click here.
How can RentBetter.com.au help in the process?
RentBetter can help you find and manage tenants. Our customers use RentBetter to advertise on the major property portals (Realestate.com.au and Domain.com.au), and the RentBetter platform can also help to automate the process of rent collection, tracking, receipts and alerts and notifications.
There are also a number of additional benefits with maintenance tracking and reporting. You'll love the ability to save money and increase your level of control whilst managing your own property.
Click here to get started with RentBetter now.
