Renting out your apartment is tough enough when you are looking for long-term tenants. If you decide to offer it to tourists, you need to make even more preparations. Thankfully, by planning ahead, you can ensure safe and efficient collaboration.
When you rent an apartment to tourists, you can expect to get a higher rent. However, during the off-season, it may be tough to find tenants. Take advantage of the following tips to prepare for the upcoming rental process to get the best out of it.
1. Take Advantage of Rental Platforms
Airbnb is an excellent and highly convenient service for both property owners and tenants. Tourists from all over the world use it to find convenient and fairly priced options. Even though both you and your tenant would have to pay fees to use the service, the final price is likely to be satisfactory anyway.
Learn all ins and outs of using Airbnb in order not to get stuck with an unexpected expense or a poor review from a guest.
Other similar services to consider are VRBO and Flipkey.
2. Work Out a Schedule
This point is important for apartment owners, who plan to rent out the place they live in. It’s common practice to rent out a home when you are going on a lengthy vacation or business trip.
For that to work properly, you need to work out a schedule. Many tourists book apartments two to four months before the trip. If you are leaving next week and posting your home on Airbnb today, you are highly unlikely to find tenants.
Make sure you know your vacation dates in advance and make sure your apartment is listed as available for rent during these days.
3. Hire a Cleaning Service
Unless you are planning to clean the apartment yourself, you need to find someone, who will. You never know what condition you’ll find your place in when the tenants leave. Most likely, it will need a thorough cleaning.
Some rental websites, such as Airbnb, include the cost of cleaning in the final price for the tenant.
Depending on the service you hire, you may need to buy cleaning supplies and tools for the workers. Make sure your apartment is squeaky clean before the next guest arrives. Dirty rooms are one of the top reasons for poor reviews.
4. Check All Appliances
To ensure a safe and convenient stay for your guests, you should make sure all appliances are in order. According to experts from tampaappliancerepair.services, all heavily used household appliances require annual professional maintenance to work properly for as long as possible.
Since tourists aren’t always careful about using appliances you have in the apartment, you need to inspect them regularly to ensure they don’t leak. Every time guests leave, you have to check for damages.
5. Remove Your Belongings
Even if you live in the apartment you plan to rent out, make sure to remove as many personal belongings as possible. Tourists don’t enjoy maneuvering around hanging clothes, shoes, toys, etc. You should leave them free closet, table, and refrigerator space.
Imagine coming to live in a cluttered apartment. When you have to leave, it would be impossible to find your things. Tourists won’t appreciate that at all.
If you don’t have storage in your apartment, consider renting storage space. Think minimalism.
6. Lock Valuable Items
If you have valuable items that you need to leave in the apartment, make sure to lock them away. The best way to do it is to invest in a safe. Another option is to move your valuables to a friend’s house.
No matter how excellent the guest’s credentials and previous reviews are, it wouldn’t be smart to leave money, jewelry, and expensive gadgets out in the open.
Delicate items, such as china, photos, and decorations should be stored as well. Tourists may not be careful when walking around the room.
7. Consider Comfortable Beds
Most tourists come to the apartment to sleep. They spend the rest of the time walking around the city. That’s why the biggest impression they have of the apartment is how comfortable the beds are.
Make sure mattresses aren’t sagging, sheets are clean, and pillows are comfortable. Since preferences vary, you may want to have two sets of pillows (large and small) to satisfy the tenants.
Don’t forget to make the beds. Tourists are unlikely to appreciate doing it on their own. You may also consider providing extra sheets.
8. Provide Instructions
Always leave instructions for the guests on how to operate major appliances, access internet connection, and park the car. It’s also a great idea to have apartment rules ready for them to read. For example, no pets or no-smoking rule should be explained in advance.
You can also provide your tenants with useful information about nearby stores and restaurants (by the way, some of the restaurants may be grateful for a referral). Also, make sure they know all emergency numbers and the nearby hospital address.
9. Stock Tea and Coffee
When people rent an apartment, they expect to find tea, coffee, and sugar available to them as they would in a hotel. Stock up on them for first guests. With time, you’ll find that tenants tend to leave all kinds of condiments in the apartment. So you wouldn’t have to restock too often.
To make their stay memorable, you could leave water bottles, fruits, and a welcoming note on the table.
10. Offer Amenities
Don’t forget to provide your guests with the following items:
· Trash bags
· Dishwashing liquid
· Soap
· Toilet paper
· Tissues/paper towels
It’s tough to expect people, who just go off the plane, to bring all of the above with them.
The overall idea is to offer tourists a comfortable place to stay with all the necessary things readily available. If you follow the above tips, you can be sure both of you enjoy the rental process and get excellent reviews.
