Home showings aren’t hard, right? After all, many people believe they’re essentially guided tours for prospective residents. Make the property look good, “sell” it with your presentation, and a resident falls into your lap.

Wrong! Showings only look simple. If a property manager does things the right way, a showing not only gets your home rented, it gets it rented to the best possible resident.

What’s the secret? A showing has many moving parts and must be managed “correctly” to be effective. While it is important to highlight the property during the showing, a showing is also the first step in managing prospective residents’ expectations and setting the tone for their entire rental experience. In other words, a showing must be approached from what we like to call “an owner mindset.”

What does that mean? It’s simple. Property managers must represent the owner’s best interest. That means being prepared, professional, and maximizing efficiencies at every stage of the game.

As you might have gathered, we at Haven Homes have strong feelings about how to conduct showings the right way. That’s why we’d like to share some of our tried-and-true methods that will get your home rented quickly and to the right person.

Here are just a few things we do to conduct a successful showing:

• Confirmation reminders – It’s important to make things as easy as possible for your potential applicant. For example, the day before the showing, Haven Homes always sends a text confirming the appointment. When potential residents reply, we send another text with the showing details and address so they have everything handy.
  
  It’s also important to send an email with detailed rental qualifications, information about the application process and costs, as well as needed documentation. Although we’ve already reviewed this information during an initial phone call, we find that this helps ensure applicants fully understand whether they are likely to have any barriers to qualification.

• Time to prep – We recommend arriving at the showing 30-45 minutes early to turn on lights, remove any visible yard debris to maximize curb appeal, adjust thermostats, open blinds, air out home, and identify or address any concerns, from a chirping smoke detector to a burned-out bulb. After all, if there are any bigger unexpected issues that can’t be rectified on the spot, a manager should proactively address them, as opposed to having a prospective resident bring it up.
• Well-stocked supplies – Our property managers are equipped with everything from spare batteries and bulbs to cleaning supplies to help every showing sparkle.
• Strategic scheduling – While it may seem obvious to plan your showings in a way that makes geographic sense, we’ve seen plenty of property managers scrambling on a showing day. Map out showings to minimize your time getting from property to property. This will not only maximize the number of viewings per home and minimize stress, it will ensure you have time to prep properly.
• Proactive, onsite application assistance – Make the process easy for everyone by encouraging applicants to apply right at the showing. The property manager should be knowledgeable about the rental application process and also come prepared with a laptop or other tools to help prospective residents navigate the process. While applicants can later digitally upload any needed documentation they may not have brought to the showing, just beginning the process on-site removes a huge barrier for application.
• Setting expectations – As we mentioned, the showing process is a great way to manage expectations. The first step is the confirmation email that welcomes the prospective resident to the showing and ensures they have a realistic understanding of whether they will qualify for the home. When they arrive at the showing, it’s the perfect place to begin to lay the groundwork so prospective residents understand what will be expected of them when they sign a lease.
• Carefully securing the home after a showing – Your investment property deserves proper care. Our property managers are trained to adjust thermostats, shut off all lights, close blinds and more to save the owner time and money, and maximize safety.
• Professional follow-up – The process doesn’t end when we say goodbye. An effective property manager sends out follow-up emails to let the applicants know the next steps to complete the application. They should always work with prospective residents to lower the barriers to entry and maximize the chance they will see the process through from start to finish

In short, a great showing maximizes time and effectiveness for everyone involved.

If you’d like to know more about the Haven Homes approach, download our checklist, The Comprehensive Guide to Effective Property Management.