As we head fast into the peak season, spring break is behind us and the summer rental season is beginning to book up quickly. If you have a rental in the Charleston area and a property manager taking care of it, now is the time to evaluate how well they’re doing. If you aren’t booked solid, there are likely some things that they should be doing to reduce your vacancies. These are just some ways that they can increase your foot traffic – but are they doing them?
Maintenance and Repairs
Springtime is maintenance season and if your rental property has not had any sprucing up, then that is a major concern. Your property management group has to be on top of your rental’s maintenance. If anything goes wrong during a rental period, it is not only frustrating for the renters who are there to relax; it can lead to poor reviews and ratings. You can’t stop repairs from happening, but maintenance is a much better way to prevent those repair hiccups that can put your rental in hot water with those looking for a stress-free getaway. How spring-fresh is your rental looking?
Images Make All the Difference
Nothing plays a bigger role in getting your rental booked than the pictures online. Since people can’t physically go and see the property, they have to trust that the images online are accurate. If they are misleading and the rental is not kept in the condition they see in the photos, that can lead to a lot of disappointment and the risk that someone will feel misled. In the same respect, if you don’t have a professional photographer who did the images and understands how to showcase them in the best light, you could be missing out on rental opportunities. When was the last time that your property management group invested in new photos to post online, and how good are they?
Marketing
In an era of VRBO and Airbnb, the rental market has become fierce, especially in coastal areas. Your property management group should be working to ensure that your rental is booked as much as possible. Summer rental season is an excellent time to take stock of your vacancy record. If it is high, especially post-pandemic, there is a real problem. Either your rental needs some major upgrades – or your rental property’s marketing efforts do!
Peak Season Rates and Getting the Max
Some property rental companies take a stab at what your rental price should be without giving it much thought. If you have a competitive rental in this atmosphere, post-COVID and when the market is flooded with tourists who are willing to pay top dollar, and you aren’t getting it, you are missing out on potential revenue. At Stay CVP, we have invested a decade of our time and resources in examining and collecting real-time data about trends, peak rental times, and competitive pricing strategies. Can you say that your property management company in Charleston is doing the same? If not, it’s time to make a switch!
As we head into summertime, never before has there been such fervor to find a place for a getaway! If you have a rental in the coastal area, you should be enjoying the tourism surge. If you aren’t, then you might want to explore how well your property management company is doing. It isn’t just about property management; being an excellent property management group means you have to wear many hats, and at Stay CVP, we wear them all. Contact us today to compare how we do against your current company!
