| If there was only one thing that you as a landlord | | | | on someone else's germ-infested carpet. |
| could do to guarantee you have your fair share of | | | | I know that many landlords have their own carpet |
| quality tenant choices, it is to make your dwelling as | | | | cleaning machines and prefer to take on this task |
| clean and eye appealing as possible. Tenants like | | | | themselves, therefore pocketing the savings. I tried |
| clean. Tenants want clean. And quality tenants will | | | | this too but was very unhappy with the results. It |
| pay for clean. (Quality tenants expect other things | | | | was a lot of work and I never seemed to get out |
| too. Go to my website at to find out what). | | | | the stains and dirt like the pros could. I mean, let's |
| Offering a rental that is cleaner, with more eye | | | | face it: they have better equipment and superior |
| appeal than your competition, will often be the edge | | | | knowledge to attack stains and other problems. For |
| you need to find quality tenants. This image begins | | | | these reasons, I recommend you use professional |
| with what is referred to in the industry as curb | | | | carpet cleaners. |
| appeal. Simply stated, curb appeal is how the | | | | .As you can probably guess, in addition to cleaning |
| property looks from the street. | | | | carpet, walls, and trims, extra effort should be used |
| Outside. | | | | in preparation of the kitchen and bathrooms. These |
| To achieve good curb appeal, I highly recommend | | | | rooms can make or break how your house rates on |
| spending a little extra preparation time on the front | | | | someone's clean-o-meter. Dirty kitchens and baths |
| of the house. Start with the yard. Cut back low-lying | | | | give tenant prospects illusions of germ infested |
| branches. Trim the bushes. Put in some hostas or | | | | environments and unhealthy living. Substandard |
| easy to manage seasonal bushes. Edge them out and | | | | cleanliness in these two areas is the surest way to |
| spread a little mulch around. Pick up loose trash and | | | | lose potential quality tenants. Thoroughly clean the |
| pull the weeds, especially in the cracks of the | | | | kitchen and baths and if you have any doubts that |
| driveway and sidewalks. Take time to grow grass in | | | | they are clean enough, clean them again. If the |
| the bare spots in the yard. Mow the lawn. | | | | thought of cleaning other people's messes repulses |
| On the house itself, start by washing down the | | | | you, hire it out. |
| exterior. If the house looks drab, splash on some | | | | While you are cleaning the house for display, don't |
| color by adding shutters to the facade. The | | | | forget those often overlooked, neglected areas: |
| easy-to-install shutters sold at most discount | | | | ceiling fan blades and lights, fingerprints around |
| hardware stores are inexpensive and will change the | | | | doorknobs and light switches, all vents and grills, |
| look of your rental with a minimal amount of effort. | | | | behind and underneath appliances, mirrors, windows, |
| If, after you add shutters, you still wish to add more | | | | window sills, and any other place you would normally |
| pizzazz to the dwelling, paint the front door the same | | | | forget to clean. |
| color as the shutters. To finish off the look of the | | | | Another thought to remember is when landlords |
| house, add a decorative flag or classy lawn ornament | | | | prepare their dwellings for rent, they generally |
| to give the place a little character. | | | | concentrate on the visual aspect of the task. Most |
| When you are done, step to the curb and look at | | | | people fail to remember that the sense of smell is a |
| your property as a whole. What you see is what the | | | | very powerful sense, especially in women. I |
| tenants will see. The very first thing they will see. Will | | | | recommend you remove all possible sources of |
| they be impressed, or will they walk away? | | | | unpleasant odors days in advance of the first |
| Inside. | | | | showing. It would probably be worth the effort of |
| Cleanliness inside the home is also extremely | | | | placing a couple of air fresheners around the dwelling. |
| important. Nobody wants to begin living in their new | | | | Try using the kind you plug into an outlet, which |
| home surrounded by someone else's filth. For this | | | | slowly release an attractive smell for up to a month |
| reason, everything needs to look, smell, and feel | | | | at a time. The key to success is to have the place |
| clean. Begin by making sure all walls, ceilings, and trim | | | | smell nice before a single tenant prospect walks |
| work is freshly painted, void of holes, and free of | | | | though the door. |
| cobwebs. Non-carpeted floors should be swept, | | | | I know that cleaning a rental to the standards I |
| mopped, and polished. | | | | recommend can be a lot of work. Personally, I dislike |
| Carpeted areas should be professionally cleaned | | | | it so much I hire it out. Even so, I know for a fact |
| between each and every tenant, no matter how | | | | that I consistently rent my dwellings for above |
| short their tenancy was. Carpets hold dust mites, | | | | market rents, to quality tenants, and I'm sure it is |
| odors, and about every other germ imaginable. | | | | because they always have superb curb appeal and |
| Parents hate the thought of their kids rolling around | | | | are extra clean. Please, take my advice; Go Clean! |